Update, November 3, 2026: The workshop was held October 21. The video, transcript and a summary are below.
Bristol’s sewer plant was designed to handle 20,000 gallons per day, but it’s maxed out at about 8,000. That’s only 40% of its capacity. The pipes and tanks aren’t the problem. The limit is the amount of organic material coming into the system, measured as Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD).
If Bristol can cut BOD by around half, we’d free up a lot of capacity for downtown business growth and keep the system sustainable. If we can’t, we’ll need costly treatment upgrades, and every sewer customer would share that cost. Reducing BOD at its source is the most effective and least expensive fix.
RCAP Solutions is hosting a free community workshop to explain how it all works:
Wednesday, October 21, 6:30 to 8:00 PM
Holley Hall, 1 South Street
Topics include:
- Why wastewater matters
- Wastewater basics
- Collection system 101
- How treatment works
- Inside Bristol’s sewer system
- Keeping the system healthy
VTM Engineering will also present the Main Street water line design for Bristol East.
Questions? Contact Joshua Lochhead at RCAP Solutions, (802) 461-6308 or jlochhead@rcapsolutions.org.
This workshop is funded by the Environmental Protection Agency.
Meeting materials and summary
Figures below are as the speakers stated them at the meeting. The video is the official record.
The system
Bristol’s downtown sewer was built in 1993 and runs entirely by gravity. It has 34 connections, homes and businesses, mostly along Main Street and South Street. Wastewater flows to a community septic tank on Basin Street and then to 8 leach fields.
The problem
The system is permitted for 20,000 gallons a day and receives about 8,000. The limit is not the amount of water. It is the organic load: food waste, solids, and fats, oils and grease, measured as biochemical oxygen demand (BOD). That limit also holds back new connections downtown.
The system is not failing, but it is at the threshold. If it fails, the first problem would likely be leach field lines plugging with fat and solids, which would back wastewater up into the pipes and buildings. No timeline was given.
The goal
Cutting the organic load by about half at the source would largely save the system, and that is achievable. The alternative is costly treatment, with the cost shared by the 34 connections.
What you can do
- Scrape plates and pans into the trash before washing.
- Use sink strainers.
- Let grease cool, put it in a can and throw it away. Do not pour it down the drain.
- Do not run very hot water (over about 140°F) through a grease trap. It melts the grease and pushes it further into the system.
- Keep wipes, diapers, paint and chemicals out of drains.
- Sugary drinks and beer are high-strength waste. Keep them out of drains when you can.
Grease traps: who does what
- Outside (external) grease traps: the Town pumps them and bills the cost to the business owner. The property owner keeps the trap accessible and working.
- Inside (internal) grease traps: entirely the property owner’s responsibility. Pump about every three months, or when the trap is 25% full, and keep pumping records. The Town can ask to see them under the Core Area Sewer Ordinance.
What happens next
More assessment is planned with VTM Engineering, VTUMS (the Town’s wastewater operator) and RCAP Solutions. The workshop was the start of that process. Several business owners said they had never received information about grease trap requirements. VTUMS said the way this information is shared needs to change so it reaches people.
Questions: Greg Faust, Town Administrator, TownAdmin@BristolVT.org or (802) 453-2410.
RELATED MATERIALS
– Flyer
– Letter
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