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Home My WebLink AboutAgenda - 09-20-2007-1a~~~~~~~: C)Wi~-S,A ORANGE WATER AND SEti~VER AUTI-€ORITY Quality Service Since 1977 September 7, 2007 Ms. Laura Blackmon Orange County Manager Post Office Box 8181 Hillsborough, North Carolina 27278 SUBJECT: BRIEF REVIEW OF PAST DISCUSSIONS WITH CHATHAM COUNTY REGARDING POTENTiAT, JOINT USE OF THE JORDAN LAKE WATER SUPPLY Background During the August 14, 2007 meeting that Orange County arranged with officials from Carrboro, Chapel Hill, and Chatham County, OWASA was asked to provide a summary of past discussions that have taken place about our possible joint use with Chatham County of the Jordan Lake water supply. This memorandiun provides a brief review of those discussions along with OWASA's current expectations regarding the Jordan Lalce water supply. We understand that this information will be presented at the September 20, 2007 Orange County Asseimbly of Governments meeting and perhaps at a follow-up meeting with Chatham County scheduled for October 30. Previous Discussions The t"irst round of Jordan Lake water supply storage allocations by the NC Enviromnental Management Commission occurred in 1988. Orange County, Hillsborough, Orange-Alamance Water System, Inc., Chatham County, and. OWASA jointl~pplied for individual allocations at that time. OWASA coordinated this joint effort with the other entities, all of whom subsequently received storage allocations. Also in 1988, OWASA and Chatham County initiated negotiations to share treated drinking water through a wholesale transfer agreement, but these efforts were never finalized. • OWASA participated in joint staff discussions during the late 1990s about the potential for interlocal collaboration in developing a western water supply intake and potential treatment facilities at Jordan Lake. Other participants included staff 40o Jones Ferry Road Equal Opportunity Employer Voice (919) 968-4421 Pd Box 366 Printed on Recycled Paper FAX (919) 968-4464 Carrboro, NC 27510-0366 www.owasa.org Joint Use of Jordan Lake Water Supply September 7, 2007 Page 2 from Chatham County, Durham, and the NC Division of Water Resources. UNC Institute of Government and Triangle J Council of Governments staff helped. facilitate those discussions, which included the possibility of establishing a Jordan Lake water authority as the lead agency for developing additional water supply facilities. Neither the discussions nor the proposal to create a special authority were pursued. In 2001 the Towns of Carrboro, Chapel Hill, Hillsborough, Orange County, and OWASA entered into a Water and Sewer Management, Planning and Boundary Agreement, which includes a requirement that any non-emergency water transfers from OWASA to locations outside of its designated "long-term interest area" (e.g., to Chatham County) must first be approved by the elected boards of Carrboro, Chapel Hill, and Orange County. 4WASA-Owned Property at Jordan Lake and Expected Use of Storage Allocation OWASA awns approximately 125 acres of land adjacent to US Army Corps of Engineers property south of Highway G4 on the western side of Jordan Lake in the Pea Ridge - Seaforth Roads vicinity (please see attached map). The property is close to the preferred site of a western water supply intake recommended in a 1991 OWASA-commissioned engineering report. The Corps of Engineers has indicated that this would. likely be the only other intake site allowed at Jordan Lake in addition to the Town of Ca1y's existing site north of Highway 64 (also shown on map). Although OWASA owns property near the lake, neither we nor any other entity own or have a claim to the intake location within the lake itself. OWASA pays an annual fee to reserve a Level II allocation for 5 percent of Jordan Lake's water supply storage capacity. This is expected to yield an average of 5 million gallons of water per day. Because we regard our allocation as insurance against unforeseen problems with our existing supply sources, it is unlikely that OWASA would