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HomeMy WebLinkAboutWater Board - Minutes - 06/17/1983MINUTES Water Board June 17, 1983 MEMBERS PRESENT Henry Caulfield, Ev Richardson, Ray Glabach, Tom Moore, Dave Stewart, Tom Sanders, Mary Lou Smith (alt.) STAFF PRESENT Mike Smith, Roger Krempel, Dennis Bode, Curt Miller, Keith Elmund, Ben Alexander, Andy Pineda, Ken Frazier, Ass't. City Attorney representing Paul Eckman GUESTS Neil Grigg (new member elect), Craig Harrison MEMBERS ABSENT George Wallace, Ward Fischer, Norm Evans, Bernie Cain, Mort Bittinger (alt.) In the absence of both the chairman and the vice-chairman, Henry Caulfield, acting chairman, opened the meeting. The following items were discussed: Minutes The minutes of the April 15, 1983 meeting were approved. Introduction of New Members Neil Grigg who will be a new member of the Board beginning July 1st and Mary Lou Smith, an alternate member completing the second year of a two year term left by Tom Sanders when he was appointed a regular member, were introduced. Update on Revised Raw Water Rights Requirements Mike Smith reviewed the background and the reasons for revising the raw water rights requirements. The Districts and Fort Collins Water Utilities created a sub -committee comprised of Dennis Bode from the City staff, Terry Farrell from the Fort Collins -Loveland Water District, and John McGinn from the ELCO District. The committee compiled and analyzed a great deal of information regarding water use in the City and the two districts. The sub -committee has reported back to the steering committees of the South and North District. The target date to return to the districts with additional information is between mid to the end of July. Following that, any proposed changes will be taken to the Water Board and the Council. Water Board Minutes June 17, 1983 Page 2 Dennis Bode presented a few slides explaining what the sub -committee has accomplished so far. Mr. Bode explained that the intent of the study was to describe water use among residential users served by the participating entities and equate that use with raw water requirements. The first portion of the study utilized data to project water use demand for single-family and multi -family residential users in an attempt to determine a "generic" formula or device to predict use based on the primary influencing factors. The second portion of the study considered those factors which affect equating demand with raw water requirements. As Mr. Bode went through the slides, several points received comments and questions. One of the charts showed a curve which indicated total water use by the three entities. The data points from the meterd use were all very consistent with only the City unmetered point being high compared with the others. Mike Smith pointed out that there will either have to be two curves, one for flat rate and one for metered, or it will be necessary for the City to bring the flat rate usage down to meet the other curve. A Board member inquired if the per capita consumption has come down in recent years. Mr. Bode said that it had decreased somewhat. Mr. Bode stated that the current water rights requirement by the District was one unit of CBT water per single family dwelling unit while the City basically requires three acre-feet per acre developed. Mr. Bode explained that what the sub -committee is trying to achieve is to come up with a raw water requirement based on some equation that takes into account both indoor use and outdoor use. Indoor use would be basically a function of the number of units on that development. Outdoor use would be some function of the net area. He hopes that the committee will be able to develop a formula which is more equitable but still simple. Industrial Pollutants/Pre-Treatment Program At the April 15, 1983 Water Board meeting, there were a number of questions from the Board concerning the adequacy of the Wastewater Quality Ordinance "in effecting control over the discharge of industrial pollutants. In general two questions were asked:" 1) Does the Ordinance provide the control of organic and other pollutants which could interfere with or contaminate wastewater treatment processes or sludges? 2) Do we lose control over those potential pollutants when an industry changes its processes or expands its operations? Water Board Minutes June 17, 1983 Page 3 Keith Elmund, Environmental Services Superintendent, was asked to review the Ordinance and present a draft with the proposed changes to the Board. The draft which included advice and assistance from Assistant City Attorney Paul Eckman, and the attached memo were distributed to members of the Board prior to the meeting. The memo responded to the questions as follows: In answer to the two questions, the Ordinance in its current form, does provide authority for the control of organic and other industrial polutants. Tp implement this authority the following was completed: 1) Revised the language of the Standard Industrial Wastewater Discharge Permit. 