BRIDGEWATER - The Town of Bridgewater is grappling with a severe water crisis that has forced the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) to declare a formal Water Supply Emergency, officially issued on December 11, 2025. For weeks, residents have faced brown, discolored, and sometimes “pitch black” sludge flowing from their taps, contaminating everything from showers to laundry.
Town leaders admitted at a heated town council meeting that the crisis is the result of neglecting the water system infrastructure for a decade, with full resolution estimated to take up to two years. Water Superintendent William Young has publicly assured the community that the town is working diligently to improve critical water infrastructure “with the utmost seriousness”.
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The Double Threat: PFAS and Neurotoxic Manganese
The crisis is characterized by two distinct threats: highly visible aesthetic failure and invisible chemical contamination.
1. The Silent Threat: PFAS6 The town’s drinking water violates state regulations due to excessive levels of PFAS6, a group of man-made “forever chemicals”. Massachusetts sets a Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL) for PFAS6 at 20 nanograms per liter (ng/L). Recent monitoring has consistently shown levels above this threshold, with some sources reporting quarterly averages between 21 and 26 ng/L.
PFAS exposure is associated with serious health effects, including changes to liver enzymes, elevated cholesterol, suppressed immune response (reduced vaccine efficacy), complications during pregnancy, and an increased risk of kidney and testicular cancer.
2. The Neurotoxic Danger: Manganese Beyond PFAS, water testing revealed dangerously high levels of naturally occurring manganese. Manganese levels in Well 10B exceeded the MassDEP advisory level of 0.3 mg/L, with samples showing 0.357 mg/L. Independent testing commissioned by residents showed spikes as high as 2.04 mg/L, a level 680% above the health advisory limit.
This poses a particular neurotoxic risk to infants under one year old, who should not consume water exceeding 0.3 mg/L for more than ten days total in a year.
Crucial Safety Guidance: For all residents, officials warn that boiling water is dangerous in this context because evaporation concentrates both PFAS and manganese, making the water more toxic.
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The Cause of the Brown Water: Infrastructure Collapse
The widespread brown water is caused primarily by high levels of iron and manganese sediment that has accumulated in the antiquated, approximately 130-mile distribution network.
The current acute crisis was triggered by a critical drop in water volume within the town’s two primary storage tanks, threatening fire suppression capacity. To maintain pressure, the town was forced to activate the compromised “Well 10B,” a source known to contain high manganese concentrations. The resulting high-volume pumping aggressively scoured years of accumulated iron and manganese sediment from the pipe walls, sending “brown sludge” directly to residents’ faucets. Due to drought conditions, routine flushing that would normally remove this sediment had been suspended for years, compounding the issue.
Residents expressed profound distress over the visible water quality, reporting white clothes ruined in the wash and crying over the inability to perform basic tasks, such as showering or preparing food during the holiday season.
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Town’s Response: Immediate Relief and Mandatory Bans
The Town of Bridgewater, in coordination with MassDEP, has implemented several urgent measures to address the dual crisis of quantity and quality:
• Do Not Drink Advisory: Sensitive populations, including pregnant women, nursing mothers, infants, and immunocompromised residents, are advised not to drink or cook with tap water.
• Water Kiosk: A free, self-service BlueDrop vending kiosk is available 24/7 at 151 High Street (Highway Department). This machine uses advanced filtration to provide drinking water tested as “non-detect” for both PFAS6 and manganese.
• Mandatory Conservation: A total outdoor watering ban is strictly enforced, carrying fines of $50 for the first violation and $100 for subsequent violations. Residents are also urged to limit indoor water use by taking shorter showers and running appliances only when full.
• Emergency Interconnection: To increase water quantity and reduce reliance on contaminated wells, the town is finalizing an emergency supply interconnection with neighboring Middleborough. Middleborough approved the temporary sale of 250,000 gallons per day to Bridgewater, expected to begin flowing in early January 2026, at a cost of 1.5 times Middleborough’s highest residential rate. Residents in several specific neighborhoods have been warned that this temporary connection may initially cause water discoloration due to resulting changes in water flow and pressure differential in the pipes.
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The Long Road Ahead: Two Years of Capital Improvement
Town officials maintain that the long-term fix will center on modernizing the town’s water infrastructure, a process estimated to take up to two years.
Addressing Brown Water and Manganese (Immediate Priority): The primary infrastructure focus is the construction necessary to integrate Wells 10A and 10B into the new High Street Water Treatment Plant. This integration is crucial because the treatment plant will remove the iron and manganese that cause the discolored water. The Town Council approved a $7.5 million loan authorization for this transmission line and pump upgrade project. Town Manager Justin Casanova-Davis stated that engineers are finalizing drawings to put the work out to bid by the end of 2025 or early January 2026 to expedite the process.
