The newly-announced Plateau Water Planning Partnership will connect local governments, utilities, technical experts, and conservation groups.
That according to Cumberland Plateau Water Authority General Manager Jeff Dyer. Dyer said the partnership will examine affordability, population growth, environmental protection and the infrastructure needed to serve the region.
“This approach recognizes that long-term water supply requires a regional approach,” Dyer said. “So for years, we’ve talked about the need for long-term water solutions on the plateau, 30-plus years, in fact, and now we’re seeing a coordinated effort led by the state to bring the right people together and develop a plan for the future.”
Dyer said the scale of future projects makes their effect on customer bills a major part of the discussion. Previous studies often concentrated on the needs of individual utilities. Dyer said the new process will consider projects across a larger area and determine how utilities can finance improvements with less pressure on individual customer bases.
“In Tennessee, like most areas across the state, we’ve seen a significant increase in population growth,” Dyer said. “We’ve also seen an increase cost in products and services around treating water and delivering water, and we also have aging infrastructures around our water systems.”
The Cumberland Plateau Water Authority plans to provide information about existing infrastructure, current water supply arrangements and customer needs. CPWA has merged three utilities during the past two years, giving the authority direct experience consolidating previously independent systems.
“We want the best of each utility working hand-in-hand, working together,” Dyer said. “When we have a management meeting, we want all the management from the water utilities talking together, sharing information, solving these problems as a whole.”
Planners could consider connections between water systems and projects involving new or existing impoundments. The process will also account for wastewater as utilities prepare for significant infrastructure expenses in the coming years.
Dyer said spreading fixed and infrastructure costs across a larger customer base can produce financial benefits. CPWA’s two most recent utility mergers resulted in a five percent water rate reduction for customers in those systems.
“A water line, it doesn’t care where city limits are, it doesn’t care where county lines are, and a water line doesn’t care what utility district it’s been in,” Dyer said. “So our planning has to look beyond the boundaries of the past and look at what our future impact is.”
The regional approach could also address differences in rates and policies among neighboring systems. Dyer said cost-of-service studies can identify the expenses associated with serving different areas and provide customers with a clearer explanation of their rates.
The Plateau Water Planning Partnership expects to spend about a year studying the region before producing information and recommendations.
“These systems belong to communities that depend on them,” Dyer said. “They’re the ones that paid for them and these decisions we make today will affect families and businesses for decades to come.”