BCWA: Pipeline project needs state aid

Council endorses BCWA letter pressing state for funding

Posted 1/14/19

Allan Klepper stood before the Barrington Town Council on Monday night, Jan. 7, and tried to explain the situation facing the Bristol County Water Authority. 

Mr. Klepper, who is one of the …

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BCWA: Pipeline project needs state aid

Council endorses BCWA letter pressing state for funding

Posted

Allan Klepper stood before the Barrington Town Council on Monday night, Jan. 7, and tried to explain the situation facing the Bristol County Water Authority. 

Mr. Klepper, who is one of the three Barrington representatives on the BCWA board of directors, told council members that the authority was planning to send a letter to state officials requesting money for an extensive pipeline construction project.

Mr. Klepper admitted that the letter — BCWA was asking the Barrington Town Council to endorse the letter — was "another plea" for assistance from the state, adding that he was not convinced the state would answer the request.

"What are the chances of getting the money? I don't know," Mr. Klepper said. "But if we don't try, we won't get anything."

The letter details the two-phase project, and explains its importance.

The project will provide BCWA customers with a backup water source. Currently the authority gets its water from the Scituate Reservoir via the East Bay Pipeline, which runs under Narragansett Bay and connects to the Providence Water Supply. 

Mr. Klepper said a state law (RIGL 46-15.2) requires BCWA to have a backup water source. For many years, local reservoirs and wells provided the redundant source, but more recently water authority officials, citing numerous problems with those sources, created a plan to connect with the Pawtucket Water Supply Board. That connection, said Mr. Klepper, requires the local water authority to build a pipeline.

Mr. Klepper told council members that BCWA was hoping to work with East Providence officials to share part of the cost of the project, and in turn, the Pawtucket water would serve as a redundant source for both the East Bay and East Providence. 

But so far the project had not been warmly received in East Providence.

Mr. Klepper said East Providence held a meeting a while back where the initiative was attacked for political reasons. Mr. Klepper said "a plant in the audience" stood up during the meeting and raised a jar containing brown, dirty water. He said the man hollered out that Pawtucket water was no good. Mr. Klepper said the stunt was completely fabricated and Pawtucket has fine water. 

BCWA officials are now "treading lightly" with the request to East Providence officials that their city contribute money to the project. 

"We're trying to be as patient as we can be. We're not pressing on East Providence," said Mr. Klepper. "At some point they're going to wake up…"

If East Providence officials do not help fund the project, BCWA plans to reduce the size of the E.P. pipeline — from 8 MGD (million gallons per day) to 4 MGD — which would restrict East Providence from drawing water from the connection. 

Mr. Klepper said BCWA officials hope their letter to the state inspires officials to fulfill their financial obligation to the project — providing 50 percent of the $27.5 million project. 

In a recent interview Mr. Klepper added: "I'm not putting a great deal of faith that this (letter) is going to make a difference… Everybody hates Barrington."

Mr. Klepper said the project has been mired in political morass. 

He said that while there is support from East Bay legislators, there is also opposition from Providence senators and representatives. He said some of the opposition is based in misinformed fear that once BCWA has built a connection to Pawtucket it will no longer purchase water from the Providence Water Supply Board. 

He said that is not the case — emphasizing that this project is based solely on the need for a redundant water source.

"It's all political," he said, of the opposition.

Mr. Klepper said that the project will proceed, with or without state funding. The BCWA board member said that without state aid, BCWA ratepayers will need to shoulder the entire financial load. 

"It's gonna hurt, but you've got to have the utility," he said.

Why not keep old reservoirs?

Some people have criticized the water authority's earlier decision to abandon the local reservoirs and wells and pursue a separate connection.

Recently, Warren resident Barry Lial submitted two complaints to the attorney general's office, alleging BCWA officials ignored state law requiring the authority to keep and maintain its redundant sources of water in nearby Massachusetts. He wrote that the BCWA’s “negligence and incompetence” has caused serious environmental impacts on the Kickemuit and surrounding watershed, cost ratepayers money and left East Bay vulnerable with respect to its available sources of water.

Mr. Klepper said there had been a push years ago for the BCWA to abandon the local reservoirs because they provided "the worst possible water." He said reservoirs were being impacted by farmland run-off and seepage from septic systems, and that the water was difficult to treat and make potable. 

Mr. Klepper added that state was supposed to pay for the upkeep of BCWA's water treatment facility, but they never did. Over the years, the plant fell into disrepair, said Mr. Klepper.

"They (the state) have steadfastly refused to add any money to deal with the problems," he said. "We were keeping (the water treatment facility) alive on a monthly basis to provide fire suppression water. Now we're not even doing that. It's dead. Dead, dead, dead."

Council endorses letter

At the meeting on Jan. 7, Barrington Town Council President Michael Carroll urged Bristol County Water Authority board member Allan Klepper to explore federal funding sources for the BCWA's pipeline to Pawtucket project. Mr. Carroll also told the BCWA board member that the Barrington council would be willing to have a joint meeting with the councils in Bristol and Warren to address this BCWA project. A few minutes later, council member Kate Weymouth made a motion to have the council endorse the water authority's letter to the state. Steve Boyajian seconded the motion, which then passed 4-0. 

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