It's somewhat ironic that the Ocean State is facing a lack of water, but that is the situation being studied by the General Assembly this legislative season.
Obviously, you can't drink salt water, but the issue is more complex than that.
Certain types of businesses, especially bioengineering companies such as Amgen, use large amounts of fresh water in their manufacturing processes. Last year, the Kent County Water Authority told Amgen that it could not guarantee its water needs at the West Greenwich facility, which forced the legislature to step in and make the guarantee.
The state needs to address the issue in a comprehensive fashion, rather than on a case-by-case basis. Rhode Island doesn't want businesses like Amgen, which invested $1.1 billion in the state, to see their operations jeopardized by an uncertain water supply.
Water supply in the state is managed by a patchwork of 400 municipal and regional agencies and individuals (through wells). In fact, however, 98 percent of the state's water is controlled by 28 quasi-governmental agencies, and 70 percent of the water comes from the Scituate Reservoir, which is owned by the City of Providence.
The balkanization makes it difficult to manage this vital resource, and while we generally believe that local control is more responsive to taxpayer needs, when the economic health of the state is at stake, a more centralized approach may be appropriate. We're not advocating a statewide water authority at this point, but we think that should be one of the options, and it should be given fair consideration.
