Project Management

Yarmouth Wastewater Project

The Town of Yarmouth is currently advancing a Comprehensive Wastewater Management Plan focusing on a centralized wastewater treatment facility located in Yarmouth. This facility will be located at the Water Department property at 99 Buck Island Road. The wastewater collection system is scheduled to be installed in 8 phases, with each phase taking approximately five years to complete. Project construction will also be aligned with MassDOT road work along Route 28 in order to realize significant cost savings for the project.

In 2019 Special Legislation was filed to form a regional wastewater partnership between the towns of Dennis, Harwich, and Yarmouth called the DHY Clean Waters Community Partnership. After years of discussion between the three communities through a DHY working group, no formal partnership materialized. Delays in approval of DHY by all three towns resulted in rising costs and condensed timelines for coordination with MassDOT. Because of these factors and the urgency to advance wastewater planning efforts, the Yarmouth Board of Selectmen voted in 2021 to have the town pursue its own wastewater treatment facility.

The Town’s current focus in wastewater planning centers on Phase 1 of the proposed wastewater collection and treatment plan. Phase 1 will encompass all of the properties abutting Route 28 and Old Main Street in Yarmouth, as well as the properties located on South Shore Drive. This phase will provide nitrogen remediation in all three impaired Yarmouth watersheds (Lewis Bay, Parkers River, Bass River) and also run through the town’s main commercial corridor.  

The Town previously worked to advance wastewater planning efforts in Yarmouth in 2011. Town Meeting rejected these wastewater initiatives due to concerns over the financial impact to residential taxpayers. As the need for wastewater infrastructure has only intensified in recent years, the Town has worked to identify new funding sources to advance wastewater planning efforts while not impacting the residential tax rate.