Investigation part of process to replace desalination plant
CAPE MAY — The city is continuing to move forward with replacing its water desalination plant to help address the overwhelming demand on the resource, especially during the heavy tourism months.
The plant was built to address saltwater intrusion into the city’s aquifers. It is housed in the city’s waterworks building, which was built around 1926. The building will be preserved and a new plant will be constructed in what is now a parking lot.
Last year, the city partnered with the Columbia University School of Professional Studies & The Climate School to research sustainable solutions for water needs and environmental protection.
Environmental Commission member Justine Magariel presented updates from Columbia University for phases one and two. The first phase was completed by the School of Professional Studies.
“They identified three key areas for which the city could improve the longevity of desalination facilities and reduce water demand, circularity, desal ops and demand in general,” Magariel said. “Then, assess the finances of each of those groups.”
Circularity focused on what can potentially be done with the byproduct of the plant. Magariel said there were several proposals offered because the diesel plant does not produce enough byproducts. Salt and minerals were not deemed viable options.
“The only one that was potentially usable was through landscaping,” she said. “At this time, we don’t have the infrastructure or team to use that byproduct.”
The next area of research focused on reducing the plant’s energy demand.
“By adding an energy recovery device, the city has the potential to save 20 percent of the plant’s energy consumption,” Magariel said. “After this presentation was first delivered to the council, the city engineer and manager looked into different models available today to retrofit to the current desal facility. It’s currently not an option.”
Magariel added that as technology continues to evolve, it is something the city should keep in mind, even for the future plant. The device has the potential to save the city a significant amount of money.
The team also recommended a full solar system for the new facility’s roofing, potentially reducing costs by $40,000 per year. Magariel said that the city manager and engineer indicated the solar plan will be implemented in phase two of the new facility.
The third area of the study focused on water demand. Magariel said the city has had a water conservation ordinance on the books for decades.
“Anyone who was here in the ’70s, ’80s and ’90s remembers it; however, community conversation has all but forgotten it,” she said. “In an effort to bring the community back into that dialog, it was recommended that we implement a tiered water pricing system, a rebate system and business and community engagement.”
The study proposed restructuring water rates. In part, the study designed a mailer template to accompany water bills, in addition to redesigning the bills themselves. Magariel added that the information will explain to account holders the water they are consuming and how they may save.
“There’s been the cost/benefit analysis provided on what this rebate system would look like and they crunched some numbers,” she said. “They looked at the top 100 accounts and counted if the city offered $15 rebate on 910 shower heads, and a $140 rebate on 960 toilets. The city would spend approximately $150,000 and save 46 million gallons.”
Magariel said the numbers are staggering, and it’s a program they highly recommend the city consider.
Phase two of the project focused on further developing the work done by the demand team. It identified key areas of potential: a story map and media assets; a financial analysis tool; a community workshop; and a public art campaign.
“The story map using ArcGIS StoryMaps is quite fantastic,” Magariel said, adding that the materials in the presentation were not a final draft, but a rough draft of assets that the city can fine-tune and edit before releasing to the public.
The draft of the story map dates to the time of Indigenous Americans and their relationships with water here. Other pages include a timeline, changing water consumption, key water landmarks, actions that can be taken, links to the water ordinance and conservation advice.
The study also provided marketing information, including templates for table tents, brochures, social media posts and marketing deliverables. Magariel said the letters would specifically ask businesses to engage with the program and initiative to inform the community on how to reduce water use.
Additionally, the study created the bones of a website, which would allow account holders to look at how their bills operate.
Users can enter their household size, estimated usage and the number of conservation actions they want to adopt. It shares annual savings per account.
“It’s really a fantastic tool, and again, it’s a rough draft,” she said. “It’s highly recommended that we continue to develop.”
Templates for mailers to residents, restaurants and hotels were also included. Magariel said that, looking across the top 100 accounts, hotels with restaurants were the largest consumers, followed by hotels, residential community, restaurants and city buildings. The marketing materials would specifically help target outreach to those account users.
For the community workshop, the study examined how to roll out this type of program, how to engage stakeholders and how to implement a tiered water pricing system. Materials included a draft flier, QR codes, street banners, an event schedule and a letter to residents.
“Finally, they have recommended a public art campaign,” Magariel said. “One of the issues we have in Cape May City is that we have so many visitors who do not have any prior knowledge of it. If we can reach out to them through table tents and public installations, we can do a better job of having an impact.”
Background
The city’s consultants are lining up grants and loans to replace the plant, a project with a price tag in the range of $36 million to $40 million.
City Manager Paul Dietrich said in November that the city has received a number of grants for the project, including principal forgiveness from the New Jersey Infrastructure Bank in the amount of $8 million, $2 million from the Department of the Interior and a $500,000 Army Corps of Engineers Water Resource Development Act anticipated in the amount of $9.5 million.
In September, City Council introduced a $350,000 bond ordinance and companion resolution providing for improvements to the water treatment system. The reverse osmosis filters needed to be repurchased in the off-season, as the current ones would not make it through the summer.
The city secured a permit from the Department of Environmental Protection for the desalination plant. The Coastal Area Facility Review Act permit is still pending.
By RACHEL SHUBIN/Special to the Star and Wave
