WESTFIELD, Mass (WWLP) - Federal, state, and local officials all gathered at the West Parish filters in Westfield for the groundbreaking of a new water treatment system. "Clean water is an absolute essential," said U.S. Senator Ed Markey. Planning for Westfield's new plant began almost 10 years ago after the Springfield Water and Sewer Commission evaluated current and future needs. Since the first treatment plant was constructed back in 1920 and last modernized back in 1974, water quality standards, technology, and precipitation patterns have changed significantly. "Clean water is not inexpensive. You have to continue to invest in the system and this system is unrivaled in terms of its achievements and accomplishments I think that we want to always make sure that people understand the obligation that we have to future generations to provide them with clean water," said U.S. Congressman Richard Neal. More than 115 years ago, they broke ground on the West Parish slow sand filters and now they are breaking the ground right in the same place for the newer facility. "We are creating a new plant here and constructing a new plant here that is going to last a century to serve the entire region," said Springfield Water and Sewer Commission executive director, Josh Schimmel. The plant is going to make sure Western Massachusetts has clean water for generations to come. "There is nothing better for a family than to know that every time their kid is drinking a glass of water it is as clean and toxic-free as humanly possible," said U.S. Senator Ed Markey. The first step of the new treatment plant will be demolishing the old slow sand filter from 1920, which will take about a year. The plant will remain open during the construction with the help of their new Backwater building completed last fall. The new plant is set to be completed in the fall of 2028