Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Utilities Infrastructure topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Gloucester County utilities report flags aging sewer lines, pump‑station strain, DEQ consent order and budget gaps
Summary
Public Utilities Director Katy Le told supervisors the county faces capacity constraints at several pump stations, an active DEQ consent order on chloride discharges, staffing vacancies, roughly 20% water loss in 2025 and an operating shortfall; staff proposed capital projects and an $8.5 million debt plan for FY27.
Gloucester County’s public‑utilities director told the Board of Supervisors on May 19 that the utility is managing aging infrastructure, regulatory pressure from the state and near‑term budget pressures.
Katy Le said county operations produced about 1.47 million gallons per day in 2025 and that approximately 20% of water production was classified as non‑revenue or loss. “In 2025, our average was about 20% water loss,” she said, noting the department is evaluating metering, leak detection and line‑replacement projects.
She described capacity problems within the county’s sewer basins, explaining that several pump stations feed older lift‑station infrastructure that cannot accept additional development without upgrades. Pump stations 11 and 13, she said, are over capacity; staff have cleared easements, CCTV‑inspected lines and advanced a redesign of pump station 11 to near‑completion pending flow confirmations from HRSD.
The county is also under a consent order with the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality over chloride levels in treatment‑plant discharge signed in May 2025. Le said staff submitted a concept engineering report that outlined five options for durable compliance and that the department is pursuing an initial, lower‑cost “spillway tower” monitoring and dilution approach while awaiting DEQ feedback. “Our consent order now says you have to achieve long‑term durable compliance with this chloride limit,” she said.
On finances, Le reported FY26 operating revenues slightly under budget and an operating shortfall of about $739,000 when application fees are excluded. The FY27 capital and financing plan includes approximately $8.5 million in new borrowing for 11 prioritized projects, she said, with an August VRA application deadline and a timeline that would allow a bond sale in October and closing in November if the board approves the financing schedule.
Supervisors and staff discussed additional operational changes, including increasing plant hours from 16 to 24 per day, constructing a one‑million‑gallon storage tank to meet disinfection contact‑time requirements and hiring additional operators and a valve‑and‑hydrant crew to improve reliability.
What happens next: Staff proposed proceeding with project design and suggested bringing bank proposals and a formal public‑hearing schedule to upcoming board meetings; no borrowing was approved at the May 19 work session.
