PUD commission hears water concerns

Commissioners made quick work of the slender agenda at Tuesday’s Wahkiakum County PUD Board of Commissioner’s meeting.

General Manager Dave Tramblie reported on recent projects and purchases and revisited the problematic Western Wahkiakum Water System.

“I was asked to keep the Western Wahkiakum Water System situation out on the table,” he said.

“We talked about borrowing more money. If we borrowed $50,000 to do a half mile of pipe, you are going to spend $10,000 a year to pay that off and you’ll only go half a mile in five years. It doesn’t pencil out in my way of thinking.”

Tramblie voiced concerns about the inlets to the reservoirs on the Westend, and it was evident that all would like to address the aging system.

“I’m just going to try and find out about more grants,” Commissioner Dennis Reid said. “Hopefully we can find a way to not increase rates on a system with rates that are so high, but something has to be done.”

A recent outage at Indian Village mobile home park prompted the PUD to complete a project there to replace a couple sections of older cable using a directional bore machine.

“It worked out perfect,” Tramblie said. “It’s good equipment.”

Tramblie also shared that the loan for the substation, now standing at $662,000, was on track to be paid off in the next five years. A new meter reader vehicle has arrived and the old one will eventually go to auction at Ritchie Bros. Tramblie and his crew have begun to shop for an excavator.

At a recent meeting with Brown and Kysar, who do consulting and planning for public utilities, Tramblie got an update on Wahkiakum’s 15 year program. A system sectionalizing study and system finding report was completed five years ago and according to Brown and Kysar, the first of three segments have been completed and the second is on track. Brown and Kysar worked out a couple glitches at the Wahkiakum substation reclosers and will come to Cathlamet in the near future to make a few changes in programming.

Counsel Tim Hanigan said he would be attending an attorney conference on Thursday at Alderbrook. He reminded the commissioners that they will have to complete an open public meeting seminar which he volunteered to present at the next PUD Board of Commissioner’s meeting.

The next meeting is scheduled for June 17 at 8:30 a.m. in the PUD Meeting Room.