City Council unanimously reaffirmed its support for the long term water supply plan last night, though it added a request for the Rivanna Water and Sewer Authority (RWSA) to undertake a maintenance dredging study for the South Fork Rivanna Reservoir and increase water conservation efforts.
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“I don’t want to gamble with the future of the water supply,” said City Councilor Julian Taliaferro. “Where I stand is that I would like to move ahead on it. At the same time, I’d like to look at the dredging issue. If something changes on it, I’m certainly open to making some adjustments.”
In order to meet water demands in Charlottesville and urban Albemarle County through 2055, RWSA put together a plan in 2005 to expand water supply by building a 45’ higher dam at the Ragged Mountain Reservoir that would take useable storage from 464 million gallons to 2.19 billion gallons. But because the reservoir has only a 2 acre watershed—not enough to fill it—the plan also includes a new 9.5 mile pipeline from the South Fork Rivanna Reservoir. The estimated combined cost of the plan, which also includes upgrades to water treatment plants and other pipeline upgrades, is $143 million. It was endorsed by City Council and the Board of Supervisors in 2006, and the state Department of Environmental Quality approved the capital projects in February. The proposal still needs approval from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
For several years, it looked like the plan had strong backing from environmental groups, business interests and citizen watchdogs. But late last year, a group, Citizens for a Sustainable Water Plan, formed to oppose the plan. The key element of their argument is that dredging the South Fork Reservoir is less expensive than it was originally presented. RWSA’s hired consultant, Gannett Fleming, has estimated that dredging to restore the reservoir to its original capacity and maintain that capacity for 50 years would cost between $199 million and $223 million. Recently, a local consortium led by Dominion Development Resources has said that it could dredge the South Fork back to its original capacity for $24 million to $29 million, though those figures do not include costs of dredging over the long term.
Last month, City Council held a work session and a public hearing to reconsider the water supply plan in light of the contentions brought forward by the Citizens for a Sustainable Water Plan. The Board of Supervisors voted to reaffirm its support of the plan in late May.
“I take a very long term view,” said Councilor Satyendra Huja before casting his vote for the plan last night. “In the 21st century, I don’t think that wars will be over oil but I think they will be over water. …I think it’s a good plan to take care of the needs for the future.”
City Council’s dredging caveat was the silver lining for some plan opponents.
“I’m not happy with the decision, but I respect the vote,” said Rich Collins after the meeting. He said he is confident that the study would prove dredging an affordable alternative, allowing RWSA to build a lower dam at Ragged Mountain.
The RWSA board isn’t likely to move ahead with dredging studies, expected to cost between $100,000 and $300,000, until it gets similar support from the Board of Supervisors.
Councilor Holly Edwards drew on The Eagles for insight into certain city controversies, saying that some issues can check out, but they can never leave. “We have almost created a culture where we hold onto these issues and we can’t move on,” said Edwards. “And sometimes it’s better to make a decision, right or wrong, than to live in conflict.”