Clean Water Services briefs Sherwood council on permit-driven projects, West Basin plan and upcoming billing study

Clean Water Services officials told the Sherwood City Council at a Nov. 4 work session that watershed-scale environmental permits and a newly adopted basin plan will shape major capital work and future rate decisions for residents across the agency’s service area.

"We held the nation's first integrated watershed-based permit," Joe Gall, Clean Water Services’ chief utility relations officer, told the council during a presentation summarizing the agency’s role and near-term priorities. Gall said CWS provides wastewater and stormwater services to roughly 600,000 residents across 12 partner cities and several unincorporated areas of Washington County.

The board of Clean Water Services recently adopted the West Basin master plan, a two-year effort that Gall said identifies about $1,400,000,000 in capital projects over the next 20 years for West Basin treatment facilities and conveyance systems. Gall said those investments — which include conveyance work such as Rock Creek Phase 2 and upgrades at the Durham water resource recovery facility — will be costly and are being sequenced with member cities.

Why it matters: The watershed-scale NPDES (National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System) permit and basin master plans establish compliance requirements and capital priorities that determine timing, scope and likely cost allocation for sewer and stormwater projects affecting Sherwood residents.

Council members pressed CWS staff about who ultimately bears the cost. Gall said many projects will be funded by CWS and recovered through user rates and system charges, while certain discrete grants and loans may reduce local impacts. He confirmed that the Durham facility upgrades, though located outside Sherwood, are intended to benefit Sherwood customers.

Gall said CWS will review its system development charge (SDC) methodology now that basin planning is complete and anticipates working with member cities on any updates. A council member recommended forming a permanent rate-setting/SDC committee with city representatives so cities have direct input into methodology changes that can affect local development costs.

On billing, Gall said the agency has not substantially reexamined its customer billing approach since 2008 and will launch a 6–8 month study to evaluate options, including whether to consolidate billing under CWS. He called for a public, stakeholder-driven process and said the board had authorized selecting a consultant to help with the work; finance staff gave a preliminary estimate of roughly $50,000 for the consultant contract.

Quotes and context: Gall warned that emerging contaminants and regulatory change are key planning risks: "PFAS . . . is something we're worried about," he said, noting the potential for new permit requirements that could raise compliance costs. On the billing study, Gall said the review is intended to be collaborative: "We're gonna make [these decisions] with our partners."

Next steps: CWS staff said the agency will begin public engagement and consultant selection for the billing study, work with cities on any SDC updates, and continue implementing the West Basin capital program. No formal council votes occurred during the presentation; questions from councilors will inform subsequent intergovernmental coordination and local staff work.

Ending: CWS closed the presentation by offering to return to Sherwood staff and elected officials with additional details as the billing study and SDC review proceed, and to coordinate on required updates to intergovernmental operating agreements tied to the DEQ permit timeline.