Wanted: New water sources

Wanted: New water sources

Sunday, July 06, 2008

THOMAS SPENCER

News staff writer

The Birmingham Water Works Board believes it needs a new water source that can provide an additional 50 million gallons of water per day, and it plans to decide this fall where it will go to get it.

With last year's exceptional drought accelerating its plans, the board has asked an engineering firm to evaluate options that include resurrecting a plan to dam the Locust Fork River or creating another source in the Black Warrior basin; building a pipeline to the Coosa or Tennessee rivers; or raising the dam at Lake

Purdy.

But any direction the water system turns, it likely will face opposition. Neighboring communities already are erecting barriers around their resources, fearing the thirst of the major metropolis. Environmentalists stand ready to challenge dam projects that would threaten endangered species.

The Water Works is making its push based on a projection that its current and potential service area will add 116,338 people over the next 20 years, thanks in part to "explosive growth" around the planned

northern beltline of Interstate 459. Some question that projection, noting that Jefferson County has lost population since 2000.

The Water Works also is projecting per capita water use will rise, although it has been declining elsewhere in the country. Conservation advocates argue that better water management here could forestall or

eliminate the need for a costly new source.

Establishing a new water source could cost anywhere from $100 million to $500 million, Water Works officials said, with a new reservoir being the most expensive option.

Water Works officials say they are prepared for a long, difficult struggle and are confident that, even with conservation measures, the need for more water will be there.

Water is the essential ingredient if the region is going to grow, said T.M. "Sonny" Jones, the board's assistant general manager. "We've just got to find a 50 million-gallon-a-day source and maybe a

combination of ... (sources) in different locations," he said.

The Water Works, which serves more than 600,000 customers, can reliably produce 176 million gallons a day. The average daily demand is 134 million gallons. The Water Works estimates that it will reach its

capacity in the existing service area by 2040. If it includes potential customers in areas now served by other water systems, it would reach capacity in the mid-2020s.

By then, water officials hope to have developed additional water sources to produce about the same amount as the Cahaba River intake or Inland Lake.

"We'd much rather start too early than too late," Jones said.

Damming Locust Fork one idea, with foes:

Birmingham has been pushing for a new water source for almost 20 years. In the early 1990s, it advanced a plan to dam the Locust Fork at the Jefferson-Blount County line but encountered opposition from

environmentalists and Blount County residents, already resentful that Birmingham owns Inland Lake in that county.

The Locust Fork, one of the last free-flowing rivers in the state, is a favorite of canoers and kayakers and is home to several species of endangered or threatened fish and mussels.

But the idea of damming it is attractive to Birmingham because the Water Works owns 3,500 acres there, bought during its earlier attempt to tap the fork. The Locust Fork also is closer than some of the other

proposed sources and, because it is at a higher elevation, moving that water to Birmingham would cost less.

Sam Howell, president of the Friends of Locust Fork, believes a new reservoir would be cost-prohibitive and controversial.

"Our reaction would probably be just like it was in 1991. I can assure you there would be an outcry of,`Stop!' not only locally, but nationally," Howell said. The Locust Fork is one of the most biodiverse river systems in the country, Howell said.

Tapping distant rivers, raising Purdy dam:

At various times, the Water Works board also has explored piping in water from rivers.

Though more distant, the Tennessee River is a massive water source. The Water Works board has explored cooperating with Blount or Cullman counties to draw from the Tennessee. However, neither has

been interested.

Since then, with an eye toward blocking Birmingham withdrawals, the counties through which the river flows banded together to pass laws banning water transfers to other counties, a roadblock that would be difficult to overcome.

The Water Works also is evaluating drawing water from the Coosa. Much smaller than the Tennessee, the Coosa already has several competing demands on it, including a water treatment plant just opened by Shelby County. St. Clair County also is pursuing the idea of a plant on the Coosa. Birmingham water officials said they have contacted both counties but, again, neither was interested in collaborating.

Another option being studied is raising the dam at Lake Purdy to increase the storage capacity there.

But land values around Lake Purdy are high, roads and bridges in the area would have to be reconfigured, and a breeding cave for an endangered species of bat is just 6 to 10 feet above the current lake level.

Raising the lake level could flood the cave.

Supply often enough, but with growth...:

Under normal conditions, the water supply isn't a problem. In wet or winter weather, Water Works customers use about 80 million to 90 million gallons a day. But on a hot, dry summer day, the amount can

surge to nearly twice that, 140 million to 160 million gallons, much of that going to water-parched lawns.

After the Water Works put mandatory drought restrictions in place last year, customer use dropped back to about 110 million gallons a day.

