Thompson Island

FPA was retained by Thompson Island Outward Bound Education Center to replace a broken water main pipeline that services year-round facilities on Thompson Island. Located within Boston Harbor, Thompson Island is connected to the Quincy mainland by a sandspit crossable at low tide. The water main lies in a linear pathway adjacent to this sandspit, through which the island receives potable water from the Massachusetts Water Resource Authority. Decreased water pressure at the island escalated into a total lack of potable water at the end of its summer season, which required shipping portable toilets and water to sustain its operations. FPA worked quickly to secure local and state approvals to temporarily repair the leak, and has navigated challenging and conflicting decisions between agencies in the off-season to receive approval for permanent replacement of the water main.