With water resources at a premium, "green" plumbing systems are becoming more popular. For example, Local 12 signatory contractors and plumbers have been installing waterless urinals and syphonic roof drainage systems that harvest rainwater for landscaping irrigation. And, among the miles of piping that J. C. Cannistraro installed at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro was a 14-inch gray water main that captures wastewater from sinks, urinals, and toilets, routes it to an onsite treatment plant, and sends the recycled water back to the stadium's bathrooms for flushing toilets and urinals.

The system has been a big hit with environmentalists--and with the Krafts, who have been reaping savings on their water and sewer bills at their stadium. Now that the Krafts are developing Patriot Place, a 1.3-million-square-foot mixed-use project adjacent to Gillette Stadium that will include a hotel, entertainment venues, shops, a medical facility, and restaurants, their plans call for expanding the stadium's wastewater recycling system to incorporate the new project.

After Local 12 Business Agent Harry Brett discovered that the general contractor for the project awarded the new wastewater piping work to a contractor affiliated with the Laborers Union, however, he contacted Foxboro's plumbing and gas inspector, Michael Eisenhauer. The Massachusetts Plumbing Code defines the work as plumbing and requires that licensed plumbers install the piping. After reviewing the work together with Taylor Roth, the investigator for the State Board of Examiners of Plumbers, Eisenhauer determined that the pipes had been installed by unlicensed workers, did not have the required permits, and had not been inspected. He ordered that the pipes be removed in August 2007.

When the contractors did not comply, Eisenhauer and the town of Foxboro filed a civil suit, and both sides ended up in court in December 2007 to resolve the dispute in a four-day trial. The Norfolk Superior Court judge determined that the dedicated wastewater recycling system at Patriot Place was, in fact, under the purview of the state's plumbing code and that the work must be performed by licensed plumbers. The project has since been turned over to Local 12 contractor, E. M. Duggan.

"This is great news for plumbers," says Brett. "And, it's great news for the people who will be coming to Patriot Place. With the potential dangers posed by cross-connections and other mishaps, it's important that licensed plumbers do this work and protect the public."

Local 12 Business Manager Kevin Cotter adds, "The court's ruling sets a precedent for wastewater recycling projects. We've seen general contractors and owners try to cut corners and ignore the law before. They won't be able to ignore it any longer."