From Berlin, NH City Manager Patrick MacQueen at the 1/17/10 City Council Regular Meeting:

Looks like inmates could arrive beginning in March 2011 and ramp up until full in May 2012!

It is a reasonable schedule from our point of view and one we are reasonably sure we can accommodate and we have told them that. The handling of 60k gpd in July as shown on the schedule should be no problem because they currently have that authorization from us because of the temporary connection we made for them at the industrial park. This temporary connection takes their sewage under the river and down the west side of the river in existing pipe. By this June, the new pump station which is scheduled for completion at the end of May, should be able to be used in conjunction with the already constructed to force main to take all the sewage the BOP projects even when fully ramped up.

Any issue that there may be does not likely come from our ability to receive their sewage, but instead possibly from our ability to treat it and to not have it become part of a (Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) event. Even in these areas, we are feeling fairly confident, and are hoping that our I&I projects will prove to provide dramatic reductions in our I&I. However, if we have problems, they are likely to occur when we have an abnormal rain event (of which we usually have several each year) possibly combined with the necessary taking off line of a clarifier or aerator or the like during the construction of the WWTF improvements which will occur beginning this summer and continue at least through all of 2012.

The BOP is concerned about being told by us if a problem arises that they might have to reduce prisoners which would obviously be very difficult for them to do. Our concern is the possible difficulty in meeting our EPA permit requirements, which we sometimes have difficulty with now during large rain events, combined with the logistics of trying to carry out the needed improvements to the WWTF which will require taking certain of the facilities off line for periods of time to effectuate the improvements. What we are looking for from the BOP is some flexibility if need be in working with us in the ramp up, not by reducing the number of prisoners, but in perhaps delaying the ramp up if we foresee a problem developing.

We have already assured the BOP that we will be doing everything we can possibly do to accommodate their proposed ramp up on their schedule.