City Breaks Ground on $20m Treatment Plant Upgrade

Ground has been broken at the water treatment plant on Pettaconsett Avenue for a $20 million upgrade that should reduce pollutants that enter the Pawtuxet River.

“I am pleased to announce to the residents of Cranston that we are upgrading our wastewater treatment facility to comply with the new, stringent standards set forth by the state [Department of Environmental Management]” said Cranston Mayor Allan Fung.

The city signed an agreement with the DEM in 2009 to make improvements at the plant to reduce phosphorous and nitrogen levels from the water at the plant.

The DEM had taken the city to task over the levels of both chemicals, which feed algae and other bacteria and can harm fish populations among other ill effects.

The original cost of the project was estimated to cost $50 million but Fung said "strong negotiations" lowered that figure to $20 million and he touted the green aspect of the project.

My administration is moving Cranston into the “green” age by upgrading our facilities in a fiscally responsible manner that places the taxpayer’s ability to afford these projects in the forefront," he said.

The project, which should be completed by November of next year, is financed through $18 million in state loans that will be repaid with municipal sewer fees.