2023 Rhode Island General Laws › Title 46 - Waters and Navigation › Chapter 46-15 - Water Resources Management › Section 46-15-2. - Approval of public water supply facilities.

§ 46-15-2. Approval of public water supply facilities.
(a)
No municipal water department or agency, public water system, including special water districts or private water companies, engaged in the distribution of water for potable purposes shall have any power:
(1)
To acquire or take a water supply or an additional water supply from an existing approved source;
(2)
To take or condemn lands for any new or additional sources of water supply or for the utilization of supplies;
(3)
To extend its supply or distribution mains into a municipality or special water district wherein it has not heretofore legally supplied water;
(4)
To construct any extension of its transmission mains;
(5)
To extend the boundaries of a special water district; or
(6)
To supply water in or for use in any other municipality or civil division of the state which owns and operates a water supply system therein, or in any duly organized special water district supplied with water by another municipal water department or agency, special water district, or private water company, until the municipal water department or agency, special water district, or private water company has first submitted the maps and plans therefor to the director of the department of health, the state planning council and the board, as hereinafter provided, and until the water resources board, after receiving the recommendations of the director of the department of health and the division of statewide planning, shall have approved the recommendations or approved the recommendation with modifications as it may determine to be necessary; provided, however, this subsection shall not apply to any area presently served by any municipal water department or agency, or special water district.
(b)
Approval shall not be necessary of any plan or work for the extension of supply or distributing mains or pipes of a municipal water supply plant or special district or private water company into and for the purpose of supplying water in any territory within the limits of the municipality or special district or within the franchise area of the private water company, owning the plant, including territory within the municipal special district or franchise limits which has not been heretofore supplied with the water by the plant, nor for the reconstruction or replacement of existing facilities in connection with an existing plant, wherein the capacity of the plant is in no way increased, nor for the construction of filtration or other treatment facilities which will not in any way increase the amount of water which can be made available from the present sources of supply. Notwithstanding any provision of this section to the contrary, a municipal water department, agency, or public water system governed under this section shall review applications for plans or work for the extension of supply or distribution mains or pipes in accordance with the following standards:
(1)
The application must not be prohibited by the specific language of the latest water supply system management plan (“WSSMP”) of the public water supply system;
(2)
The application must comply with the design and construction standards and specifications established by the public water supply system for the sizing and location for the infrastructure;
(3)
The extensions shall not reduce the necessary level of fire protection for the community;
(4)
All water main and service connection materials, construction, and inspection required hereunder shall be at the sole cost and expense of the applicant;
(5)
The public water supply system shall be granted an easement in a form acceptable to them which shall permit the maintenance, repair, or replacement of water lines and all other related activities;
(6)
For applications for single-family residential lots, the applicant must show that:
(i)
The existing or proposed well for the property does not meet the well industry standard as described in the department of environmental management regulations for “yield per depth of well chart” which is required by the department of health for a dwelling unit; and
(ii)
Due to the unique characteristics of the property that the drilling of a new well is not feasible;
(7)
For applications located within a public water supply system with limited capacity, applicants for commercial uses/properties shall be governed by the rules established for such connections by the public water supply system, which shall be in accordance with the system’s approved WSSMP.
A public water supply system governed under this section may provide for lower standards for approval for residential property if such standards meet the requirements of the agency’s state-approved WSSMP, and such WSSMP is not expired.
(c)
The water resources board shall enforce the provisions of this section, and the superior court by injunction may, upon application of the water resources board, prevent any action to be taken by any municipal water agency or department, special district, or private water company without the approval of the water resources board as required by this section.
History of Section.
P.L. 1990, ch. 461, § 4; P.L. 1995, ch. 370, art. 30, § 2; P.L. 2022, ch. 65, § 1, effective June 15, 2022; P.L. 2022, ch. 66, § 1, effective June 15, 2022.