SUD to Install New Technology for Improved Meter Reading

by Leslie Lytle, Messenger Staff Writer

The Sewanee Utility District of Franklin and Marion Counties (SUD) plans to implement automatic meter reading (AMR) technology and, if funding can be found, a constructed wetlands. The SUD board of commissioners reviewed financial considerations related to the AMR system and the constructed wetlands at the Oct. 23 business meeting.

AMR technology uses a two-way radio frequency system to collect meter data. The meter reader can access meter data from the utility company vehicle, SUD manager Ben Beavers explained. Due to inaccurate meters or leaks, SUD receives no revenue for one-fourth of the water it produces. 

Advantages of AMR include more accurate meter data, aid in leak detection and time and labor savings for SUD employees, freeing them for other responsibilities. Also, since the meter reader can use a car rather than a truck with AMR, SUD’s vehicle expenses will be reduced by $25,000. The AMR technology will cost approximately $350,000 ($200 per meter), to be spread over the next three years. The Tracy City water utility implemented AMR several years ago, and the system is paying for itself even faster than expected. 

SUD will meet with officials from the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) on Oct. 29 to discuss the constructed wetlands project. The University of the South and University of Georgia recently collaborated on a design study for a pilot constructed wetlands at SUD’s wastewater treatment plant (WWTP). 

The goal of the pilot wetlands would be to provide data supporting the improved water quality and cost-effectiveness of replacing wastewater spray fields (SUD’s present wastewater treatment method) with a constructed wetlands system. Constructed wetlands are in use in Georgia, and the Tennessee Department of Environment and Transportation uses constructed wetlands to treat wastewater at rest areas, but constructed wetlands have not been implemented in Tennessee on the scale SUD is proposing. If TDEC favors the project, SUD hopes the state will request EPA funding on SUD’s behalf.

Beavers reviewed highlights of the proposed 2013 budget. The AMR technology will result in an increase in the capital improvements budget. The operating budget will remain the same as in 2012. Beavers anticipates a 3–4 percent cost-of-living raise for SUD employees, but other operating expenses will be lower than in the 2012 budget. Gas consumption, the cost of gasoline and healthcare costs were less than expected in 2012, Beavers said.

SUD’s long-range plan calls for a 2–4 percent annual rate increase to allow for needed updates and repairs. However, SUD did not implement a rate increase in 2011 or 2012. A 2 percent rate increase would bring in $24,000 in additional revenue. The board approved an authorization request for $7,070 to repair the fence at the WWTP, required by TDEC following an inspection. The board also approved a new nondiscrimination policy with wording that more strictly complies with the Title VI Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Civil Rights Restoration Act of 1967. 

The next meeting of the SUD board of commissioners is scheduled for November 27.