KEYNOTE: CAPACITY - for what?
Juli Beth Hinds
Very often we hear that "capacity" - usually wastewater treatment capacity - is a limiting factor for Vermont's villages and towns in coping with economic, social, and environmental issues. But what do we mean by "capacity"? Is wastewater capacity really the tail of the proverbial dog for our towns and villages? When it comes down to it, a community doesn't need any wastewater management if no one wants to live there. So often, limits on wastewater capacity arise from limits on community capacity. The capacity to define and move towards community growth and character; the capacity to talk honestly and openly about changing demographics and political preferences; the capacity to push beyond 'the way we've always done it' are capacities that must be developed before wastewater even becomes relevant. This conference is a chance to challenge ourselves to think beyond the mechanics of capacity, to the 'heart and soul' issues that make wastewater an issue in the first place, and think of wastewater in service of helping to create community in Vermont.

THEME 1
WASTEWATER BASICS: PROBLEM DEFINITION AND ASSESSMENT
Planning for Wastewater Treatment:
Community Needs, Visioning, and Resources (Amy Macrellis & Juli Beth Hinds) [10:00-11:30]
Why does wastewater treatment matter? Does our community even have a problem? How do we start, why do so many wastewater planning efforts fail, and where can we turn if we need help? This workshop will focus on local capacity building and on encouraging wastewater management-not just sewer management-as a community function. The speakers will talk about WHO is likely to be a part of any wastewater planning effort, WHAT roadblocks are likely early in the process, and HOW to get past them and achieve community goals.

Decentralized Wastewater Basics:
Knowing Your Conditions and Getting to a Solution (Mary Clark) [1:30-2:30]
Before you can understand whether you may have a problem or not, you need to know a bit about what onsite/decentralized systems need for soil and site conditions in order to function properly. Then look at your community's physical, environmental, and social conditions and needs, including assessing local political and process (administrative, financial, maintenance staff, etc.) capacities. Once this information is compiled and understood, both in terms of existing systems and interest in growth, you can move to considering the range of potential solutions, including individual systems, pretreatment technologies; small and large cluster systems, and extensions or upgrades of existing centralized sewers, as well as the long-term management needs of each of these options.

New Trends in Wastewater (David Cotton and Dr. Mark Gross) [2:45-3:45]
New trends in wastewater will be discussed including whole water approaches, contaminant management, energy efficiency, and community growth and social needs, all leading to regulatory and funding changes. This session will take a look into the future, what is happening in other states, provinces and internationally. With concerns for climate change, concepts such as water efficiency, green infrastructure, and decentralized wastewater treatment are coming together to create a unified environmental and community approach.

THEME 2:
A PATH TO SOLUTIONS
Wastewater Success Stories (Moderator: Peg Elmer; Panelists: Carol Steinfeld, Shanna Ratner, Terry Sevry) [10:00-11:30]
Despite the challenges facing many Northeast communities when it comes to implementing effective and economical wastewater treatment strategies, a number of communities have successfully addressed the issue head-on. Moderated by Peg Elmer (Land Use Institute - Vermont Law School) with panelists David DePorto (Ecological Engineering Associates), Steve Levy (Maine Rural Water Association), and Terry Sevry (Rochester, Vermont), this workshop will present wastewater success stories from around New England, including decentralized systems from Maine, indirect discharge systems from Vermont, and a solar aquatic system from Weston, Massachusetts. How did community leaders garner public support for these projects? How did these communities overcome logistical, funding and management obstacles? These are the types of questions that will be answered in this workshop.

Wastewater Problem Solving:
The Small Town Experience: Waitsfield, VT (Moderator: Cindy Cook; Panelists: Brian Shupe, Valerie Capels with Don Robisky, Dexter Lefavour, and Robert Adler) [1:30-2:30]
The residents of Waitsfield, Vermont recently failed to pass a bond vote for a centralized sewer system. Waitsfield's experience is representative of many New England town's experience; eager to promote higher density development and economic opportunities, but limited by wastewater management capacity. In "Wastewater Problem Solving: the Small Town Experience", two Waitsfield representatives, Brian Shupe (Chair of Waitsfield Development Review Board) and Valerie Capels (Waitsfield Town Administrator) will present Waitsfield's experience. This will be followed by a panel response from wastewater experts Don Robisky (Environmental Engineer- Vermont Agency of Natural Resources), Dexter Lefavour (Lefavour P.C.), and Robert Adler (EPA), who will provide constructive insight on the next steps a town in Waitsfield's position could take in tackling their wastewater challenges.

Mediation:
Community Decision Making with Wastewater Treatment (Cindy Cook & Will Stevens) [2:45-3:45]
This workshop explores the use of mediation and facilitation in resolving community wastewater disposal issues and will discuss several real-world examples of the effective use of mediation and facilitation as well as lessons learned from these cases. This session will be interactive and tailored to the interests of the participants.

THEME 3:
DETAILS OF WASTEWATER SOLUTIONS: TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AND FINANCING
Operations at Your Community Facility and Fiscal Responsibility (Wayne Graham, Shaun Fielder, and Liz Royer) [10:00-11:30]
Vermont Rural Water Association will offer a 1 hour roundtable discussion on various items associated with fiscal responsibility for a community wastewater facility. Topics to be discussed include proper budgeting, full cost pricing, and planning options to insure adequate capital for future sustainability. A number of VRWA staff will be involved and audience members will have an opportunity to participate in the discussion.

