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For decades, a well that was first drilled in the 1970s provided water to residents of the Merritt House condo complex in Harpswell.
But that changed about seven years ago, when saltwater from nearby Casco Bay started entering the supply. Residents found that the water coming out of their taps had a funny taste, and minerals built up in their dishwashers and other appliances.
“It was worse than hard water. It was beyond hard water,” said Jeff Christie, a seasonal resident who bought a condo there around the time the intrusion started.
Residents tried to give the well a rest, but it didn’t work. Now, Merritt House residents must collectively pay around $500 per week to get water delivered.
Once dense ocean water enters the fractures in the bedrock that provides drinking water for many residents of peninsulas and islands along Maine’s coast, it’s almost impossible to remove.
While that has long been the case, there are two factors that could now be worsening the problem. Sea levels are rising as a result of climate change, making it more likely saltwater could enter those fractures. And changes in housing development in towns such as Harpswell could also be increasing the demand on the groundwater supply, making it easier for the saltwater to flow in.
Now, given those risks, state officials are starting a project that’s meant to better assess saltwater intrusion in the midcoast and beyond. Jessica Meeks, a hydrogeologist with the Maine Geological Survey, is working with residents of Harpswell, Westport and Southport to track the salt content in their wells over time.
In an interview, Meeks said she’ll place monitoring instruments in wells that can provide live data on water temperature, depth and salinity. More than 100 Harpswell residents attended a meeting that Meeks held earlier this month in which she described the project and sought their help.
“Through these community engagements, I end up interacting with people and learning so much about the history of development and land use, water use,” Meeks said. “It’s truly collaborative.”
The topic of saltwater intrusion is being discussed more as housing issues emerge in coastal Maine towns. Just beyond the midcoast in Blue Hill, many residents are opposed to the proposed subdivision of a blueberry barren into house lots, in part because saltwater intrusion is already affecting the area.
In Harpswell, where the population is not growing, the challenge has partly been that older, smaller homes are being torn down and replaced with larger ones that use more water, according to Conservation Commission Chair Mary Ann Nahf.
Nahf speculated that seasonal residents who are moving in may not understand the unique stress that they can place on the groundwater, when they may come from bigger communities with seemingly endless water supplies.
“We’ve had a turnover of population where we have many people coming from out of state … even in state, who have been on a public water system their whole life,” Nahf said.
According to locals’ observations, saltwater intrudes into about two wells in Harpswell per year. Large tanker trucks will start to deliver water to the affected homes and businesses.
Eventually, Meeks hopes to expand her research to additional communities, with the ultimate goal of helping to guide state and local policies.
At the same time, officials in communities such as Harpswell are working to encourage more conservation of groundwater to reduce the risks of saltwater intrusion.
Some of that work is happening at the Orr’s-Bailey Yacht Club, which is close to the Merritt House condo complex.
Lee McIlvaine, a geologist and seasonal Harpswell resident who is on its board, said it has installed a special sensor to detect leaks and monitor water usage. It has also posted signs in the bathrooms urging people to use less water and may add salinity testing to its annual maintenance.