In 1990, the City of New Bedford, Mass., turned a U.S. EPA consent decree into an opportunity to merge NPDES permit compliance with the public’s need for open space. The result is a technologically advanced secondary wastewater treatment plant, preservation of an important historic site, and a 50-acre waterfront park that has helped revitalize the region and enhance economic growth. The city is the largest municipality in the Buzzards Bay Watershed and accounts for 37 percent of its population. Serving 100,000 people, the 30 mgd (design) wastewater treatment plant averages 22 mgd.By 1988, the plant was out of compliance with
