Dredging of the South Fork Rivanna Reservoir is coming closer to a reality, one board meeting at a time. And this afternoon, the one that counts the most—the Rivanna Water and Sewer Authority—voted unanimously to have staff put together a request for proposals from consulting firms to study dredging. RWSA set aside up to $300,000 from its reserve for the study. It will set a deadline for bids in early August.
As C-VILLE has previously reported, dredging has been a big issue of late because its implications for the long-term community water supply plan. Estimated to cost $143 million, the plan was originally hailed by most environmental groups as a splendid compromise. Its major components call for a new, taller dam at Ragged Mountain Reservoir and a pipeline that connects that reservoir to the South Fork Rivanna Reservoir in order to meet projected water needs through 2055. The problem? A group, Citizens for a Sustainable Water Plan, coalesced late last year to oppose the plan for various reasons, including the inundation of 180 acres at Ragged Mountain and the logic of supplying so much water. They have argued that dredging South Fork Rivanna Reservoir to restore capacity can be less expensive and could negate the need for such a high dam at Ragged Mountain.
RWSA’s vote comes after Charlottesville City Council and the Albemarle Board of Supervisors passed resolutions that endorse the plan but also requested RWSA “undertake a study of the South Fork Rivanna Reservoir and the viability and merits of maintenance dredging, siltation prevention and any other appropriate initiatives that could maintain and enhance the aquatic health and water quality of the South Fork Rivanna Reservoir, as a valuable water resource for the long term future benefit of the community.”
The RFP for dredging consultants is part of a parallel action track to move dredging forward, said Tom Frederick, RWSA’s executive director. His staff will now try to corral the chairmen of the four boards—city Mayor Dave Norris, county Board of Supervisors Chair Ken Boyd, Albemarle County Service Authority Chair Don Wagner and RWSA Chair Mike Gaffney—into one room before July 4 to figure out how to answer the question, “Why dredge?”
