Swansea, MA

Swansea, located northeast of Dighton, has a land area of 22.7 square miles and a population of 16,834. The town is bordered by Somerset on the east, Warren and Barrington (Rhode Island) on southwest and west, respectively, and Seekonk and Rehoboth to the north. The Swansea Water District has twelve (12) wells (10 active and 2 inactive) with three treatment plants distributed throughout its service area. These wells pump groundwater from the sand and gravel aquifer; one of the wells derives its water from bedrock fissures. The District also operates a Desalination Facility which converts saltwater from the Palmer River into fresh, potable water. According to the Town of Swansea’s May 2018 MVP Plan, the desalination plant was built to establish a more secure water supply after the Town wells ran dry in the 1990’s and 2000’s; however, the desalination plant is vulnerable to extended drought which raises the salinity of intake water to levels that exceed the plant’s permitted salinity discharge limits. In short, the plant cannot remove sufficient salt to produce potable water without exceeding salt limits in the discharge effluent. The intake of the desalination plant is also vulnerable to contamination due to its location in the vicinity of Miles Bridge on Old Providence Road which has known flooding problems; flooding on the bridge causes hydroplaning and increases the risk of accidents that could result in a spill or other contamination event.