Due to the tens of millions of dollars in upgrades the aging sewer plant would need, the seawall option would have cost about as much as building a new plant off the island, Plant Superintendent Robert Lalli on Oct. 29 told the first meeting of the selectmen-appointed Wiscasset Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP) Outreach Advisory Committee.

 Lalli said the plant’s equipment is 30-plus years old. “Things are wearing out.”

And he said whether or not people believe in climate change, the plant has been “barely able to handle” the big rainstorms of recent years. And in high tides with full moons and no storms, water recently lapped up onto the grass and was “threatening” to go onto the driveway, he said.

Selectmen started the committee after voters in June took back a November 2024 nod toward moving the plant to public works. Selectmen passed an action plan Oct. 6 to study the town-owned land near Mason Station as a potential site for the plant and still field offers from other property owners. 

Leading last week’s meeting, Selectman Cassaundra Rose said the committee’s “really diverse” membership was by design. According to everyone’s introductions, town documents and Wiscasset Newspaper files, members’ experience ranges from working for Maine Department of Environmental Protection to being part of the citizens’ group whose efforts led to the June ballot question over the move to public works. 

“This committee was brought together to make sure that we are hearing from a variety of perspectives, (including) people who’ve got expertise, but people who also have a lot of questions … So this group is here not only to share your perspectives, but to help give that lens to different parts of our community and bring that all together to help the selectboard and town … put forward a proposal that has buy-in from the entire community,” Rose said. 

She took this committee model from her time with the Governor’s Office of Policy Innovation and the Future, where she worked on statewide climate planning. 

“That (model) worked really well. And so we're gonna road-test that a little bit here and I also hope that we are going to figure out how better to engage the community and communicate with everybody, because that will really help the town communicate with all of our residents, all of the time, on a lot of issues, which is a persistent challenge.”

The committee made James Crowley chair, Shannon Babcock vice chair and Dennis Wehrly secretary.

Rose noted the action plan the selectboard passed last month calls for an up to 12-month process to pick a site for the town to consider. She told the committee it will be asked to review information, identify community concerns, and provide recommendations and feedback, without replacing any of the authorities involved.

Crowley said they at some point need to talk further on what that all means, “because I can see where there are plenty of possibilities (for) diametric interpretations … This is complex and completely thorough, but I think it bears some dissection.”

Rose agreed it is complex. She will see if Town Manager Dennis Simmons can take part in the committee’s next meeting, tentatively set for 6 p.m. Nov. 19 at the town office.