IWD discusses Wastewater Treatment Plant
The Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP) project’s funding and water conservation policy were discussed at Idyllwild Water District’s (IWD) Board of Directors meeting Wednesday, Oct. 18.
Two virtual guests appeared on screen to discuss IWD’s annual audit and the WWTP.
Two aspects of the new WWTP project were discussed that night, the funding possibilities and the status of the preliminary engineering. First, Anna Schwab from Washington D.C. joined the meeting on screen to give on overview of the kinds of funding sources for which the project will be eligible. Schwab began by addressing the two federal laws on many lips, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). The IRA, she said, “won’t be the bill for us” as it deals more with the Department of Energy and climate change. The Infrastructure Law, on the other hand, does address clean water, and 49% has to go to low interest and forgivable loans to make projects like the WWTP happen quicker and with less debt. This money, according to Schwab, is “not going away” and will “flush up” the funds available for some time. The Environmental Protection Agency, for example, has years of money to “dole out.” IWD is eligible for is the USDA Rural Development, which is not just for farms, but also small and lower-income communities. IWD’s position for this type of funding is “favorable” also because “few apply.”
Lobbying of local elected leaders also was mentioned. Congressman Raul Ruiz and Sen. Laphonza Butler were mentioned, with the emphasis on Ruiz. This project would possibly receive “earmark funding, a highly competitive” process. Schwab summed up her job: “We want to make sure you will be able to receive as much as possible.” She suggested this number might be “up to $3.5 million.”
Schwab and Schelly both underlined that these applications can only begin once the 30% mark has been reached on the preliminary engineering, which was reported to be two months away. Only when this engineering is available can applications be drafted. Underlining this, Schelly asked, “There’s nothing we could have done earlier?” Schwab answered, “Yes.” Szabadi asked Schwab to provide a letter summarizing more funding opportunities, potential amounts and criteria that must be met, and she agreed.
Next, the status of the engineering California Rural Water Association is doing was discussed. Director Steve Kunkle brought up the possibility of asking for bids from other firms to complete the engineering and oversee construction; “I don’t want to be locked in.” Olson concurred, saying he is “not enamored” with the company and that fielding other bids would “keep the current firm honest.”
Schelly expressed “reservations about changing firms.” Havener explained that asking for more bids would require a new Request For Proposals, the document that explains project requirements to prospective vendors. These are generally very complex. IWD “can’t just pick another firm,” he said, adding that “It is rare that an engineering firm will take 100% of what others have done.” Changing horses in mid-stream also will “delay the project.”
Havener also began presenting material the board has requested to allow them to rewrite the water policy, what Havener called a “work in progress.” First, he laid out the present policy regarding water conservation stages, an area he said “needs to be improved on.” He has updated the total production capacity of the IWD system to 333 gallons per minute (gpm), although some graphics in the presentation used the older, slightly lower figure, 318. Havener explained later that the wells together are, in theory, able to produce 479 gpm, but the distribution system can only handle 333 gpm.
If the district is producing 50% or less of that, the district is at Stage 1. From 51 to 60%, Stage 2 is in effect; 61 to 70%, Stage 3; 71 to 85%, Stage 5; and over 86%, Stage 5. This is in accordance with 2018’s Ordinance 66 that lays out IWD’s policies for the tiered Water Shortage Contingency Plan, including fines and disaster response. It mandates rate increases during conservation stages so IWD will continue to bring in the same revenue while requiring lower consumption. The ordinance is long, full of fines and penalties, and available for public perusal at the IWD website.
Havener then related this to the production figures for this year, to show the dynamic situation: January at 52%, February at 50%. The only month below 50% was March, at 46%. February and April were right at 50%. July and August, at 77% and 76%, were peak use months, and September, cooler, usage fell to 63% of the maximum. IWD moves to a higher rate when one of three conditions occur: the threshold is reached for three consecutive months; the threshold is exceeded by 8% for two consecutive months; the threshold is exceeded by 13% for one month.
The presentation also included new figures for all 15 of the wells in production. The table includes the year of construction (the oldest, at Foster Lake, dates to 1948) well depth, pump depth, pump horsepower and rated capacity in gpms. This was all information directors have asked for in the past but has been buried in well logs, a sore point between some directors and Havener, and an effect of IWD’s high turnover of managers in the past decades.
