Golden Delivers $1 Million for Blue Hill Wastewater Treatment Facility

WASHINGTON — Congressman Jared Golden (ME-02) announced today that he has secured $1 million in dedicated funding as part of the 2023 appropriations government funding package for the Town of Blue Hill. The funding, which passed the Senate yesterday and is expected to head to the president’s desk for his signature this week, will be used to cover the cost of immediate improvement needs for the Blue Hill Wastewater Treatment Facility that is located on Blue Hill Bay, a tidal arm of the Gulf of Maine.

“When I visited Blue Hill earlier this year, I saw firsthand the need for repairs to the wastewater treatment plant.” said Congressman Golden. “I’m proud to secure this funding to help ensure that families and small businesses in Blue Hill can continue to rely on clean water and strong local infrastructure for decades to come.” 

“The Town of Blue Hill greatly appreciates the consideration for this substantial funding for its upcoming Wastewater Treatment Plant upgrade,” said Travis Jones, the Assistant Operations Manager Olver Associates. “The facility has had several upgrades over the years, but is now needing substantial additional investments in order to improve climate resiliency and make updates to equipment that is now over twenty years in service.  This funding is instrumental in assisting the Town in implementing improvements that were identified recently, when the Town’s Engineer completed an evaluation of the facility identifying significant improvements that need to be made to protect the facility from rising tides and other aging infrastructure concerns.”

“Blue Hill’s Wastewater Treatment Plant is in need of some very significant upgrades to combat both outdated equipment and current sea level rise,” said Dr. Nicholas Nadeau, the Town Administrator of Blue Hill. “Funding for this project is crucial in order to keep our wastewater plant operating so any consideration aimed at assisting is greatly appreciated. The short timeframe that these upgrades have to be made, coupled with the high cost of the project, create a complicated problem for the peninsula – we appreciate any and all the support we can get to see this through completion.”

The Blue Hill Wastewater Treatment Facility, located on Blue Hill Bay, opened in 1975. Recent rises in tidal levels have caused problems for the facility, and further rises in tidal levels are expected to exacerbate the problems in coming years. The facility is in need of immediate capital improvements, including funding for high-tide pumping equipment, in order to handle these impending issues. 

The request on behalf of the town of Blue Hill was one of the congressman’sCommunity Project Funding requests. Congressman Golden was the only member of the delegation whose request for funding was included in the year-end omnibus spending bill.

Golden met with local leaders and toured the Blue Hill facility in August.

The congressman’s funding will help support improvement efforts to alleviate the effects of aging equipment and rising tides and ensure that the Blue Hill Wastewater Treatment Facility may continue to serve the Blue Hill community safely and effectively. 

Read more about the Community Project Funding request Rep. Golden passed through the House here.

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