Montville — The Water Pollution Control Authority and Town Council this month approved the 2022-23 fiscal year water and sewer budgets.

The WPCA water budget is $1,810,650, an increase of $495,350, or 27%, over the 2021-22 budget, and the sewer budget is $6,471,075, with a 31%, or $1,993,075, increase. The WPCA budgets are completely separate from the town's budget and are funded by grants, ratepayers and connection and receiving fees. All revenue collected by the WPCA must be used for capital improvements, maintenance and operating costs.

Derek Albertson, superintendent and acting administrator for WPCA, attributes the increases over the previous year's budgets to increased revenues. During the first and second quarters of 2021, the WPCA saw a drastic decrease in revenues due to the coronavirus pandemic, but revenues since have increased to just below pre-pandemic levels.

The increase in revenues will be used for capital improvements laid out in WPCA's five-year plan, replacing equipment that is at the end of its life span, rebuilding pump stations, continuing education and training, and a strengthening of cybersecurity in light of a March 22 letter from the state Department of Public Health to community water systems addressing the heightened risk of cyberattacks and increased ransomware attacks on municipalities.

The WPCA has, over the last month, increased already ongoing training in threat awareness, changed all passwords and is making modifications to its remote access system.

Albertson said each workstation is a standalone unit and "we're not networked, so the spread of a (computer) virus isn't really possible ... we have an improved firewall configuration that is brand new so that (makes it) very difficult for third-party intrusion." WPCA is confident that the water and sewer systems are well equipped to avoid cyber-related interruptions of service, but improvements to security are an ongoing expense.

The WPCA has applied to DPH's Health Drinking Water State Revolving Fund for funding through the American Rescue Plan Act to construct a new water tower on Cook Drive in Uncasville for an anticipated net-zero impact to the current budget.

The proposed tower, estimated to cost between $1 million and $2 million, will be 93 feet in height, with a diameter of 34 feet, and will hold approximately 620,000 gallons of water for a combined weight of 2,600 tons. Testing, which included core sampling, at the site began in March and determined that the depth, thickness and integrity of the bedrock were found to be adequate to support the weight of the new tower.

Investigation of the site began in March and involved testing the quality and depth of the bedrock. Through core sampling and other assessments. Core sampling was conducted at three test sites, where drilling to 10 feet determined that soil depth to bedrock is 2 feet. The depth, thickness and integrity of the bedrock were found to be adequate to support the weight of the new tower.

The proposed water tower will be composed of glass-fused steel, a composite material that has high strength and resistance to corrosion, and will require "literally no maintenance with a 40-year life," Albertson said Wednesday. "We are going to leave the existing tower as empty, but it's going to support antennas for emergency management, and police and fire." The new tower will provide "a reserve of water, but also ... more water pressure to support the fire suppressant systems" townwide.