Boil Water Order Lifted in Rockland, Questions Remain
Select Board Awaits Answers from Water Officials, Middle School Students Call for Greater Immigrant Inclusion
ROCKLAND - May 20 - The Rockland Select Board confirms the town's recent boil water order has been lifted, but questions about the source of contamination and notification processes remain unanswered. Meanwhile, two Rogers Middle School students presented a compelling case for greater immigrant inclusion in the community.
During Tuesday's meeting, Assistant Town Administrator Courtney Bjorgaard addressed the boil water order that was issued Friday and lifted Monday.
"We have invited the water superintendent for the Abington-Rockland Joint Water Works and the commissioners to come today. They are not able to join us tonight but anticipate being able to join us at a future, very near future meeting," Bjorgaard says.
The town has reached out with specific questions about the contamination source, notification process, testing protocols, and other concerns.
"We have an open invitation to come and address residents and the board as soon as they can," Bjorgaard adds.
Select Board member Steven O'Donnell emphasizes that the water department is a public utility, not a private business, addressing misconceptions about potential refunds.
"All funds that are appropriated and collected through your usage fees go to supporting our water system," O'Donnell explains. "If the joint water works were to do something like that, it would need to be paid for later, and that would be through raising rates in the future."
Select Board member John Ellard confirms emergency management professionals were involved behind the scenes.
"Just because we weren't announcing anything, that doesn't mean we weren't working on it," Ellard says. "The appropriate professionals were very involved behind the scenes."
Vice Chair Lori Childs adds that she spent the day fielding resident calls and questions.
"All hands were on deck at our water department to correct this as quickly as possible," Childs says.
Bjorgaard encourages residents to sign up for emergency notifications through the town website's "Notify Me" text alerts or through Smart 911 under the "How Do I" tab.
In another significant agenda item, Rogers Middle School students Alice de Oliveira and Kareen Fernandes presented their 8th-grade civics project focusing on immigrant inclusion in Rockland.
"Our topic that we chose is the inclusivity and involvement of immigrants in our community," de Oliveira says. "I moved here from Brazil five years ago in hope of a better, safe community, safe town, and that's what I found in Rockland."
The students conducted surveys among ESL middle school students and night English students, finding that over 40% of immigrants aren't involved in the community, while another 40% aren't sure about their involvement.
"A majority of immigrants and non-English speakers that took the survey agreed there should be more involvement in the community," Fernandes says.
The students proposed several solutions, including an international food night to bring cultures together and establish relationships within the community.
"It is a great way to bring and emerge cultures together and establish a relationship between our community and trust," de Oliveira explains.
Other recommendations include reaching out to churches like Holy Family to encourage volunteer involvement, increasing translated flyers, and finding a representative to work in town offices who can bring up issues and complaints from the immigrant community.
The students highlighted a recent communication gap during the water contamination issue.
"I was talking to some of the students in middle school, and they told us about how their parents didn't know sometimes. They had to come to them and tell, or they didn't even get the information," de Oliveira says.
Select Board members praised the students for their presentation and encouraged continued engagement.
"Don't feel as though town hall isn't approachable," O'Loughlin advises. "You guys don't feel as though you're a separate community. We want you guys to be part of our community."
The father of one of the students also addressed the board, expressing his family's love for Rockland and praising the school system.
"I would like to mention as a teacher for 20 years, me and my wife were teachers in Brazil for 20 years, and I love the history of Rockland and the United States," he says. "I really love that our community, Brazilian community, knows more about the school."
In other business, the board:
- Heard from Veterans Agent Tim White about Memorial Day ceremonies scheduled for Monday, May 26, at 11 a.m. at the Veterans Memorial
- Approved two Community Development Block Grant project cap waivers for critical health and safety improvements
The next Select Board meeting will include further discussion of the water contamination issue with representatives from the Abington-Rockland Joint Water Works expected to attend.
Thanks for the update 😀