Minutes 02-05-2013 - Laserfiche WebLink

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The Board received a presentation and information from the Orange Water and Sewer Authority (OWASA) on recent activities. OWASA Chair Alan Rimer made this presentation. He introduced Ed Kerwin, the Executive Director of OWASA and the Orange County representatives to OWASA, Terri Buckner and Michael Hughes. Alan Rimer noted that the annual report is included in the Commissioner's packet and he thanked Commissioner Rich, Commissioner Price and Commissioner Dorosin for attending a recent orientation. He said, in regard to Jordan Lake, as a utility, OWASA has made a tremendous effort at conserving water more than any other entity in N.C. He said there is a 50 year supply of water but until 2035 date passes, when the quarry supply can be tapped, there is still potential for vulnerability. As a result, a request has been made to move to a level one allocation for Jordan Lake, which would give access to the water. He said that Cary and Durham specified that, under condition of drought, access to that water might not be available without the level one, which gives OWASA a piece of that pie. He said the Drought Response Operating Protocol (DROP) was recently passed, which provides an opportunity for OWASA, at stage one, to make a decision whether or not they will need Jordan Lake when reservoirs are dropping and demand reaches certain levels. He referenced a note from Michael Hughes stating that Wichita is in a Stage 3 shortage. Alan Rimer said, in reference to the Rogers Road area, OWASA has acted as a resource for this project and has provided answers as needed. He said this cooperation will continue. Commissioner Gordon referenced the DROP, page 10 under#4, and she asked about page 3, which stated that Orange County and Hillsborough did approve it but Chapel Hill and Carrboro did not. She questioned whether the DROP wording addresses concerns for both jurisdictions. She said her other question is on the top of page 7, regarding Level One allocation. She said this passage seems to say that if Level One is obtained there must be withdrawal within 5 years, but on the other hand there is only withdrawal when triggered. Alan Rimer said when they activated DROP there were many considerations and Carrboro did not buy into DROP as a principle, but believed OWASA should just conserve more and wait for a more serious drought situation before going to alternative sources. He said the problem with that is when a drought is occurring, sometimes the drought drains lake quickly and other times slowly and they don't know at any one time about the speed of the drought. Carrboro thought there should be a longer wait and Chapel Hill accepted as a whole the OWASA principles, but their board felt that it would serve the community as it is now. He said the OWASA board believes that if a level one drought is reached, it is not an immediate trigger to go to an alternative source, rather this begins a process of gathering data and examining it before a decision is made by the board. He said it is more of a deliberation point. He said that the way their withdrawal policy reads, a withdrawal has to be done in 5 years, but DNR has reassured the board that this does not really apply. He said that OWASA has decided based on conversations with DNR that asking for Level One provides opportunities needed and the five year limit is not a concern at this time. He said that if the five year is reached and there has not been a need for action, there will be a check in with DNR. With respect to the WASMBA, he said there is no plan to change the water and sewer master plan at this time. Commissioner Price questioned, with regard to the Mountains to Sea Trail (MTST), whether agreement had been reached with some of the citizens adjacent to OWASA property.