Wastewater Operations

Tisbury Wastewater Treatment Facility

The Town of Tisbury's Department of Public Works is responsible for the operation and maintenance of the Tisbury Wastewater Treatment Facility (WWTF), located at 155 Highpoint Lane, and the sewer collection system, located primarily in downtown Vineyard Haven between Main Street, Water Street, Lagoon Pond Road, and Beach Road. The sewer system was installed in 2004 to help mitigate the adverse effects of septic systems on Lagoon Pond and Vineyard Haven Harbor. The WWTF is approved for a maximum daily flow of 104,000 gallons per day and discharges its treated effluent into two leaching fields, located at the DPW building at 115 highpoint lane and behind the Tisbury Emergency Services Building.

State Road B2 District Sewer Expansion

For information on the proposed State Road B2 District Sewer Expansion, please see the downloadable PDFs on the left-hand tab, including a map and PowerPoint slideshow prepared by Environmental Partners.

To Property Owners

Please see the forms in the navigation for new user connections, abatement meter applications, increased flow applications, etc.

The sewer system serves approximately 130 residents and businesses in Tisbury, both by gravity flow sewer and low-pressure sewer force main. Each property owner connected to the force main is equipped with a grinder pump chamber. A blinking red light on top of the pump control panels will indicate when there is a problem with the grinder pump.

Please call the Communications Center at 508-693-1212 to report a flashing red light on your pump control panel.

Please do not flush anything but toilet paper!

The grinder pumps are not perfect, and can easily be clogged by non-flushable materials such as wet wipes, diapers, rags, feminine products, etc.

Property owners will be billed for service calls to their grinder pump stations caused by the flushing of these non-degradable materials, at a flat rate of $50 during daytime hours (7 am-4 pm, Monday through Friday) and $150 during off-hours calls.

Most emergency calls can be avoided by eliminating the flushing of all types of cleaning wipes, and removal of fats, oil, and greases. We ask that residents put these items into containers and into the trash rather than flushing or pouring them down the drain.

The Tisbury Select Board has approved the following fees to ensure the fiscal viability of the Tisbury Wastewater Facility and its associated collection system:

  • Approved Rate Schedule - Wastewater Department - September 12, 2017
    View Sewer Advisory Committee Memo
  • 0.0410 cents per gallon of wastewater (based on water consumption readings obtained from the Tisbury Water Works)
  • Quarterly Base Connection Fee: $50
  • Service Connection Application Fee: $200
  • Flow Increase Application Fee: $200
  • After-Hours Emergency Call: $250 flat rate
  • Business Hour Emergency Call: $ 75 flat rate
  • Abatement Meter Fee (Note 1): $300
  • Abatement Meter Annual Fee (Note 2): $50
  • 20 cents per gallon: Septage

Notes:

  • Note 1: The DPW will provide an abatement meter of their choice in all properties electing to use a meter. For existing abatement meter users, there will be no cost to trade their current meter for the new one. For new users, they will be required to purchase the new meter from the DPW. The meters will be allowed only for external use.
  • Note 2: The new abatement meters will be read remotely by our staff using an internet-based system. There will be an annual charge to users to cover the cost of this service.

New User Connection Fee

Applicable to any property new to the system and not already paying a betterment.

50% of the original total cost of the wastewater treatment facility and collection system is to be pro-rated for the remainder of the loan period and based on the assigned Title 5 flow rate for the property. In order to better manage bill collections in a timely manner, we also propose the following fees based on those adopted by the Tisbury Water Department.

Cost:

  • Late Notice Fee - $25
  • Interest Rate for Unpaid Balances - 14% annually
  • Demand Notice Fee (45 days) - $35
  • Lien Fee upon addition to real estate tax bill - $15

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us.