Area aquifer, neighborhood water system are hot topics

PAUL DAVIS Journal Staff Writer
The Providence Journal. Providence, R.I.:
Jul 27, 2004

NORTH KINGSTOWN - The town is seeking $1.4 million to clean up its water.

The money is needed to replace an aging tank and pump chlorine into pipes that serve 16,000 people.

Both measures are expected to stop bacteria from growing in the town's low-lying areas, where some residents in recent years have had to boil their water before using it.

"It's an issue that's on everyone's mind," said Town Councilman Anthony F. Miccolis Jr. "It's very important to have clean water for our residents."

Some residents have different worries.

Five council candidates have asked Town Manager Richard Kerbel to make sure a proposed West Warwick casino won't steal water from the town's aquifer.

The Democrats -- Sue Henseler, Jonathan Bertman, Edward Cooney, Jonathan Shippee and Edward Whittaker -- are concerned that the Kent County Water Authority also draws water from the Hunt River Aquifer, which supplies water to the town and the Economic Development Corporation at Quonset.

Because Harrah's Narragansett Indian Casino could draw on the town's water supply, an answer is needed quickly, Henseler said.

Harrah's wants to build a $600-million casino in West Warwick's business park near Route 2. The 115,000-square-foot casino would feature 3,000 slot machines, 100 tables, four restaurants and a 500- room hotel.

Yesterday, Sen. Lincoln Chafee visited the aging Juniper Hill water tank and promised to seek $1.2 million in federal money to replace it.

The 65-year-old tank has been the site of several contamination problems.

Earlier this year, some 7,000 residents were ordered to boil their water for six days after health officials found coliform bacteria in two samples, one of them from Juniper Hill.

The town drains one of its five water tanks every year. But the Juniper Hill tank has been a problem site, usually in the late summer or early fall. "We've drained it, cleaned it and chlorinated it," said Susan E. Licardi, the town's water director.

Part of the problem is the tank's old design, which holds water in an upright column and leads to stagnation.

Last August, the Health Department ordered the town to come up with a plan to clean its water system after traces of animal waste and other bacteria were found in the Juniper tank.

In addition to the $1.2 million tank, officials will spend $200,000 to pump chlorine through the area's pipes to keep bacteria from growing.

Officials will submit a plan to the Health Department in the next few weeks and then ask companies to bid on the job. The treatment will probably be done in the early fall.

The money could come from a state clean water fund, rate fees or elsewhere, said Kerbel. "We're always looking for other sources of funding."