Massachusetts Water Resources Authority - Clinton Wastewater Treatment Plant Contract

This is a state performance audit of how the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority handled a contract to rehabilitate the Clinton Wastewater Treatment Plant from July 1, 2014 through June 30, 2016.

“In accordance with Section 12 of Chapter 11 of the Massachusetts General Laws, the Office of the State Auditor has conducted a performance audit of MWRA’s administration of its contract for the rehabilitation of the Clinton Wastewater Treatment Plant for the period July 1, 2014 through June 30, 2016.”

The auditors checked whether MWRA followed the rules, contract terms, and other requirements while managing the project.

“The purpose of this audit was to determine whether MWRA’s administration of this contract was consistent with applicable laws, regulations, contractual terms and conditions, and other guidance.”

MWRA provides water and sewer services to many Massachusetts communities, so how it manages wastewater projects affects public services and environmental protection.

“These responsibilities include, among other things, providing water and sewer services to 61 communities and approximately 2.5 million people in the Commonwealth.”

If you live in an affected community, this report says the project was completed on time, within budget, and the plant’s discharge complied with its permit during the audit review.

“Is CWTP’s wastewater discharge into the Nashua River compliant with the federal Clean Water Act and the Massachusetts Clean Water Act as outlined in the plant’s National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit?”

The auditors answered yes to the main questions: the work was done within the required time, within the approved budget, and in compliance with the discharge permit.

“Were all elements of the contract provisions for the Clinton Digester Cleaning and Rehabilitation project completed within the 730 days specified by the contract?”

The report does not list corrective actions or recommendations, because it did not identify significant reportable noncompliance.

“The audit revealed no significant instances of noncompliance that must be reported under generally accepted government auditing standards.”

The project upgraded equipment used to clean wastewater, helping the plant remove contaminants more effectively before discharge.

“In March 2014, MWRA awarded a $4.3 million contract to the RH White Construction Company for CWTP’s digester cleaning and rehabilitation project that included upgrades to anaerobic digesters and primary clarifiers, as well as the addition of new influent gates,1 which allowed CWTP to more effectively remove contaminants from its wastewater.”

MWRA is the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority; CWTP is the Clinton Wastewater Treatment Plant; NPDES is the permit program that limits pollutants discharged into water.

“The NPDES permit program was created in 1972 by the federal Clean Water Act to, among other things, regulate the amount of pollutants a facility can discharge into water under certain conditions.”