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Black Mountain staff says boosting well capacity could cut water purchases from Asheville but carries risk
Summary
Staff told council the town could save on wholesale water costs if it increases local well production, but current capacity is limited and new wells are risky; staff estimated modest annual savings and recommended further study before capital investment.
Town staff told the council that while increasing local well production could reduce the town’s dependence on Asheville’s wholesale water and produce modest net savings, the town currently lacks the capacity required and new wells carry production risk.
In the budget work session staff explained the town pumps roughly 8–9 million gallons per month and currently supplies about 25–32% of customer usage; the remainder comes through Asheville. Staff ran a scenario increasing production by about 50% (an additional ~4 million gallons per month) and estimated that, after accounting for operating costs and added capital, the town could save about $78,000 a year compared with continued purchases — provided wells produced as expected and capital expenses were manageable.
Staff cautioned that many wells are aged or were idled and that drilling new wells is uncertain: a costly well may yield low output. That uncertainty, plus the need to maintain a wholesale relationship with Asheville for reliability, led staff to recommend further study and risk analysis before committing to expensive well development. Councilors asked staff for clearer cost breakdowns and instructed them to return with updated figures at the next workshop.
The water-fund proposals fed directly into the broader budget discussion: staff proposed a mix of water-rate increases (base-rate and usage increases were modeled) and one-time adjustments to cover the current year’s shortfall while staff seek longer-term operational fixes.
