SUD Board Elects Officers

by Leslie Lytle, Messenger Staff Writer

At the Feb. 26 meeting of the Board of Commissioners of the Sewanee Utility District of Franklin and Marion Counties, the board elected officers for the coming year, with all the 2012 officers returning to serve another term. Cliff Huffman was elected president; Karen Singer, vice-president;  and Ken Smith, secretary.

At the beginning of the meeting, Smith was sworn in to serve a new three-year term on the board.

SUD manager Ben Beavers reported that unaccounted-for water loss was exceptionally high for January, 34.7 percent, and February, slightly over 30 percent. Unaccounted-for water loss is determined by calculating the difference between the amount of treated water SUD produces and the amount accounted for in metered sales. SUD’s averages 25 percent. Beavers said the trend of high unaccounted-for water loss for the first two months of the year dates back to at least 1994. He had no explanation for the phenomenon.

SUD plans to implement automatic meter reading (AMR) over the course of the next two years. With the AMR system, radio-transmitted meter reading will result in more accurate meter data and may shed light on the high unaccounted-for water loss. Beavers is investigating meter vendors and anticipates having a recommendation by April. Labor costs for switching out the meters in the Midway area will be high, Beavers said, because the meter setters are old and will need to be replaced. Beavers budgeted for the Midway labor expense, but said the amount may need to be adjusted.

Reporting on recent drinking water sampling, Beavers said SUD’s disinfection by-products (DBP) rating was the lowest it has ever been. Disinfection by-products occur when the chlorine reacts with organic compounds in the water to produce cancer-causing agents. The highest DBP risk occurs at the end of the line because the water has been in the pipes longer. SUD’s end-of-the-line DBP rating was half the maximum allowed by the state.

Beavers received a letter from the state comptroller reiterating the findings of the auditor. All of the auditor’s recommendations are in the process of being addressed except for the “segregation of duties” recommendation which would require four employees, instead of two, to perform accounts receivable and accounts payable duties. The requirement is intended to provide oversight in each department by someone not involved in the data entry. Beavers will inquire about the minimum standard for satisfying the requirement and ask if SUD could hire an accounting firm to provide quarterly review rather than hiring additional employees.

SUD’s April 23 commissioners’ meeting will be held at Woods Lab. The board will meet with representatives from the University of Georgia to discuss a monitoring plan for the pilot constructed wetlands proposal. The trial wastewater treatment project is based on research jointly conducted by the University of Georgia and the University of the South.