A proposal bringing the interested parties together to protect the Knickerbocker Lake Watershed isn't likely to succeed. Philanthropist and local businessman Paul Coulombe has offered his financial support in a community-wide effort connecting Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens to municipal water and sewer.

Coulombe offered to contribute $250,000 to the project. In return, he wants other stakeholders to pitch in money, too.

Two weeks ago, Coulombe contacted town of Boothbay, Boothbay Region water and sewer officials, and CMBG representatives and said, “Do the right thing for protecting the region's drinking water.”

Under the proposal, the town and Sewer District would each contribute $250,000. The Water District would seek state and federal grants. Coulombe estimated the parties would raise about $1 million, leaving CMBG responsible for the rest.

Coulombe made his proposal hoping CMBG would forgo constructing a leach field as part of a wastewater septic system within the Knickerbocker Lake Watershed. Coulombe is one of several opponents to the proposed leach field. He and several community groups favors connecting CMBG to municipal water and sewer.

According to Coulombe, his offer is about eliminating the financial burden to connect to municipal water and sewer. CMBG officials estimate it would cost $4-5 million and sewer alone is priced at $2.7 million. They had considered it, but opted against it.

“I'm really trying to give (CMBG Executive Director Bill Cullina) a way out with a better option in satisfying the needs of the community relating to the potential polluting of Knickerbocker Lake. It really is a win-win for everybody,” Coulombe said.

Cullina said his research shows the proposition is too costly for CMBG, and that, under the town ordinance, other property owners within the watershed would also have to connect to the system and assume the cost.

“I spoke to former Town Manager Jim Chaousis, three years ago, who told me he didn’t think the town could ever afford extending sewer and water to the Gardens. And I agree. It’s very expensive, and we have a system which does just as good a job, or better, but at lower cost,” Cullina said.

Even if Cullina believed Coulombe’s proposal was viable, it would be several years before sewer and water were available. CMBG’s financial obligations require the new visitor center to open by 2018, which means the expansion needs to begin now. Cullina met with several interested parties Feb. 11 to discuss alternative septic options.

“It’s generous of Paul to try to help out, but it still puts a big burden on the rate and taxpayers. It’s about a $2 million additional cost without providing a substantial amount of protection,” he said.

On Dec. 16, CMBG received planning board approval to begin phase one of its planned $30-plus million expansion, over community members’ pleas against the leach field's location.

Among the most vocal critics are the Boothbay Region Water District and CMBG’s Gaecklein Road neighbors Vaughn and Jodie Anthony. The Anthonys’ property abuts the facility on three sides. Both the Anthonys and the Water District appealed the planning board's decision.

The appeal will be heard at 6:30 p.m., Tuesday, Feb. 28 in the old town hall at the Boothbay Railway Village. Both appeals center on the planned septic system in the watershed.

Knickerbocker Lake is the region's secondary source for drinking water. The Maine Department of Environmental Protection lists the lake as at-risk from new watershed development. According to Boothbay Region Water District Superintendent Jon Ziegra, wastewater is extremely high in the primary nutrients, nitrogen and phosphorus, leading to algae bloom – a main component in the lake’s identification as at-risk. Based on information provided by the Water District, CMBG’s approved system removes only about 20 percent of the phosphorus and increases nitrogen levels 1,000 times the level found in a stream within 250 feet of the system.

Complicating the risk is the high elevation of the septic system's location relative to the watershed, resulting in water running downhill toward Knickerbocker Lake. Portland environmental engineering firm Wright-Pierce designed the septic plan. Besides the Boothbay Planning Board, the DEP and Army Corps of Engineers approved the proposal.

The Anthonys and Water District both contend the leach field poses an unnecessary risk to the region's water supply. They cite a lawsuit filed by Wolfeboro, New Hampshire against Wright-Pierce. In 2014, Wolfeboro won $6,795,000 in the suit against a Wright-Pierce-designed septic system. The suit cited the state's Consumer Protection Act.

“Most concerning is these systems fail, and failure means contaminated water,” wrote Ziegra.

Critics are also concerned about CMBG's ability to maintain its facilities. They point toward a septic failure of the site's wastewater system during the recent Gardens Aglow.

“Our understanding is this is due to a simple lack of routine maintenance. They are now assuring everyone this large, more complex system will be perfectly maintained,” wrote Ziegra.

Cullina described the proposed septic system as providing the same quality of treating wastewater as municipal sewer, but at a fraction of the cost. He said the proposed system's estimated cost is $700,000.

Cullina described the proposed leach field as only treating wastewater previously treated outside the watershed. He described the treated water as being 50 to 70 percent cleaner than what the Sewer District discharges into the ocean before being treated further on the leach field.

“I believe this level of treatment is unprecedented on the peninsula,” Cullina said. “This system will have monthly inspections, more if necessary, and tested by a licensed operator and set up two test wells downstream regularly testing treated water movement in soils.”

Since it began phase one, CMBG has been warned once by the DEP for environmental violations. On Jan. 12, after a site visit, the DEP determined there were inadequate erosion control barriers on three sites including one on Gaecklein Road.

When asked what happens if the proposed leach field fails, Cullina said it was an unlikely scenario. He believes sewer lines are also vulnerable to failure. Cullina referred to a January sewer line mishap in Kittery. A line running from Portsmouth Naval Shipyard and along U.S. Route 1 burst.“You could ask the same question what happens if a sewer main breaks down near the pond. Honestly, there’s more chance a sewer main breaking in the road and leaking raw sewage into the lake, than our system being a problem,” he said. 

Gaecklein Road resident Kevin Anthony said the expansion threatens not only the community's water supply but also his parents’ well and his. Kevin Anthony believes the planning board erred by not rejecting the proposal based on protecting the region’s water quality. 

During the Dec. 16 meeting, an independent report questioned the accuracy of how the DEP calculated allowable phosphorus runoff into Knickerbocker Lake. Wright-Pierce used guidelines which determined phosphorus runoff created by the expansion was within state guidelines. Boothbay hired FB Environmental, a Portland-based environmental firm, which concluded the calculation method underestimated phosphorus runoff.

Kevin Anthony also believes a lack of news coverage threatens “bigger and greater” problems within the community. He said the public is unaware how vulnerable residents are to bigger developments due to a lack of adequate ordinance protection.

“It's unprofessional and irresponsible for The Boothbay Register not covering this in a more thorough manner. This could happen in anyone's backyard in Boothbay,” he said.

The appeals hearing will follow the same format as the December planning board meeting. The hearing will be de novo, as if no prior one was held.

Town Manager and former code enforcement officer Dan Bryer isn't sure if the appeals board will decide Feb. 28. He expects the hearing will take around two hours with the board adjourning if it needs more information.