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General manager reports higher water sales, falling meter deficit; industrial pretreatment plan and hydrant maintenance planned
Summary
Spalding County Water Authority General Manager Joseph Johnson reported Feb. 26 that water sales are up about 8% year‑to‑date and that the meter deficit appears to have dropped from roughly 51 to the low 40s.
General Manager Joseph Johnson presented the authority’s operations and project updates Feb. 26, reporting that fiscal‑year water sales were about 8% higher year‑to‑date and that customer counts were roughly 1.5% higher for FY 2025. He said the authority’s meter deficit on the printed report read about 51 but staff observed the number had already dropped into the low 40s due to timing.
Johnson outlined several operational items: a fire‑hydrant maintenance program scheduled in two phases over six months (March–May and, if needed, September–November) to avoid peak summer demand; a phased rollout of a new confirm/GIS inquiry system for field crews with expected broader field use by July 1; and continued value engineering with the progressive design‑build team and an anticipated Phase 2b contract recommendation in March.
On sewer policy, Johnson said the sewer‑use ordinance remains pending because the authority is waiting for a final DDR from the state that will define permit criteria the ordinance will reference. The authority also must develop an industrial pretreatment plan because its plant is designed for typical domestic waste; non‑typical users (for example, light manufacturing) will be required to pre‑treat discharges and pay review fees. Johnson said R2T (the engineer of record) was asked to provide a quote to assist staff and that the responsibility for pretreatment would be on the customer, with the authority performing inspections and requiring monthly reporting from non‑typical users.
Board members raised concerns about non‑revenue water after a recent spike. One member cited a loss of about 6.3 million gallons attributed to leaks and three main breaks in a recent period; Johnson said detailed causes would be investigated and reported back and noted main breaks are typically identifiable and repaired quickly while service leaks are more troublesome because they can persist undetected for months.
The authority voted to accept the general manager’s report; the motion passed unanimously.