The utility was able to weather the drought and refilled its reservoirs during the winter by drawing more from intakes on the Sipsey and Mulberry forks of the Warrior River.

But the Water Works is concerned about problems in the future.

"The earliest we feel like we'll see problems could be 2023, and that would manifest itself on those days where we see that demand jump up real high in the summertime," Jones said. "We think now is the time to

getting it financed."

A long-term needs assessment produced last year by the engineering firm Malcolm Pirnie set the stage for the Water Works' push.

The assessment projects the population in the Water Works' existing service area to grow from 608,269 to 702,562 by 2025. It projects a greater population jump in areas the Water Works potentially could serve as a primary or wholesale supplier of water, from 686,005 to 802,343 by 2025.

Other projections conflict with those in the Malcolm Pirnie report. A 2004 report the same company performed for the Regional Planning Commission of Birmingham predicted that Jefferson County's water

supply would be adequate through 2050, though it notes that droughts could induce shortages.

And the Census Bureau estimates that Jefferson County lost 5,000 residents between 2000 and 2006.

Areas the Water Works counts as potential customers such as Trussville and Leeds are growing, but water authorities in those areas are taking measures to meet projected demand and aren't expecting to become Birmingham's customers.

Friends of the Locust Fork President Howell and others believe the population projections are inflated.

"I don't see the growth being that fast," he said.

But Malcolm Pirnie and Water Works officials believe construction of the northern beltline will spur growth and the high cost of gasoline could cause some population shift back toward the core city.

"I think the growth inside our service area is going to be explosive," Jones said. And wherever the residential growth occurs, many of those people will depend on Birmingham for service during their working

hours, Water Works officials said.

Using more water or conserving it?:

The Water Works' assumptions also are based on a prediction that per capita water use will continue to grow. Birmingham customers now use about 170 gallons per day per person, which is close to the national

average but high for an area that normally receives abundant rainfall. The Water Works projects that per person use will climb to 180 gallons a day.

However, the national average for water consumption has been falling, dramatically in some areas where conservation has been encouraged.

Don Elder, president of the national water conservation group River Network, said Birmingham could drive down per capita use.

"There is no reason in the world to expect it to just keep increasing," he said.

Malcolm Pirnie estimates per capita use will rise because new houses will be larger with more water-using fixtures and they will be built on bigger lots, which means larger lawns to water.

Environmentalists are urging the water board to embrace conservation as a way to forestall or avert development of a new water source. They believe the recent drought convinced many people that, even in

the water-rich Southeast, water supplies are finite.

Instead of seeing conservation as a crisis solution during drought, water systems across the country are using conservation measures to cut demand, prolonging the ability of a community to live within the limits of its already-paid-for water supply.

"The water you have today is the cheapest water you will ever have," said Beth Stewart, executive director of the Cahaba River Society.

Stewart and others said the Birmingham Water Works has been receptive to conservation ideas. This spring, it participated in a forum put on by the Green Resource Center that featured national experts on

water conservation.

Stewart applauded the Water Works' aggressive initiative to drive down leaks. Until recently, it was losing 28 percent of the water it put into its pipes to leaks. This spring, it pledged to cut that to 15 percent. The

American Water Works Association says a well-managed system with modern leak detection technology can cut water loss to 10 percent to 15 percent.

Nationally, the most creative systems are capturing and reusing stormwater, or using treated wastewater for irrigation and industrial supply. Also, many systems offer rebates for installing low-flush toilets and other water-saving household fixtures.

Different options for outdoor irrigation also need to be encouraged, Stewart said.

"We use water that has been purified to the highest drinking water standards to water our lawns," she said.

"We are fluoridating our lawns and sidewalks. It is not effective water use."

`A laundry list' of source options:

As part of its study, Malcolm Pirnie is trying to quantify the amount of water that can be saved through conservation programs, though Water Works officials don't believe they can save enough water to avert the

need for a new source.

The study of new water source alternatives will consider effects on the environment and people, regulatory hurdles and cost. A long list of options is being considered.

"We have a laundry list we are looking at," said Jones, of the Water Works.

Malcolm Pirnie Vice President Jerry Jones said predictions also have to consider the effects of climate change. According to some predictions, the area may endure more frequent droughts and higher

temperatures.

"We want to make sure we are adequately prepared," he said.

Having an adequate and reliable water source underlies the region's ability to grow, said Sonny Jones. "We hope this area lands the next major industrial plant and we've got to plan for that," he said.

News staff writer Kent Faulk contributed to this report.

tspencer@bhamnews.com

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