CHICOPEE, Mass. (WGGB/WSHM) - Phase Two of Chicopee’s Nitrogen Removal Project at the wastewater treatment plant is getting a funding boost. Congressman Richard Neal joined city leaders on Wednesday to dedicate over $1 million to that project.

The goal is to improve the quality of our drinking water by removing the nitrogen from it, but Chicopee Mayor John Vieau said the mandates to do that are unfunded.

He explained how the whole process will work, now that they’ve secured the money to do so, “what they do is actually remove the D.O., which is the dissolved oxygen. And if you think of how a fish breathes or any other aquatic species, when you remove the oxygen from the water, it certainly isn’t good for the environment. So not just the actual aquatic life, but also the passive use of that space of the recreational waters is impacted as well,” Vieau said.

Vieau added this is an investment for the whole region downstream as the treatment plant handles water that flows all the way down to the Long Island Sound.

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