Addressing PFAS (Long-Term Filtration): PFAS remediation requires complex filtration solutions, such as Granular Activated Carbon (GAC). The town has planned future capital projects to add PFAS removal capabilities to both the Carver Pond and High Street Treatment Plants, with remediation efforts currently estimated for completion by 2029.
Funding the Fix: Residents are already feeling the financial impact; new Fiscal Year 2026 water and sewer rates were announced to fund the necessary infrastructure upgrades. The multi-year capital plan includes over $12.8 million funded by water debt, which is serviced by these increased water rates. Town officials, including the Town Manager and Town Council members, are actively seeking state and federal grants and earmarks, arguing that citizens should not bear the entire cost of rectifying a decade of governmental neglect. Town Councilor Adelene Ellenberg also reported confronting Governor Maura Healey about the severity of the crisis, noting the Governor was initially “unaware” of the plight.
The town recognizes that this convergence of chemical contamination, supply shortages, and deferred maintenance means clean, reliable tap water will remain a challenge for the foreseeable future. Town Council President Johnny Loreti affirmed that the water quality discussion will remain on every council agenda until the problem is fixed, highlighting the commitment to finding immediate relief and seeing the two-year plan through.
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UPDATE: Bridgewater Secures $2 Million State Water Grant, Votes for MBTA Compliance to Protect Future Funding
Bridgewater, MA – December 16, 2025
Just days after the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) declared a Water Supply Emergency, the Bridgewater Town Council took several critical actions at its December 16 meeting, approving zoning changes to maintain access to state funds while simultaneously announcing a major financial victory for the town’s infrastructure repair efforts.
Town Manager Justin Casanova-Davis revealed that the town has been notified it will receive a $2 million non-repayable grant earmarked specifically for water infrastructure improvements,. This grant will augment the multi-million dollar capital plan already approved.
Meanwhile, local officials are rapidly executing plans to mitigate the immediate crisis, including accelerating infrastructure work and implementing a de facto moratorium on new development.
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Compliance Vote Secures Grant Pipeline
In a deeply contested 7-2 vote, the Town Council approved the final zoning ordinance amendment (DFY 26-001) necessary for compliance with the state’s MBTA Communities Act. Councilors who supported the measure stressed that the vote was necessary to protect the town’s eligibility for state grant funding across various infrastructure categories.
Opponents argued that complying with a state mandate for housing development during a severe water crisis was reckless, especially given that the neurotoxic manganese levels in the water pose a public health risk. However, faced with the state’s track record of withholding funding from non-compliant communities, the majority deemed fiscal survival paramount.
The Council also moved to formally protest the state’s current municipal funding model by voting to draft and send a Resolution (FY 26-006) to Governor Maura Healey and the Massachusetts Legislature, advocating for increased municipal aid, infrastructure investment, and state partnership. Town Councilor Adelene Ellenberg previously reported confronting Governor Healey about the severity of the water crisis, noting the Governor was initially “unaware” of the issue,.
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Mitigation Efforts Move Forward
Town Manager Casanova-Davis provided several concrete updates on short-term and long-term mitigation plans:
• Emergency Water Connection Secured: The town has officially signed an agreement with Middleborough for an emergency water supply interconnection. This temporary connection, designed to supply 250,000 gallons per day, is scheduled to begin flowing in January 2026. The imported water will aid in proper system flushing and maintaining tank storage capacity.
• Mobile Filtration and Acceleration: The town is actively pursuing two measures to treat its existing supply: deploying a temporary mobile filtration trailer to treat Well 10A and 10B water, and utilizing emergency procurement measures to accelerate the project linking those high-manganese wells to the new High Street Treatment Plant.
• De Facto Development Moratorium: Though no formal moratorium was legislated, the Town Manager affirmed that the current critical supply levels prevent the connection of any new, non-approved development projects to the municipal water system. Residents previously asked for a moratorium on all new building until water issues are resolved,.
• Future Infrastructure Planning: In response to resident questions, DPW Director Azu Etoniru confirmed that although the full water main replacement on Flag Street was deferred due to lack of budget during recent road work, if funding becomes available, new water mains could be installed using a parallel piping method on the shoulder of the road, thus avoiding the need to dig up the recently paved street.
Sources for this article include: Town of Bridgewater, NBC10 Boston, Boston 25, Nemasket Week, and AI Deep Research tools
