Select Board votes to oppose MWRA Quabbin plan

Select Board · Meeting of October 27, 2026

Shutesbury's Select Board voted to formally oppose the MWRA's bid to pull 20 million gallons a day more from the Quabbin. The board unanimously approved a letter to the Massachusetts Water Resources Commission arguing the application violates the Interbasin Transfer Act by failing to name receiving communities, warning it would be "the largest transfer in the Interbasin Transfer Act history without substantiated demand." Members also signed a $150,000 Green Communities grant for elementary school energy upgrades and a $7,200 MassDEP recycling grant, accepted a dangerous-dog safety plan for a dog named Roxy submitted by owner Kristen Maddox, and renamed a planning panel the Ad Hoc Highway Department Access Review Committee. Jim Walton said of the dog plan, "it seems thorough." Walton was also named the board's representative to a new regional school agreement review committee expected to run two to five years.

In the full story:

• Executive Session and Opening
• Minutes and Routine Appointments
• Ad Hoc Highway Department Access Review Committee
• Grants and Contracts
• Winter Holiday Calendar and Maintenance Policy
• MWRA Quabbin Water Withdrawal Opposition Letter
• Roxy Dangerous-Dog Safety Plan
• Regional School Agreement Review and District Review Focus Group
• Friday Office Hours
• Meeting Schedule Changes
• 41 Cooleyville Road, Solar Fire Complaint, CARES Program, and Lake Wyola Committee Updates
• Who Was There
• Organizations And Documents Referenced
• The complete report: 3,220 words

Source: the Select Board meeting of October 27, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.

Checked against the record: before publication this article was automatically compared with the meeting transcript.