Agenda - 12-15-1987 - Laserfiche WebLink

Browse Search

• _ _ . . DRAFT'- %TATER AND SEWER AumoRrzy mamma cm PFCIPOSED RECLASSIFICATICN OF UNIVEFSrlY LAKE AND CANE CREEK RESERVOXR F i6-III TO IG-X Presented By Patrick Davis, Acting Executive Director, GWASA at E7 C's December 16, 1987 Public Hearing at Carrboro Town Hall • I am Patrick Davis, Acting Executive Director of Orange Water and Sewer Authority (C +SSA) . CESA is the organization responsible for providing the Chapel Hill - Carrboro community and surrounding area with a safe, high quality drinking water supply. In November, 1985 OWASA requested the water supply reclassifications which are under consideration by the State. We are very glad that the State is now nearing a decision on our request. The Environmental management Commission's proposal to reclassify the University Lake and Cane Creek Reservoir watersheds from WS-III to WS-I is an - important, progressive step in State and local efforts to protect local water supplies. _ , M SA must operate in compliance with existing drinking water standards. We must also be prepared to meet the increasingly stringent treatment requirements and standards which have been proposed or are under consideration by Federal and State public health agencies. Unfortunately, •• - our society's capability to generate water pollutants exceeds our capability to control those contaminants. Conventional water treatment technology cannot remove all of the pollutants potentially present in drinking water supplies. _ The water treatment system is, and will continue to be, our community's last line of defense against these pollutants.. . Therefore, protection of the public water supply and the public health must begin with the selection of the highest quality source of water. Continued maintenance of high quality water sources is also greatly dependent upon efforts to protect the supply from point and nonpoint source pollution. . _ Although GWASA is responsible for the quality of drinking water provided to its customers, it does not have authority to control land development activities within local water_supply watersheds: State and local ..-: governments are depended upon to implement water supply protection programs. Our community has been very fortunate in that each of the local governments with planning and zoning authority in local water supply watersheds recognize the need for, and have implemented, water supply protection requirements. Although additional controls would be beneficial and should continue to be considered, the measures already in place provide a good- foundation for a long-term watershed protection program. .. . The Town of Carrboro, Orange County and Chatham County have all adopted water quality protection measures applicable to the University Lake watershed. , Orange County and Alamance County have adopted measures for the Cane Creek Reservoir watershed. . It is our understanding that all of these measures meet or exceed the State-established requirements for local water quality protection programs within WS-I watersheds.