County, city dispute water situation

By Karen Williamson

KARENW@CULLMANTIMES.COM

Cullman County Water Department Manager David Bussman wants to know why the city has not enacted Phase III of the Emergency Water Conservation Plan, why it has not dredged 20 feet of mud sitting on the bottom of Lake Catoma and why the city did not wait to sign a contract with the city of Hanceville until after the water crisis was over?

According to Bussman, Lake Catoma hit 20 feet below full pool more than a week ago. The lake is currently 20.5 feet below the 90 foot level, according to City of Cullman Superintendent of Water Distribution Junior Heaton.

If the city passed the new ordinance three or four months ago, then why not act on it, asked Bussman. If the city is not going to act on those guidelines, “then why are we scaring everybody?”

Cullman Mayor Donald Green responded that he had not heard from Cullman County Chairman Wiley Kitchens.

“I assume he is happy with the way I am handling the situation,” said Green.

As far as the ordinance is concerned, “the mayor has the authority to determine when we go to the next phase,” said Green.

The mayor, City of Cullman Water Treatment Plant Superintendent David Freeman and Heaton talk daily and plan to meet today at 9 a.m. to discuss going to Phase III of the Emergency Water Conservation Plan.

“The last rain event or potential rain events might let us stay away from Phase III because Phase III is where you have to get into people’s pocketbooks,” said Green. “I don’t think we are going to have any choice.”

Water usage for the month of November is comparable to water usage in November 2006, said Green.

“Either something happened then to balance, or we are not conserving water as we ought to be,” said Green.

Last year, 327,772,000 gallons of water was used in November. More than 300,000,000 gallons of water have been used this month.

“We average around 9 million gallons of water a day,” said Green.

With three days left in the month, the total is approaching 327 million gallons.

“We are going to be just about where we were last year at the end of the month, so it’s time for me to sit down with my professionals and get their advice as to whether or not we should go into Phase III,” said Green.

According to Bussman, he learned from City of Cullman Water Treatment Plant Compliance Officer Wendy Bray that when officials opened the 70 foot valve on Lake Catoma, it held only mud.

“The intake goes down to a depth of approximately 90 feet, so therefore, you have roughly 20 feet of sludge at the bottom of the lake,” said Bussman.

When asked if the statement was true, Bray said, “that is what my understanding is.”

Freeman said the 70 foot valve is actually a drain valve and hasn’t been opened in more than 20 years, but concurred with Bussman saying “the most you can pull from (the lake) is 50 feet.”

The city is currently pulling water from the 30 foot valve.

According to Freeman, the city repaired some intake valves and sent divers to the bottom of the lake a few years ago. Freeman told the divers he thought there would be 20 to 25 feet of silt at the bottom of the lake, but divers said they didn’t find that much.

“They didn’t give us an exact amount,” he said.

“Have they ever thought about dredging the bottom to give us more capacity?” asked Bussman. “Twenty feet is a ton of water. If it’s a matter of having water or not having water, that’s a lot of water.”

“Yes, we have,” responded Freeman.

“We are looking into it (dredging). We have looked into it. We haven’t got an answer back from the engineering firm.”

Freeman would not provide the name of the firm.

Freeman later stated he contacted several companies about dredging and hasn’t heard back from any of them but was told dredging would be “very expensive.” He said the only area that would need to be dredged is the area around the intake and a 1,000 foot radius around it.

During dredging, workers have to be very careful, Freeman said.

“If you start stirring water, its real hard to treat when you do that,” he said.

City Council members raised the dam in 2000 increasing the water supply by 30 to 60 days, Freeman said during an interview in the summer.

Another problem, according to Bussman, is the fact the Hanceville Water and Sewer Board entered into a five-year contract with the city of Cullman.

Roughly one month before passing Phase 1 of the Emergency Conservation Plan, which called for voluntary conservation, the city of Cullman pledged a half a million gallons of water a day to the city of Hanceville, according to Bussman. Hanceville purchased water from the city of Cullman until March of 2004, so it had a connection in place to the city’s water system.

Hanceville is paying $1.57 per 1,000 gallons of water which will be negotiable after one year, and a minimum of $2,500 per month will be paid for the term of the contract.

“They had to sell water to the city of Hanceville. I understand that but to go under a contract obligation is another whole ballgame,” he said.

Heaton said the city of Hanceville broke their contract with the city in 2004. At the time, the city of Cullman had just completed $18,000 worth of upgrades on Hanceville’s purchase meter and lines in the Center Hill area. When Hanceville tied back onto the city’s supply in late July, Heaton insisted the city of Hanceville pay back the $18,000 plus a one-time $5,000 connection fee.

“If they violate this contract we have now with them, we’ll have a hard time letting them come back on the system,” said Heaton.

Bussman said he understood the people of Hanceville needed the water, and the city should have sold them water.

“But I don’t feel it was in the best interest of the other wholesalers that they pledged by contract that half a million a day because they are doing this in a time of conservation,” he said. “They pledged water that could have been used by the original customers of the city of Cullman.”

When Hanceville stopped purchasing water from Cullman in 2004, the remaining wholesalers — Vinemont-Anon-Westpoint, East Cullman, Johnson’s Crossing, Walter, Garden City — had to pay more for the water, said Bussman.

That move caused the wholesale water rates to increase 27 percent, he said.

“In my opinion, the contract should have taken place after the crisis. They should have agreed to sell Hanceville water without a guarantee, and then when the water situation returned to normal, then go back to a contract with Hanceville.”

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