Single-family homes and commercial facilities discharge different types and amounts of solids

LYNDON —  Single-family homes and commercial facilities discharge different types and amounts of solids into the sewer system. Now the town may bill them differently. To address that, the Select Board heard plans for a Sewer Ordinance change to charge users according to their “contributions” to the town’s daily wastewater flow of 150,000 gallons. Justin Smith explained the proposal in layman’s terms. Unlike single-family homes, some commercial users (e.g. brewers, cheese makers) dump by-products into the system that require more processing time and resources. When crafting the proposal, wastewater treatment facility manager Rodger Sheldon developed a cost-per-pound to treat biological discharge. Commercial users would be charged more based on the time and resources necessary to treat their waste.