Funding and Technical Assistance (Don Robisky, Tom Clark, and Rhonda Shippee) [1:30-2:30]
This workshop will explore the funding and technical assistance issues involved in working with members of committees and communities as well as agencies to strategize various solutions and their feasibility using available resources in a non-standard approach. What have been the successes and disappointments of other communities? Demonstration projects and pilot studies will be presented and it will be illustrated that more technical solutions are approvable now than in the past. We will also investigate the various options involved to make funding packages materialize when funds are scarce; how do we work with businesses and other community assets to create an acceptable rate structure to pay for decentralized projects? Educational strategies to achieve community support, including forming neighborhood local study committees and designing informational attitude and interest surveys will be discussed.

Governance Alternatives for Wastewater Problem-solving and Management - Beyond Municipalities (Craig Lindell and Tom Moreau) [2:45-3:45]
Small and rural communities have been subject to the same rules as larger communities with respect to wastewater management. However, a new generation of technologies and a new civic consciousness with respect to water quality and supply, quality of life, economic development and revenue generation for the community itself are revealing new insights into investing in infrastructure. When smaller entities group together to pool resources, significant saving could be realized. This new range of considerations properly considered can have a dramatic influence on the reduction of infrastructure costs. Releasing the potential of infrastructure to pay for itself has to do with local leadership and trust and an understanding of how to use both governance and market forces to their mutual advantage.

THEME 4:
DECENTRALIZED TECHNOLOGIES
Applying Decentralized Technologies (Pio Lombardo) [10:00-11:30]
With a brief overview of Cluster Wastewater Planning Process, Pio Lombardo, P.E. will describe examples of cluster wastewater systems he has engineered during the past 35 years for municipal and private clients. The cluster system types will range from small number of homes to business districts to small-medium (hundreds of connections) and large (thousands of connections) community-wide systems. The described cluster systems will include locations with environments similar to Vermont with challenging soils, shallow bedrock and high groundwater to sandy soil areas. Additionally, water reuse and "No Discharge" cluster systems and nitrogen and phosphorus removal will be described. Examples of public financing as well as public-private partnerships will be briefly presented.

Dispersal Options (Dan Ottenheimer) [1:30-2:30]
This session will cover what drip dispersal means for on-site wastewater and the benefits of using this innovative technology for wastewater disposal, water re-use, and other applications. Drip dispersal has been used in the U.S. and Canada for the past 25 years. Sites to be considered for drip dispersal, advantages to using drip dispersal, design techniques, installation methods, and how it compares to conventional wastewater disposal will be covered in the session. Cold weather techniques for proper operation and use in shared or cluster system will be discussed as well.

Operation, Maintenance and Management are Essential (Bruce Douglas) [2:45-3:45]
This session will provide an overview of operating and maintenance needs of traditional, advanced treatment, and cluster wastewater treatment and dispersal systems. The presentation will be focused on the type of information that municipal officials need to know when they are making decisions regarding evaluation of alternatives for the utilization of these systems.

THEME 5:
BEYOND WASTEWATER: ECOLOGICAL DECENTRALIZATION
Ecological Wastewater Treatment:
A Global Perspective (Steve Whitman) [10:00-11:30]
Human waste is an issue for individuals and communities around the globe. Join Steve Whitman for a tour of several ecological approaches to waste management that will include dry and wet composting, constructed wetlands and other environmentally appropriate technology. In each case the impacts to the environment are reduced, and opportunities are created to satisfy other community needs. Don't ignore or export your waste! Build soil, recharge groundwater, save energy, and recognize the role of human waste in the local nutrient cycle.

Ecological Wastewater Recycling Systems (Carol Steinfeld) [1:30-2:30]
In New England-and worldwide-ecological wastewater systems are increasingly used to provide advanced treatment while providing resources: from water to food, fuel, and fiber. See 20+ examples of wastewater systems that do double duty as landscape, power whole cities, fertilize groves of trees and farm fields, grow biomass for electrical generation, and recycle water.

Creative Compost Solutions (Brenden Shea) [2:45-3:45]
The training session will begin with an introduction to splitting the waste stream. Brendan Shea will provide an opening to Composting Waste Treatment and Greywater Nutrient recycling. While discussing the system design process examples of different composter models and their varying capacities will be covered pertaining to residential, commercial and public facility usage. Specific installations and an explanation of how these sites utilized composting and/or greywater filtering systems to satisfy local requirements will be discussed, along with the advantages of utilizing these systems. A question and answer session will follow.

LUNCHTIME SESSION
Lunch is divided into three time slots. If you are interested in attending the on-site wastewater demonstration presentation you will need to attend the last lunch session, which begins at 12:45. Please indicate which session you plan to attend and pick-up appropriate ticket from the registration booth on the morning of the conference.

DEMONSTRATION SITE
Gordon Reynolds, P.E., Associate Professor & Chair, Civil & Environmental Engineering at Vermont Technical College will give a 45 minute presentation of the wastewater demonstration site on VTC's campus. Learn how septic tanks, dispersal systems, and other on-site wastewater treatment systems operate.