2) Revised the format of the "Monthly Wastewater Discharge Permit Self - Monitoring Report". Each month, the permittee must provide specific certifications regarding permit compliance as well as process changes, facilities expansion, etc. In addition, the City is required to perform independent surveillance monitoring of the industries. In this process, they can target specific categories of pollutants, i.e. volatile organics, chlorinated organics, heavy metals, etc. 3) Incorporated in Part I.1.B.2.b. of the permit, specific language that will allow the City to conduct additional letter surveys and questionnaires of the industries on an ongoing basis. Dr. Elmund concluded the memo by saying, We believe that through these revised permit and reporting procedures, we can establish and maintain reasonable control over the types and quantities of industrial pollutants potentially introduced into our wastewater treatment processes." Dr. Elmund informed the Board that, recently, the EPA gave approval to the City's pre-treatment program- As a requirement in their approval, the City was asked to continue to physically go out and collect either grab or composite samples from the industries. The City will not be depending on the industry to be providing them with samples. Dr. Elmund answered a number of questions from the Board and clarified the implementation of some of the revisions. He was complimented for responding so quickly and thoroughly to the task assigned to him by the Board, and for the excellent job on the revisions. Water Board Minutes June 17, 1983 Page 4 Purchase of Property Adjacent to Sludge Farm At the April 15, 1983 meeting, the Board voted to recommend the purchase of 27 acres of land suitable for sludge disposal adjacent to the City's Sludge farm at the cost of $3900 an acre. Roger Krempel related that since that time, a problem has surfaced. The first realtor's letter indicated that the property had ten units of CBT water with it. Subsequently, after receiving approval from the Water Board and the City Council to purchase the property, the City Attorney discovered that the owner of the property had disposed of the CBT water a few years ago. Now the entire 66.6 acres, which includes river front property that the owner had contemplated donating to the City, is being offered for $100,000. After Mr. Krempel had clarified some of the concerns of the Board, Ev Richardson moved that the Water Board recommend purchase of the property by the City. Following a second from Dave Stewart, the motion passed unanimously. Report on Meeting Concerning District Negotiations Tom Sanders reported that he, Norm Evans, Mike Smith, Council members Gerry Horak, and Bill Elliott attended a recent meeting at CSU concerning district negotiations. Dr. Sanders said that the meetings seem to be moving along in a positive way. At the CSU meeting it was decided that a person from the Water Board is needed to work hand -in -hand with the Council during the negotiations. Norm Evans said that he would be willing to be a candidate for the Water Board representative to the committee. Dave Stewart nominated him for that position. Ev Richardson seconded the nomination and the Board gave their unanimous approval. Letter of Appreciation for George Wallace Henry Caulfield announced that he had a letter of appreciation for George Wallace who will be going off the Water Board. Since Mr. Wallace was unable to be present at the meeting, Mr. Caulfield suggested that the letter be sent to him. Status of Meadow Creek Reservoir For the benefit of the new members and as a review for the rest of the members, Mike Smith was asked to give some background information on Meadow Creek Reservoir. He stated that, basically, what the reservoir does is provide replacement water in the basin where the Michigan Ditch is located, so that when downstream users "call us out" we can release water from the reservoir and still divert water up on the ditch. In essence, it is a way for the City to protect itself and divert more water. Mr. Smith related that, so far, the required letters from the State Engineer to the City addressing what the contract states, have not been satisfactory. The City will either request that the letter be revised to meet what the contract states or the City will ask for a reduction in price to compensate for the additional element of risk involved. The Board will be kept informed as to what transpires. Water Board Minutes June 17, 1983 Page 5 New Business Henry Caulfield suggested that the staff brief the new members on a number of items of importance such a Water Treatment Plant. No. 1, District Negotiations, etc. so that they will be better prepared for future decisions in these areas. The staff will be pleased to set up times to provide this information and answer questions for the new members. Other Business Tom Moore asked how the Michigan Ditch and Joe Wright Reservoir survived the winter. Ben Alexander, Water Supply and Treatment Superintendent, responded with a chuckle that, "he would let them know as soon as winter was over". He added that there is still a tremendous amount of snow up there with a very high water content. Tom Sanders asked about the river flooding and how it would affect Water Treatment Plant No. 1. He wondered what the City was doing to protect the Plant. Ben Alexander answered that there is not a lot that can be done to protect the intake. He has advised the operators that if the structure becomes innundated they are to shut down and get away from there. He stressed that it is not worth the loss of someone's life to try to protect the structure. There was considerable discussion about the flood problems associated with the Poudre River flowing at such a high rate for such a long period of time. Water Board Revised Policies The members discussed a portion of the revised policies document with some suggestions for changes. However, since it was nearly 5:00, it was decided that Board members would send their individual ideas for revisions to the staff. The staff would then incorporate all the suggestions and send the new version to the members. A work session would follow to try to finalize the document. Adjourn Since there was no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 5:00 p.m. m 77e� Water Board Secretary