Water loss audit conducted
• Alva has acceptable level but high production cost
May 21, 2017
The Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality (ODEQ) recently conducted a water loss audit for the City of Alva. The audit is required for Alva’s application for a loan through the Oklahoma Water Resources Board (OWRB). The loan is to replace water storage tanks and pumps at the Young Street location.
Business Manager Joe Don Dunham said the ODEQ audit showed Alva pumps approximately 490 million gallons of water a year from the water well fields, then sells 55 million gallons to other water systems and 400 million gallons to customers within and outside the city limits. This equates to a 34 million gallon per year water loss.
In his report to the city council Monday, Dunham said there are numerous reasons for these water losses. The main reasons are unmetered usage, waterline breakage, meter inaccuracies and fire hydrant flow testing. He said Alva’s recent installation of new electronic read meters mitigated one of these reasons.
The ODEQ report determined that Alva has a good handle on their water losses, but extra precautions should be taken. Dunham said some cities show losses of 40 to 50 percent. Alva’s is less than 10 percent, and the ODEQ considers 10 percent acceptable. However, the model shows it is quite expensive to produce water in Alva at a rate of $2.88 per gallon total cost of production. “Every leak repaired puts revenue back in the city accounts and more water into our system for the customers,” Dunham stated.
The ODEQ also provided Alva with some free software to track water usage in the future.
Next Year’s Budget
Committee meetings on next year’s city budget are finished. Dunham said a balanced budget has been developed including a capital improvement plan for the fiscal year starting July 1. The budget totals $15,811.669 across all funds. Included in the plans for revenue are an across the board utility rate increase, an increase in police fines and an increase in ambulance fees.
The budget will also include a loan from OWRB to complete the replacement of the water storage tanks. The city has a $3,136,996 capital improvement plan for the next fiscal year. In addition to the water storage tanks, the improvements will include a water department vehicle, a sanitation department packer truck and several grant related projects.
The city council will be presented with a copy of the preliminary budget for review. The council will hold a public hearing over the budget and then they will vote on passage of the budget.
Public Hearing
The city council expects to hold a public hearing sometime before the June 19 council meeting to hear comments on the most recent utility rate increase proposal. Before setting that date, they are waiting to hear the results of an independent study being conducted on the rate proposal.
Dunham said he hopes to schedule a public hearing on Monday, June 5, at 6 p.m. for the budget and probably for the utility rates hearing.
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