Crooked Branch residents urge county help after months of low water pressure

Nathan Edwards, a Crooked Branch resident, told the Dickenson County Board of Supervisors on May 1 that his neighborhood has suffered reduced household water pressure since last October and asked the county to help secure an engineering estimate and possible grant funding to install a pressure-reducing valve (PRV).

"We were going to use the water, but there was none," Edwards said, describing how some homes have little or no pressure and that he can supply a list of 10 affected families. He quoted information from Dennis Baker of the Public Service Authority (PSA) that Sand Lake’s mainline pressure is at the system’s maximum allowable operating pressure and that the PSA replaced a PRV last year that, Edwards said, reduced pressure uphill. "He said there is a pressure reducing valve, the PRV, at the top of Crooked Branch that holds pressure back to protect the line," he said.

Board members and a consulting presenter told the board that the problem may be a volume/flow deficiency rather than a simple setting on a valve. A consulting presenter recommended creating a county-wide hydraulic model to identify nodes with inadequate capacity and to test scenarios such as adding a pump or relocating a PRV. The presenter said such a model would let staff identify deficiencies precisely before committing to capital work.

Edwards and others discussed cost estimates. Edwards told the board he found retail PRV prices ranging "from $5,900 to $18,300" for a 6-inch valve, while PSA staff had estimated field costs, labor and engineering could be "$75,000 to $95,000." The consultant noted larger planning-level figures for full stations may reach "$150,000 to $200,000," and recommended exploring grant funds such as the Coalfield Water and Wastewater Fund through the Carbon Plateau Planning District Commission.

Staff said the PSA currently lacks a combined hydraulic analysis of its system and that grant programs have limits (staff cited a two-open-application limit for one program). Board members asked staff and PSA representatives to follow up with an engineering estimate and to explore grant opportunities. The board did not take a capital-approval vote at the meeting; staff committed to outreach and assistance to coordinate potential planning and grant applications.

The board’s next steps are to request an engineering assessment and evaluate grant options; any capital work would require later board approval and appropriate health-department or PSA approvals.