SUD Considers Water Loss, Drought Policy and Dimmick Contract

by Leslie Lytle Messenger Staff Writer
At the June 25 meeting of the Board of Commissioners of the Sewanee Utility District of Franklin and Marion Counties, SUD manager Ben Beavers offered new insight into the possible causes of SUD’s high unaccounted-for water loss. The board also discussed options for amending its contract with the University that allows SUD to withdraw water from Lake Dimmick in a drought emergency.
Unaccounted-for water loss is the difference between the amount of treated water SUD produces and the amount accounted for in metered sales. SUD’s water loss year-to-date is 28.7 percent. To address water loss from aging inaccurate meters SUD will replace all customer meters, which, according to Beavers, should account for about one-fifth of the loss.
Responding to a suggestion from a water-loss audit, Beavers checked the metering of water leaving the plant. SUD had been monitoring the output during the production process;this method includes water used to clean the skids which is later discarded. Monitoring the output externally as the water left the plant showed a 4,700-gallon difference in one day.
Beavers next plans to investigate sources of unauthorized consumption, such as fire service lines feeding sprinklers that are flushed in routine maintenance; not all fire service lines are metered, pointing to another unaccounted-for water-loss source. Beavers said that water used by the fire department also needed to be more efficiently monitored.
In July, Beavers will attend a conference on unaccounted-for water loss in Louisville, Ky., and hopes to learn other remedies specific to SUD’s situation.
The Lake Dimmick contract discussion at the May meeting led the board to ask Beavers to consult with SUD attorney Don Scholes. By the provisions of the contract, SUD pays the University $10,000 annually for access to Lake Dimmick in a drought emergency. Scholes questioned the value SUD was getting for its money. The board discussed whether SUD has an obligation to help maintain the lake since the University is SUD’s biggest customer, and it seemed unlikely the University would deny SUD use of the lake in an emergency.
Commissioner Randall Henley pointed out that the University needs to maintain the lake regardless. Beavers suggested two options: one, terminate the agreement; two, modify the agreement eliminating the $10,000 annual fee, but leaving in place the per-gallon use charge. Beavers also suggested that if the $10,000 fee was eliminated the University could be given a break on the rate increase assessed to all customers in extreme drought.
On a related topic, Scholes recommended SUD revisit its drought policy. By the policy, hotels and restaurants are among the businesses whose water is cut off during an extreme drought. Scholes said that as the policy currently reads, the University dormitories could be classified as hotels and McClurg Dining Hall could be considered a restaurant.
The board will revisit the Dimmick contract and drought policy at the next meeting on July 23.
Commissioner Henley asked that the board also review the backflow prevention device policy for commercial establishments in July.
On the suggestion of the college students who did the Constructed Wetlands Study, Beavers is taking measures to enhance public outreach. Plans call for a Twitter account for day-to-day communications and a SUD blog for weekly updates and information. Beavers has received many questions about the proposed constructed wetlands. SUD will also maintain a Facebook page to direct users to the Twitter account and blog for more information. The SUD website will continue to be the primary source for policy and static information, such as rates.