commit to snaking its allocation available to another utility on anon-interruptible basis. Jordan Lake represents a secondary supply option that could supplement oiu- long-term needs if current plans for water conservation and reuse do not provide the expected savings and future demand reductions. It is unlikely that OWASA will develop any Jordan Lake facilities on our own, due to the high capital costs (more than $40 million for a water intake, pumping, and transmission pipeline) and the relatively short duration (~15 years) for which we currently anticipate a potential need for additional water. Our use of Jordan Lake will likely be snore feasible by collaborating with other entities, such as Chatham County, Durham, and/or Cary, in a joint venture or partnership of some kind. A number of treated water interconnections (pipelines) currently exist among the water utilities in our vicinity. In most cases, treated water can be moved in either direction between these systems, although the actual transfer capacity depends on pipe and pump Joint Use of Jordan Lake Water Supply September 7, 2007 Page 3 sizes, topographic elevation, and other factors. Water quality considerations, especially the type of disinfection process used by different entities (chloramines vs. free chlorine), may preclude the ability to transfer water between certain systems. Finished. water pipeline interconnections exist between the following drinking water systems: v OWASA-Chatham County ~ OWASA-Hillsborough r OWASA-Durham - Chatham County-Durham ~ Chatham County-Pittsboro v Durham-Hillsborough Durham-Cary A special study is underway at L7NC to examine the extent to which water transfers through these existing or upgraded facilities may be less costly than building additional supply capacity to meet the projected needs of OWASA, Cary, and Durham. This project, which is jointly fimded by those three entities and the NC Urban Water Consortium, will also consider how Jordan Lake may be most effectively used among thase three interconnected water providers and possibly by others, such as Chatham County. Consistent with the principles of the Water and Sewer Management, Planning arzd Boundary Agreement noted above, OWASA recognizes that the eventual use (and protection) of Jordan Lake will have planning and growth management implications beyond our local boundaries. We understand that decisions regarding if, when, and how OWASA eventually uses Jordan Lake will be determined as part of a larger interlocal discussion and consensus. We look forward to discussing these issues further at the September 20, 2007 Assembly of Governments meeting. Very truly yours, Ed Kerwin Executive Director Attachment c: Mr. Roger Stancil, Chapel Hill Town Manager (w/attaclnnents) Mr. Steven Stuart, Carrboro Town Manager (w/attachments) OWASA Board of Directors (w/attachments) Mason Crum, OWASA Director of Engineering and Planning (w/attachments) ~~ Selected Water Supply Facilities in the Jordan Lake Vicinity ~v ~ r i s , -----._.._ ~f ~ r `...-. f ~ t ORANGE DURHAM ~ r r~ ,.-'` ~ --,~`.= ~i CHATHAM ~.J ~ ,.l y ~ ,~ ~,~ ~, r,~ ~~ ~ ~ f.~. i '~ r ~ C.I ~,• -, ~ `.' . C ~ -.,._. .~' .. r ' 'l ~` {4 ..~ . / ~~ ~'~ E~ ~s._~ --•~----,~ 1 ~. { 1~ / } ' 501 -~ ~ ~ I L./,~ _~. ~,, , y-' ,,_. .. •. / ~,` _ ~ ` _. `.~" ~-- .._._-~' ~-- ~~`-~---~ Arm Cor s of ` _ .____ Y p ~: ~`~ •~ r., ~ ~: ` r: . ~`~'' ~- -- ~ -~ ,j' Engineers Land ~ ~ o° ~_ rte. Pittsboro WTI' `-~`~ ~`'~ - ~""~~ _ A -~ ~;'. '~- ~-.-- ' ~;~ r- _ __.- ,. ,:.~` ~~ ~~ 1--~--''fy :Cary Water Intake ~~ / . '. ,: ~ ~ ` ~~`~~~~~~~~ ~ Chatham Gou y ~ ~ , .:.. . 1 ~ WTP ~_ ~~, ,-, it ~.• JO.~'C~dI2 ,.. ~. Pittsboro ~ ~,~ ~ ~ ~. ~ ~.. ~~,~~ Lake . ~ ; _ ~ ::: . ,. ., ~ , ~,~~~` ..''~,~,~-- OWASA Property . _ ~~~• ~. ~ -..r ~~...~~ - Recommended Western ,..• '''... .,,.. ~ Intake Location 15 ~.~;,~.,~~:.:; .,:; 501 . ,. _ ,: ~ - ... , { ~ ~, ra n e Wate r a n d .~,r. ~~ ::r~ ~~~~~~~~~:::. ::... Sealer Auth®rity N .. . _A ~ ~ ~ ~~ .: :.. 0 1 '~~ _ ..; . ... .:. :.. •: Miles Date: 8/10/2007 _~- J ,/ ...,.. .•. f