PROVIDENCE - The Rhode Island Water Resources Board Corporate (“Board”) recently made available $250,144.20 to the town of Westerly to be used for water main replacements and the elimination of dead-end water mains. These funds stem from the issuance of revenue bonds in 2002 for the RI Public Drinking Water Protection Program that the Board administers. The $250,144.20 is the first installment of a total allotment of $360,789.00 for Phase III of the program. The check presentation will take place tonight at 7:30 PM during the Town Council meeting at the Town Hall located on Broad Street in Westerly, Rhode Island. “We’re excited and look forward to delivering these monies to the town of Westerly”, said Kathleen Crawley, Acting General Manager of the Board. “These funds will help the town’s water department make necessary water quality improvements to the water system and further protect the public’s health and welfare”, added Ms. Crawley. “The monies will be used to replace old, tuberculated water mains with new, larger pipes and eliminate dead-ends, which is essential to ensure the town’s ability to provide good quality water to its citizens,” said Joseph Turo, Esq., Town Manager of Westerly. “This project is part of an ongoing mission to protect the system’s water quality and would not have been done as quickly and as extensively without the assistance of the state Water Resources Board,” said Mr. Turo. In total, the town has received over $1.6 million under this program.
“We’re proud of the accomplishments this program has realized through collaboration between the Board’s committees and Rhode Island’s water quality protection community,” said Ms. Crawley. “The program’s objectives of protecting the quality and safety of the public’s drinking water supply not only for today, but also for future generations of Rhode Islanders, is ongoing and builds on the successes of Phase I & II of this program”, added Ms. Crawley. In the first two phases of the program, $18,343,382 was used for watershed protection and water quality improvement projects, preserving over 2410 acres of open space. The Rhode Island Water Resources Board Corporate has, as one of its’ objectives, to protect the quality and safety of the public drinking water supply by providing revenue bonding for the acquisition of properties surrounding watersheds and for water supply facilities for municipal water suppliers.