Politics & Government

Warren Town Council Chief Questions Pawtucket Pipeline Proposal

The Bristol County Water Authority wants to build a new pipeline to Pawtucket for a second source of water for Bristol County.

Warren Town Council President Chris Stanley sat in on the water authority’s pitch Wednesday night, Oct. 16, for building a new pipeline to Pawtucket for a second source of water for Bristol County. 

The presentation by representatives of CDM-Smith engineering and Bristol County Water Authority Executive Director Pamela Marchand raised a lot of questions that Stanley says need to be answered before he commits to supporting the $20.5 million project.

“It was sound advice and well-researched,” Stanley said of the presentation in an email to Patch. “Nevertheless, it stirred up a number of questions in my head that must be answered before the Town of Warren commits itself to the project”

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“Arguably, the plan ultimately abandons the Kickemuit River as a water resource and, as a result, will cause the facility located at the corner of Child Street and Serpentine Road to shut down as a treatment facility,” he said.

“While the overall project may prove fruitful for the BCWA, Barrington and Bristol, it may bring harm to the Town of Warren,” he said. “There are a number of, albeit self-serving, questions the Town of Warren may want addressed
relative to our economy and efforts to preserve open space and water sources.

Find out what's happening in Bristol-Warrenwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

“I have sent a letter to the BCWA requesting information relative to the questions that came to my mind,” he said

Here are Stanley’s questions to the BCWA.

1. Does the land surrounding  the Kickemuit River cease to exist as a protected
watershed even though it eventually flows into the Narragensett Bay?
2. Will the BCWA continue to own the land surrounding the Kickemuit River?
3. Will the BCWA continue to insure and maintain not only the land around the
Kickemuit River but other property and structures such as the dam visible from
Child Street and the fish ladder?
4. How does the abandonment of the Kickemuit River as a water resource impact
the PILOT?
5. Do covenants exist that prohibit the sale of BCWA property falling within the
Town of Warren's boarders to private developers? If so, are the agreement voided
if the BCWA no longer draws drinking water from the Kickemuit River?
6. How does this new plan impact BCWA's riparian rights relative to other water
resources in Massachusetts, such as the Shad factory?


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