The Unsustainable Path of Brockton’s Water Supply

THE UNSUSTAINABLE PATH OF BROCKTON’S WATER

SUPPLYPAUL UMANO

ROLE OF PRINCETON HYDRO

• For-profit organization- mission is to provide ecological consulting services and offer expertise in aquatic engineering. Develop and design appropriate, sustainable solutions.

• July 2013 report on the Brockton Water Supply System (BWS) on behalf of the town of Halifax.

• Larger effort of MA Sustainable Water Management Initiative.

• Mirrored a study conducted by the United States Geological Survey (USGS) on health of our nations streams.

LEGISLATIVE ACT IN 1899

IMPLICATIONS: POLLUTANT LOAD ANALYSIS (PLA)

• Water contributes to the vitality of human health; a raw material necessary for agriculture; part of a larger ecosystem that benefits humans. Commons Approach.

• Pollutant Load Analysis assessed:

• Effect of land development/ land use on watersheds

• Nutrient pollution contained in the water

• Phosphorous (P) primarily responsible for adverse water quality- increases algae in water.

• Algae growth produces liver and kidney failure in fish.

• Adverse effects on drinking water- Trihalomethane

• Oxygen depletion to aquatic life.

PLA: TROPHIC STATE MODELING

• Measurement of biological growth of algae and plants that form the base of an ecosystem.

• Analyses phosphorous in watersheds of Silver Lake, Monponsett Pond, and Furnace Pond.

• To ensure accuracy Princeton Hydro used the average of three models that calculate both hydrology (follow of water) and pollutants.

• Vollenweider (1975)Larson and Mercier (1975)Jones and Bachman (1976)Kirchner and Dillion (1975)

Silver Lake Monponsett Pond Furnace Pond0.00

0.02

0.04

0.06

0.08

0.10

0.12

Average (P) Federal guidelines (P)

TIME ONE

Silver Lake Monponsett Pond0.00

0.02

0.04

0.06

0.08

0.10

0.12

Average (P) Federal guidelines (P)

TIME TWO

Party A (Producer) Party B (Consumer) Party C (third-party)

City of Brockton Water Supply (BWS) -provides water to city

residents

City residents

No cost

Cost

NEGATIVE EXTERNALITIES

MG of water

Price (to maintain water supply)

C

A

Social Marginal Cost, SMC= PMC + MD

Supply= Private Marginal Cost, PMC

Demand=PMB = SMB

$1.4 billion dollars = Marginal Damage

Q2 Q1

P1

B

Overproduction

Deadweight loss

P2

REFERENCES