Memorandum

To: Co-Chairs of the Infrastructure and Utilities Sub-Committee of the Governor’s Commission on the Economic Diversification of SE CT

Thank you for inviting Southeastern Connecticut Water Authority (SCWA) to submit a proposal for project funding under your listed category of, “Develop new water sources in the region that will meet the water demands of future development in the region”. Attached is a proposal to implement a series of projects to assure that Southeastern Connecticut has an adequate supply of quality drinking water. Each of the proposal’s component projects are identified as priority projects in the Southeastern Connecticut Regional Water Supply Plan (June 2003).

SCWA’s Regional Water Supply Plan projects a ten-million gallons-per-day water supply deficit in Southeastern Connecticut by 2040, unless new supplies are added. SCWA has been reviewing this matter with other stakeholders as well and has determined it would be advantageous to develop additional supply in the next three to six years to provide approximately four-million gallons-per-day. Implementing the attached proposal would meet this short-term objective as well as meeting the region’s long-term supply needs.

Thank you for considering this proposal. SCWA believes that having available a sufficient supply of safe public drinking water and the associated infrastructure is an absolute prerequisite for any enhancement of the diversity and scope of our region’s economy. Conversely, not being able to meet current and future water needs of our region will grievously hamper economic development, retention, and recruitment. Please do not hesitate to contact me with any questions or comments.

Southeastern Connecticut Water Authority

Response To Request For Proposals

From

Governor’s Commission On The Economic Diversification of SE CT

Infrastructure and Utilities Sub-Committee

Title of Proposal

Develop infrastructure to assure the region has an adequate supply of quality public drinking water.

Summary Description

To implement a series of public water supply infrastructure projects to circumvent the projected future public drinking water shortfall of ten-million gallons per day.

Background/Context

In 2003, as required by Public Act 02-76, Southeastern Connecticut Water Authority (SCWA) developed and approved the Regional Water Supply Plan (RWSP), which was accepted by the state of Connecticut Water Planning Council. The RWSP was completed with the assistance of Fuss & O’Neill Consulting Engineers, through a very public process, involving several public meetings and a Technical Advisory Committee. The Technical Advisory Committee, comprised of high-level personnel from eight (8) water utilities in the region, contributed greatly to the development of the RWSP.

Developing the RWSP involved an analysis of the potential to more fully interconnect and integrate the region’s water supply system, including identifying potential additional sources of public drinking water. The attached map, entitled “Regional Network Of Water Supply Systems Within Southeast Connecticut”, dated May 29, 2003, depicts a potential, integrated regional water supply system for the region.

The RWSP also analyzed future water supply and demand for the region. As shown in the next section of this proposal, entitled “Rationale”, the RWSP projected that a water supply deficit will start occurring between 2010 and 2020, leading to a shortfall of ten-million gallons per day by 2040. Implementing this proposal would eliminate this projected shortfall by adding an estimated 14.5 million to 18 million gallons of supply per day.

The RWSP recommends implementation of a series of projects to enhance the region’s water supply and management capabilities. The majority of these projects are depicted on the attached map entitled, “Higher Priority Recommended Projects, Southeastern Connecticut Regional Water Supply Plan”, dated May 29, 2003. The proposed projects are as follows:

1. Develop Miller’s Pond in Waterford into a public water supply reservoir.

Developing Miller’s Pond in Waterford into a public water reservoir would add to the region’s water supply an estimated yield of up to 5.0 million gallons per day (MGD).

Diverting water from Hunt’s Brook, which is the tributary for Miller’s Pond, is identified in the RWSP as a priority project. Miller’s Pond is an existing impoundment with very little development adjacent to it. The owners have expressed a desire to sell the property to a regional water supplier. Estimated yields are as high as 5 MGD, however permitting requirements may result in the obtainable yield being significantly lower (i.e. 1.5 MGD).

This project would add to the region’s water supply an estimated yield of 1.5 million gallons per day (MGD). The development of a wellfield along the Quinebaug River, in Griswold and Lisbon, is identified in the RWSP as a priority project. The Quinebaug River valley directly contains an approximately one-mile long and one-half-mile wide deposit of coarse-grained stratified drift in the vicinity of Interstate 395. The USGS reports a depth of more than forty (40) feet of saturated stratified drift in the area. Furthermore, the USGS indicates that production wells installed in such coarse-grained deposits could support a 1.5 MGD production well.

Estimated costs for acquisition, design, permitting and construction are approximately $1,300,000.

This project would add to the region’s water supply an estimated yield of 1.25 million gallons per day (MGD). The development of a wellfield along the Pawcatuck River, in Stonington, is identified in the RWSP as a priority project. The Pawcatuck River valley in eastern Stonington contains a significant stratified drift aquifer. This aquifer is approximately six-miles long and one-half-mile wide and contains a depth of more than forty (40) feet of saturated stratified drift at various locations. The RWSP states that this aquifer could support a 1.25 MGD production well.

Estimated costs for acquisition, design, permitting and construction are approximately $1,300,000.

This project would add to the region’s water supply a estimated yield of 1.75 million gallons per day (MGD). The development of a wellfield along the Whitford Brook, in Mystic, is identified in the RWSP as a priority project. The Whitford Brook valley in Mystic contains a significant stratified drift aquifer. The RWSP states that this aquifer could support a 1.75 MGD production well.

