Agenda - 06-02-2004-9c - Laserfiche WebLink

Browse Search

(3 Since the time of Hillsborough's ordinance change, there has been only the period of the 2002 drought in which the differences in the County and Town could have caused serious confusion and conflict (neither Capacity Use or Draught ordinance restrictions had to be implemented during the normally dry months of 2003). During the short period in 2002 when the County was in mandatory water use restriction while the Town was in voluntary restrictions, the County and Town reached a temporary agreement to address the conflicts. The County agreed to forgo enforcing its mandatory restrictions against the Hillsborough water customers under County jurisdiction while the Town agreed to provide additional (above Capacity Use requirements) water releases from the West Fork Reservoir to supplement releases from Lake Orange, In essence, the arrangement preserved and actually enhanced the integrity of the Lake Orange water supply for the short period (water levels in Lake Orange dropped from the Stage III to the Stage IV level in just 30 days [6/17/02 - 7/17/02] due to the unseasonably hot and dry conditions) in which the ordinance restrictions were disparate, Once both the Town and County water conservation/drought ordinances required the imposition of mandatary water restrictions, the Town supplemental releases from the West Fork reservoir were terminated. The Town has been approached by some of its water customers who have asked that water restrictions be relaxed (given the availability of additional water supplies from a source -the West Fork Reservoir -the cast of which is already included in the water rates) or that utility rates be reduced and/or equalized between in-and out-of-town customers. The Town's response has been to seek input on these issues from its Water and Sewer Advisory Committee. As indicated earlier, the advisory committee has recommended a strategy that includes restoring the water demand/sale lost with the closing of Flint Fabrics. One method of increasing water sales -relaxing water use restrictions during the normal summer dry period -has the potential to address both complaints raised by Town water customers. For example, the Town has calculated that water restrictions imposed in 2002 resulted in lost water sales more than $500,000 (a net income loss of approximately $400,000 [water and sewer revenues less treatment costs] or 1 1 % of its total annual water revenues. In all probability, had the Town's proposed water use restriction imposing mandatory restrictions only when its total water supply (Lake Orange and West Fork Reservoirs) falls below 135 days of supply had been in effect in 2002, Hillsborough water customers would not have faced any water any mandatory restrictions during the drought (storage in the West Fork Reservoir fell below 150 days of supply for less than two weeks), Consequently, the Town would not have last the $500,000 in utility revenues. Given a period of years in which mandatory water restrictions were not imposed (with attendant revenue losses), it is possible that the Town reduce its water rates by an amount approaching 9% overall (or by 18% to out-of-town customers only with no off-setting rate increase to in-town customers), Water Conservation of Eno River Water Supplies Water conservation, including conservation of the Eno River water supply, has long been a stated value of the BOCC, Insofar as the Eno is concerned, it has been the Eno River Capacity Use Agreement that has actually accomplished this goal since its inception. Customer demand on the Hillsborough and Orange-Alamance water utilities has 9