Service Authority seeks new general manager as county confronts groundwater decline and leaks

Concerns about groundwater levels and ongoing service-authority challenges were a repeated theme at the King George Board of Supervisors meeting on May 6 and the separately convened King George Service Authority board session.

Lede: The King George Service Authority advanced hiring negotiations with a recommended candidate for general manager and discussed groundwater declines, leak detection efforts and meter calibration as officials and residents warned of longer-term supply constraints.

Nut graf: Local residents and supervisors raised groundwater depletion and the technical challenges of switching to surface water or an intake from the Potomac. Service Authority staff described short-term steps — replacing problematic hydrants, scheduling meter calibrations and pursuing contractors to find leaks — while the board authorized staff to enter hiring negotiations for a new general manager.

What the Service Authority did: At the Service Authority board meeting the body voted to authorize county staff to enter into hiring negotiations with a selected candidate (identified in the meeting as "Applicant A") for the general-manager position, subject to county-attorney approval. The motion (moved by a member of the panel, recorded in the minutes as Robotham) was seconded and passed by roll-call vote; the board discussed and toured water-treatment sites earlier in the day.

Groundwater and permit context: Resident Lauren Biason described groundwater trends and USGS monitoring data for the Potomac and Aquia aquifers and said water levels at sample points had fallen to historic lows (citing readings such as 54 feet below land surface at one site and 50 feet near Dahlgren). She noted that entities drawing more than roughly 300,000 gallons per month must hold a permit from the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) in the Eastern Virginia Groundwater Management Area.

County staff said the Service Authority holds groundwater permits that will require action in the future; Supervisor Lee said the county has roughly 13 years remaining under current groundwater permits to transition toward surface-water options. Staff also discussed the high cost and technical difficulty of treating Potomac River water — notably higher salinity — and cited a recent regional example in which Caroline County proposed withdrawing about 13,900,000 gallons per day from the Rappahannock River to meet growing demand.

System reliability work: Service Authority staff reported new steps to locate leaks, including replacing a problem fire hydrant and contracting with specialists to locate subsurface leaks; they also described plans to have well meters calibrated by the manufacturer (meter calibration scheduled in June) to confirm accuracy and to upgrade SCADA (remote control) and microbar screening systems at Dahlgren. The authority and county staff also noted ongoing work on UV upgrades and engineering studies for wastewater-treatment improvements and potential septage/reuse options.

What this means: Staff framed hiring a general manager and pursuing technical fixes as part of a longer-term plan to shore up system reliability and to prepare for regulatory and supply challenges. The hiring motion passed; the board directed staff to pursue the contract and to return for attorney approval of terms.

Ending: The Service Authority and county will continue technical investigations; staff said further reporting and engineering studies are planned to quantify options and costs for treatment upgrades, reuse and a potential surface-water strategy.