Estimated costs for acquisition, design, permitting and construction are approximately $1,300,000.

Develop the Shewville Brook diversion into the Groton Utilities reservoir system. The development of this diversion is identified in the RWSP as a priority project. Water from Shewville Brook would be directed to the Groton Utilities reservoir and on to the existing treatment and distribution system. This diversion would provide an estimated 4.1 millions gallons per day (MGD).

Estimated costs for acquisition, design, permitting and construction are approximately $7,700,000, as follows:

Develop the Haley’s Brook diversion, into the Groton Utilities reservoir system. The development of this diversion is identified in the RWSP as a priority project. Water from Haley’s Brook diversion would be directed to the Groton Utilities reservoir and on to the existing treatment and distribution system. This diversion would provide an estimated 3.4 million gallons per day (MGD).

Estimated costs for acquisition, design, permitting and construction are approximately $9,600,000, as follows:

Reactivate the Fairview and Bog Meadow reservoirs by pumping water stored in these reservoirs into Norwich Public Utilities Deep River Reservoir. The Bog Meadow water treatment plant would need to be upgraded to accommodate this project. This project would provide an estimated one-million gallons per day (MGD).

Estimated costs for acquisition, design, permitting and construction are approximately $25,000,000, as detailed below:

This project would develop a series of interconnections of water system infrastructure to ultimately create a system network that allows for water to flow among the various systems and integrate the above proposed new sources. The region’s public water supply would be greatly improved and strengthened. Most existing systems would have redundant supplies and emergency interconnections with other systems. The interconnected network would resolve the water deficits of some systems by primarily moving water from water rich areas to water poor systems. Additionally, the new supplies would increase the available supply to a level that would eliminate the region’s projected supply deficit. The attached table 4.1, entitled “List of Interconnection Projects”, dated June 4, 2003, contained in the RWSP, depicts ten (10) interconnection projects, as follows:

Table 4.1 estimates the cost for these interconnections would be $61.12 million. An adjusted figure based on inflation is $67.27 million. If these projects were funded, implementation would be phased in over a ten (10) year period.

The RWSP states that while there is adequate water supply for the region as a whole in the near term, an overall deficit is projected to start occurring between 2010 and 2020. The RWSP further states that the supply deficit would steadily increase and by 2040 would be approximately 10 MGD unless new supplies are added, (see attached Figure 3.3 from the RWSP). The proposed project would circumvent the projected public drinking water shortfall by adding an estimated 14.5 million to 18 million gallons of supply per day.

Having an adequate supply of safe, clean public drinking water is a crucial component of the infrastructure necessary to enhance the diversity of the region’s economy. Conversely, not being capable of meeting the water needs of the region will hamper economic development and retention.

Bolstering the region’s public water supply abilities, especially by developing a regional water supply network, would help assure that Submarine Base New London continues to have the necessary infrastructure support, which would make a future closure less likely. Additionally, this project would lead to a more robust public water supply system in the region, by enhancing the spatial diversity of the sources of supply. Enhancing the diversity of the supply would have a homeland security benefit, which has inherent value to a military base of the United States government, as well as to the economic diversity of the region.

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Memorandum

Thank you for your continued interest in Southeastern Connecticut Water Authority’s (SCWA) response to your request for proposals for project funding under your listed category of “Develop new water sources in the region that will meet the water demands of future development in the region”. At your August 4, 2006 meeting you suggested that SCWA supplement its submittal to reflect a strategic approach to averting the public water supply shortfall projected to begin occurring by the year 2010. The categories of this strategic approach are as follows:

This supplemental information is attached. Please do not hesitate to contact me with any questions or comments.

The proposed Shewville Brook and Haley’s Brook diversions have the potential to expand the region’s water supply by an estimated 7,500,000 gallons-per-day. The details of these proposed diversions are as follows:

Develop the Shewville Brook diversion into the Groton Utilities reservoir system. The development of this diversion is identified in the SCWA Regional Water Supply Plan as a priority project. Water from Shewville Brook would be directed to the Groton Utilities reservoir and on to the existing treatment and distribution system. This diversion would provide an estimated 4.1 millions gallons per day (MGD).

Estimated costs for acquisition, design, permitting and construction are approximately $7,700,000, as follows:

Develop the Haley’s Brook diversion, into the Groton Utilities reservoir system. The development of this diversion is identified in the SCWA Regional Water Supply Plan as a priority project. Water from Haley’s Brook diversion would be directed to the Groton Utilities reservoir and on to the existing treatment and distribution system. This diversion would provide an estimated 3.4 million gallons per day (MGD).

Estimated costs for acquisition, design, permitting and construction are approximately $9,600,000, as follows:

II. Implementation of Southeastern Connecticut Water Authority’s (SCWA) Regional Water Supply Plan.

The SCWA Regional Water Supply Plan identifies what needs to be accomplished to provide the region with adequate water supply; however it does not specifically identify how the necessary infrastructure improvements would be implemented. Developing an implementation plan for the proposed water infrastructure improvements would require extensive coordination between numerous utility, planning and governmental entities. The implementation plan should also include such source water protection components as acquiring future water supply wellfields and preserving them from potential pollution.

(Note: The following is SCWA's response to the Governor's Commission on Economic Diversification of SE CT's request for proposals for water infrastructure projects.)

Memorandum

Memorandum