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Lincoln commission seeks consultant follow-up on options to secure redundant water supply
Summary
Commissioners asked the consultant to model hypothetical scenarios for additional water supply — including new connections to Pawtucket or Woonsocket and drawing more from Providence — and agreed to schedule a presentation before voting on any action.
Lincoln — The Lincoln Commission asked its consultant to return with additional hydraulic modeling to clarify how the town might secure a redundant water supply, including new connections to Pawtucket or Woonsocket and changes to the existing Providence connection.
The commission’s chair told members the consultant’s hydraulic model can simulate take capacities and ‘‘what if’’ scenarios, and asked Parr Engineering to run comparisons that include hypothetical flows from different sources before the commission votes on a course of action. Louis, the superintendent, outlined operational limits and upcoming inspection steps that will inform any decision.
Why it matters: commissioners said they need the consultant’s targeted modeling to avoid unexpected system constraints after design work begins. The chair noted that piping and pressure limitations — not just the raw volume available at a distant treatment plant — will determine whether a new connection actually improves supply reliability.
Key facts and discussion: commissioners debated trade-offs between the options. The chair said the town currently ‘‘can take up to 5,000,000 gallons a day, roughly’’ from the existing connection but warned that bringing additional water from another connection could reverse flow and create pressure or pipe-size limits. The group discussed treatment differences: Providence’s water has historically had a pH around 9.2, while Pawtucket’s pH was described as about 7.1; both Providence and Pawtucket add phosphates, which could require local adjustments. The chair said a modest on-site chemical-feed building (not a large treatment plant) could be needed if Lincoln connected to Pawtucket.
Next steps: the commission requested that Parr/Parr Engineering produce the additional scenarios within roughly a week and return to present results at a special or regular meeting. Commissioners said they prefer to have the consultant’s answers on pipe sizing, likely pressure impacts and any recommended upgrades before approving a project.
No formal vote to approve any new connection was taken; the commission only directed staff to schedule the consultant presentation and to collect commissioners’ technical questions ahead of that presentation.
