As stated by the Board of Commissioners following the implementation of the Water Master Plan back in 1995, long range distribution improvements require a major commitment by the Board of Commissioners and the District itself. The majority of the proposed improvements deal with the replacement of steel pipelines throughout the District. The total length of existing steel pipe is in excess of 85,000 feet, or over 16 miles. Projects completed during the 2010-2011 fiscal year consisted of 2,965 feet of new 6” pipe on Woodard Road, 1,003 feet of new HDPE pipe on Mershon Road, and 985 feet of new HDPE pipe on Lucas Road. The crew installed over 1,985 feet of PVC and HDPE pipe on Deverell Road, tying in with Mannthey Road. We also installed 1,056 feet of 6” pipe heading down the hill from Cabbage Hill reservoir in order to feed the neighborhood from two different directions. Over 8,000 feet of old steel pipe has been upgraded with PVC, HDPE or ductile iron pipe in each of the last 4 years. The reservoir on Larch Mountain Road has had a new fence installed in order to upgrade security for the District. These projects, along with the daily operations of the water treatment plant / distribution system, has kept our crew very busy.
After we replace about 950 feet of old 1.5” steel line on Marok Road, we will have completed replacement of the entire section of undersized water lines on Seidl, Woodard, Ogden, Hurt, Wand, Mershon and Lampert Roads with 6” water mains and 7 new fire hydrants. The usage from Cabbage Hill Reservoir has dropped down to an encouraging low of less than 3 gpm.
The majority of Hurlburt Road has a 4” steel main, installed many years ago and which suffers from numerous leaks. During the 2012-13 budget year, in compliance with our Master Plan, we plan to replace the section from Evans Road to Littlepage Road with 8” mains for better distribution flows.
While working on the pressure reducing valve (PRV) station on Littlepage last year, we determined that the old pipe line is buried less than 6” in spots. So when replacing the 4” steel pipe, we will bury it the required 30” and increase the pipe size to the minimum required for fire protection of 6”.
The PRV station for Curtis Road is ancient and undersized, as is the small PRV station on Loudon Road. When we replace those undersized valves with the correct size valves, a greater amount of water will be allowed to flow, which will be a valuable asset when the Fire Department is fighting a structure fire.
Back in the 1990’s a section of water main was installed on Meyers Lane. Early this year, when we installed a new service on Meyers Lane, we determined that the lower section of 2” steel main had never been replaced. This project must go on the list.
All of the homeowners on Taylor Rd are being fed from an old 2” steel line, and no fire protection exists for the north end of that road. Our goal is to replace the old 2” pipe with a 6” main in order to provide them with fire protection in the near future.
Our hydro project will be completed up at the treatment plant early this spring. This 10 kW generating hydro system will help cut our electric cost of about $500 per month at the plant. This in turn will help the District replace the old 2” steel by installing more 6” and 8” pipe in our system along with fire hydrants.
The District is also researching the possibility of the “Feed in Tariff” program from PGE by investing in a 6.6 kW solar panel to cut down our electric use in the District. This program will also help keep our utility cost down so we can continue to replace more of the old, undersized 2” pipe that has been plaguing the District for many years.
The District has been doing its part to cut down of wasting water in main line leaking pipes, but our customers must also help out by replacing their pressure reducing valves (PRV) and/or old PVC service mains that have been dominant in causing leaks in many of our customer’s PVC service lines.
The office has implemented a new TouchRead automatic meter reading billing system along with upgrading the software on the computer in order to notify the customers if an emergency arises. Automatic Clearing House (ACH) has been working wonderfully in making the bill paying operations run very smoothly. The office can now also receive payment by phone using credit cards or you can stop by in person and make payments.
