CAPE MAY – During his State of the City address last month, Mayor Zach Mullock announced that $40 million was authorized by federal legislation aimed at making the city’s new and expanded desalination plant a reality.

But the funds must now actually be appropriated by Congress, and that can take time; in some cases appropriation of funds can take years.

Mullock is cautiously hopeful, but realizes the inclusion of the funds in the Thomas R. Caspar Water Resources Development Act of 2024 is an important but preliminary step in terms of federal funding.

The replacement of the desalination plant and revitalization of the city’s water resource infrastructure has been a major priority for the city, but one that Mullock has repeatedly said cannot be tackled without external funding.

The city pioneered the use of a water desalination plant 25 years ago. The plant and its equipment have aged and are in need of renovation.

It is a project that is important to all of the Cape Island communities. Cape May City provides fresh water to all parts of the island, including West Cape May, parts of Lower Township, Cape May Point and the Coast Guard Base.

The construction of the original plant was the city’s answer to saltwater intrusion into its wells. It was built in 1995, making use of reverse osmosis technology to desalinate water from three of its wells, all fed from the Atlantic Sands aquifer. A separate well, fed from the Kirkwood-Cohansey aquifer, provides a second source of water that does not receive treatment from the reverse osmosis units but will need treatment for iron. All of the needs are incorporated into the plans for the new facility.

The Water Resources Development Act passed both houses of Congress in December and was subsequently signed into law.

The bill passed on a bipartisan vote, including yes votes from Sens. Cory Booker and Andy Kim and Rep. Jeff Van Drew.

Contact the reporter, Vince Conti, at vconti@cmcherald.com.