Another graphic showed a diagram of a well shaft with a number of horizontal lines. The top line was the ground level. Below that comes the “static” level, where the water will rise if no pumping is occurring. Below that is the “pumping” level, a level where water will fall when the pump is engaged. The distance between these two levels is called “drawdown.” Around the well shaft is a cone of drier ground that has been depleted by pumping, the “cone of depression.” These levels change year to year, but within a range. The cone is a difficult thing to measure, but a fact of hydrology. As a rule, wells are not drilled within the cone of depression of an existing well.
A graph of activity at one well showed how dynamic these levels are. It showed the levels at Fern Valley Well 1a, month by month since 2000. The well is over 600 feet deep, with the pump at 500 feet. Its static average was 5 feet below ground level, and its pumping average -297 feet. The graph is a series of spikes: The well quickly falls hundreds of feet, and just as quickly recovers, in less than a month.
Two additional horizontal lines on the graph are “trigger level static” and “trigger level pumping.” These are depths that “trigger” concern: If a pumping or static well falls 100 feet below its average static or pumping level, the water operator will have to investigate.
Having such charts for all IWD wells would provide the district with the data for a rational approach to conservation levels. “We have the information, we haven’t put it in this form. That is the game plan,” said Havener.
Vice President Peter Szabadi called this “great progress.” The present policy, he said, “didn’t make any sense.”
During public comments, R. Mitch Davis, one of the two candidates for the fifth board seat, now empty for over a year, expressed frustration with the process for filling that vacancy. Other water districts, he said, have had elections this year. He called the county to ask about the upcoming IWD election, and up until two weeks ago, no one knew there was an election scheduled. President Charles Schelly agreed that was the case. The election is presently scheduled for March 2024.
At Chief Financial Officer Hosny Shouman’s request, the consideration of the annual audit was moved to the front of the agenda; the auditor, Scott Mano, of Rogers, Anderson Malody and Scott, LLP, was on screen and ready to give his report. Mano said the audit went well and produced an “unmodified” or “clean” opinion.
IWD showed a positive cash flow and a positive change in position. Its liabilities have decreased, and its discount rates have risen. As bond yields have gone up by 2%, liability has dropped by several hundred thousand dollars.
The full audit was included in the agenda packet as part of a second section and may be read at www.idyllwildwater.com. The board accepted the audit with Director Steve Olson abstaining because he had not yet read it.
General Manager Leo Havener’s report showed revenue slightly down in September despite new higher rates, as cooler temperatures meant slightly lower consumption. Expenses also were lower, as last month’s statement reflected many months of electric bills that were presented at once, a curiosity of SCE’s billing that Havener has not been able to remedy.
Foster Lake tank #1 has been refurbished “inside and out.” Havener said this was a steel tank, and “our steel tanks are in good shape.” IWD has 13 tanks all together of various ages, and two have now been refurbished.
A leak at Foster Lake well #4 was repaired. The Jameson raw water pipeline replacement has been completed. One leak was discovered and repaired before the trenches were filled. Water flows in this pipe from Strawberry Creek up to Foster Lake.
Photos of another line repair showed the roots that had obstructed a sewer line on the Bluebird Inn property, the replaced section and the paved driveway when the repair was completed.
Another image showed the concrete work for the WWTP gate. A curb or concrete rail has been poured; this will support the metal rail for the sliding gate.
Questions from the public drew from Olson the information that IWD has 432,000 cubic feet of storage, and these tanks are kept at about 85% capacity. There should always be some room for fresh water to be pumped in, but the storage should be adequate for emergencies like fires. Schelly explained that the town’s ISO rating, which affects fire insurance costs, requires IWD to keep tanks 80 to 85% full.
Before the public session could be adjourned so the board could conduct Havener’s performance review, Olson brought up the repair of the lower office building. Local contractor Sean Townsend inspected the building and mentioned that it “reeks,” meaning that he suspects undetected mold, despite a clean second inspection after remediation. According to Olson, Townsend expressed an opinion that parts of the building that should be above grade are below and that he is not sure if he will find spalded concrete underneath, or bare earth. In short, this may mean foundation repair work. Olson called it “good news” that a contractor has looked at the building, with the bad news being that so far only one has answered IWD’s calls. Shouman added that off-the-Hill contractors are uninterested in what, for them, is a small job. Havener added that “some local contractors have declined to bid.”
The next meeting of the board is 6 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 15.
