PUD crew reports success with meters

Crews from the water department gave an update at the Wahkiakum County PUD Board of Commissioner’s meeting on Tuesday, sharing how bypass meters have made it much easier for them to located and fix leaks much quicker.

“Money well spent,” Commissioner Dennis Reid said.

General Manager Dave Tramblie shared his concerns about Shannon Road in Grays River, which is unstable and threatening the water line located there.

“I think we should be proactive,” Tramblie said. “We need to come up with a solution if it does go. If we patch the pipe and the road slides, it’s just going to tear it out again. I’m not sure that it’s the right answer, but I think that buying a few hundred feet of firehose and having the fittings so we could have the flexibility to get the water back on in a reasonable amount of time is the right answer, until we could come up with a more permanent solution.”

Another project has crews hard at work installing more than 200 new LED streetlights. They have installed approximately 75 so far and Tramblie hopes to have the project completed by the end of the year.

Seeking counsel, Commissioner Robert Jungers shared that he been asked if he had any interest in running for an Energy Northwest Board of Directors officer position. Jungers said that though he “demurred” at the time, he was going to look into it and give it some more thought.

The commissioners approved a resolution to make some changes to their rate schedule at the PUD, largely affecting service charges and fees. For instance, the account service charge to read or set a meter and open or transfer an existing account to a new customer has been $20 for many years. It will now cost the customer $35.

The next Wahkiakum County PUD Board of Commissioner’s meeting is scheduled for December 16 at 8:30 a.m.