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Brockton discusses Aquaria desalination, possible purchase and sales to Bridgewater as long‑term water strategy
Summary
Councilors and the DPW discussed the Aquaria desalination plant: its current output, withdrawal permits, Bridgewater talks for up to 1 mgd, and preliminary municipal acquisition scenarios (an acquisition analysis cited roughly $55 million and ~$3M/year debt service over 20 years).
Brockton’s finance committee spent an extended portion of the hearing examining the city’s options for securing a secondary water source, including buying the nearby Aquaria desalination plant or pursuing intermunicipal sales to nearby towns.
Commissioner Patrick Hill summarized the current state: the plant is producing roughly 3.8 million gallons per day operationally, is licensed for up to 5 mgd, and the city holds a withdrawal permit (historically discussed as up to 10 mgd). He said the city is the plant’s only current customer and that the withdrawal/permit regime that governs transfers requires specific regulatory steps for buyers outside the pipeline corridor.
Hill and Dr. Troy Clarkson (CFO) walked councilors through a high‑level acquisition model presented to the committee. Using conservative assumptions, they said a $55 million acquisition financed over 20 years would add roughly $3 million a year in debt service to the water enterprise but could save the city more than $2 million annually if the plant is operated to deliver 2 mgd to Brockton rather than buying treated water externally. Several councilors asked for binding commitments from potential buyers or partners — notably Bridgewater, which has discussed an IMA for up to 1 mgd — before taking on acquisition financing and the regulatory inspections and liabilities that would accompany ownership.
Councilor Farwell urged the administration to use the city’s leverage (as the plant’s primary customer) to renegotiate terms with Aquaria’s owners before moving toward acquisition, and to secure written commitments from other communities that would buy water and share permitting and compliance costs. Hill said he has transmitted an IMA to Bridgewater and has discussed the matter with the mayor and CFO; Bridgewater has not yet acted on a final vote.
Councilors also raised permitting topics: interbasin transfer and Department of Environmental Protection requirements, distribution pipeline liabilities and the timeline for a possible MWRA connection (which was described as a long‑term, expensive option likely measured in years to decades). No acquisition decision was made; councilors asked for more detailed cost modeling, written partner commitments and a clearer permitting roadmap.
