Desalinization Plant

New England's First Municipal Desalinization Plant

Location: Swansea, MA

Engineer: Prism Environmental, A Division of Hoyle, Tanner & Associates, Inc.

Value: $15,097,677

Address: 298 Vinnicum Road, Swansea, MA.

What is Desalinization? Click here for info.

New law gives desal, police station projects a boost

Project - The Swansea Desalination Project at Vinnicum Rd. is headed by John Divincenzo, Supt. Waterline Industries Corp. Photo by Omar Bradley 3/7/08

Mike Pottle, a carpenter with Waterline Industries Corp. prepares to build a form wall at the Desalination Water Treatment Facility off Vinnicum Road Swansea. Photo by Omar Bradley 3/7/08

A view of the Swansea Desalination Water Treatment Plant off Vinnicum Road Swansea. Photo by Omar Bradley 3/7/08

By Jay Pateakos
Herald News Staff Reporter
Mon Mar 10, 2008, 10:42 PM EDT

Swansea -
The bill to enable an exchange of land that would allow Swansea to build a new police station and the Swansea Water District to construct a number of desalination plant buildings was signed into law by Gov. Deval Patrick on Friday. The law allows for the exchange of land between the two town entities with the town securing 5 acres of land adjacent to Fire Station 4 on GAR Highway in which they plan to build an 18,000-square-foot police station. The Water District, which secured 5 acres of land at the former Mason Barney School site, is the location where they plan to build a desalination pumping station and 1 million gallon water storage tank.

The bill, An Act Relative to an Exchange of Land in the Town of Swansea, is now on the Massachusetts law books as Chapter 52 of the Acts of 2008. The home rule bill was filed by state Rep. Steven D’Amico, D-Seekonk, on behalf of Swansea voters last October and was co-sponsored by state Rep. Patricia Haddad, D-Somerset, and state Sen. Joan Menard, D-Fall River, who helped push it through the House and Senate. “Because some of the land owned by the water district was purchased with state conservation funds for watershed protection, we had to ensure that we met requirements set by the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs. Otherwise, they might have advised the governor to veto the bill,” said D’Amico.

“Since we worked closely with them before filing the legislation, we got the bill through the Legislature and off the governor’s desk with no problems.” Town Administrator James Kern, who is also a member of Police Building Committee, said the bill is a “big step” in the process of building a new police station to replace the current, rundown station on Gardners Neck Road.
“It was definitely more involved than we had initially expected, to be honest,” said Kern. “We appreciate all the help we have received from our legislators.” Kern said if all goes well, the Police Building Committee will go to the May Annual Town Meeting seeking funds to complete a final design on the police station now that the site is a definite and will move forward on a debt exclusion vote in November to pay for the station, which must come by ballot vote.

While Water District Superintendent Robert Marquis has been used to waiting since first starting his desalination proposal in 2002, the law will allow the land to transfer with only one last step left in the process. Massachusetts Department of Environmental protection must hold a public hearing on the land exchange, but Marquis said there doesn’t appear to be any issues that would cause that to be a problem. “I’ve been told that a number of these have been filed that were contentious, but that was not the case with the Swansea transaction,” said Marquis. “This was 5 acres of water supply land that was being transferred for 5 acres of water supply land, a fact that was instrumental to the decision, and that the land will be used to construct a public safety building made this even more attractive.” But Marquis’ wait isn’t over yet. Although they are now free to begin work on the Mason Barney site after the DEP public hearing is held, the desal project is still in need of approval from the MassHighway geo-technical division, who must approve of the boring the Water District plans to do under Interstate 195 to link the desalination pipes. Marquis said the proposed April 2009 completion date for the desalination plant is in MassHighway’s hands. Seeking to expedite the process, Marquis reached out to Dominion Energy, who had already bored underneath I-195, but what he heard was not encouraging.

“They had to wait a long time for MassHighway’s approval,” Marquis said.
Despite the impending holdup to link the desalination plant, Marquis said that the physical plant, being constructed at the intersection of Vinnicum Road and Warhurst Avenue, is on schedule.

The plans are to pipe brackish water out of the Palmer River, just north of the Miles “Bungtown” Bridge, where it will travel 2 miles across parts of Route 6 and I-195 before arriving at the desalination site. The plant aims to create 1.2 million gallons of potable water each day.