Interesting Comment...Holden grapples with water loss from town system

Holden grapples with water loss from town system

By George Barnes TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF
george.barnes@telegram.com

Interesting Comment on this article -
"civil68 wrote:
If the apparent water loss statistics reported by the T&G are accurate, the annual fluctuation in apparent loss is far, far too great to be predominantly physical. It must be statistical, or at least procedural in the way in which the apparent loss is being calculated. The first issue, although at some expense, would be to return total responsibility for meter reading, billing, and bill administration to the Water & Sewer Department. With those functions now residing with the Light Department, the DPW staff – who are ultimately responsible for unaccounted-for water – have little chance to examine the issue in sufficient detail, when HMLD admin staff feel absolutely no accountability to the DPW Director and Water-Sewer Superintendent. A bad decision, made some 15 years ago, gave the Light Department authority over everything from selecting meter vendors (for water, no less!), to selecting billing and record-keeping software, to total administration of the billing process. “Coincidentally,” apparent water loss has risen over that period to where Holden is at present. Time to reverse that decision. "



HOLDEN — Unaccounted water loss in town is a variable issue from year to year, but the town has significantly more than what the state considers normal.

It is hoping to improve on that.

The percentage of water pumped by the town that remained unaccounted for has gone up and down over the years, from a high of 31 percent in 1996 to a low of 5 percent in 2003. In 2013, it was at 25 percent.

Public Works Director John Woodsmall said the fluctuations are something his department still does not have a handle on.

"Maintaining a system in a constant way, to have such wild fluctuations is pretty difficult to comprehend," he said.

Mr. Woodsmall said the state Department of Environmental Protection's standard for unaccounted for public water is 10 percent of the water pumped.

In fiscal 2013, the amount of unaccounted water was 25 percent of what was pumped or 118.6 million gallons. Mr. Woodsmall said the cost to rate payers for the missing water was $660,000. The town's unaccounted water in 2013 was 69 million gallons above the DEP standard, accounting for $380,000 of the town's total $660,000 cost.

Mr. Woodsmall said unaccounted for water is not just known water leaks, it is also unknown water leaks, slow meters, and unreported water use. He said leak detection efforts have shown good results in recent years. In 2009 the town found 17 leaks; in fiscal 2014, 34 leaks were found.

To deal with the leaks, the town has a 12-point plan that includes increased meter calibration, hydrant replacement programs and auditing and billing system changes.

Joe Sullivan, a former selectman and former water and sewer commissioner, told the board it should understand that the town is not alone is dealing with water leaks. He said it is projected that $1 trillion is expected to be spent over the next couple of decades nationally to deal with the problems.

Mr. Sullivan said the problem facing communities is deferred maintenance. Communities have put off making improvements because of budget concerns. He said Holden has only put through three water rate increases since 1992 and has used one-time money to pay for repairs rather than developing a capital plan to pay for improvements.

"Now we're paying the fiddler," he said.

Contact George Barnes at george.barnes@telegram.com. Follow him on Twitter @georgebarnesTG

*****************************************

Does this sound like what happened in Templeton? Check out the sidebar - Chapter 93 Acts of 2000!