Water mandates force rate hike
The Presque Isle Utilities District is getting ready to install a new ozone-based treatment system that should ensure high-quality drinking water, though also cost customers a little more.
The Presque Isle Utilities District is proposing to increase rates starting this November by 15 percent for all customers, 10 percent for the fire department and 12.5 percent for private sprinkler systems. If those increases are approved by the Maine Public Utilities Commission, the Presque Isle Utilities District will raise an additional $185,000 and bring total revenue to $1,560,000.
The new revenue is needed to pay for $3.5 million in state-mandated improvements, to expand the ultraviolet light reactor and add a new ozone disinfection system, according to district superintendent Frank Kearney. It’s the first increase since 2011.
“We think we’ll be going in the right direction on all accounts,” said Kearney, noting that the the use of ozone will reduce reliance on chlorine.
A few times in recent years during the Aroostook River’s high water flow, such as last fall, the utilities district has exceeded the capacity of its ultraviolet system and needed to use more chlorine, Kearney said. It’s well less than 1 percent of the time that something like that happens, he said. But in 2013, Presque Isle entered into an agreement with the Maine Department of Human Services’s Drinking Water Program to invest in additional treatment that eliminates any potential for occasional inconsistency.
Presque Isle’s public water has been sourced for the last 10 years from two wells on the north side of the Aroostook River, along Reach Road. While approximately two-thirds of America’s public drinking water comes from lakes, ponds, rivers and streams, Presque Isle and others have fared well with ground–water, Kearney said. The city previously relied on the Presque Isle Stream, but the narrow water body fluctuated too much in quality.
The Presque Isle Utility District’s well-water relies on a natural gravel field left by glaciers along the Aroostook River that helps filter the river water as it contributes to the surrounding groundwater. McCain Foods uses the same groundwater with wells nearby.
The new system will use an expanded ultraviolet light reactor and ozone treatment to disinfect the water. The project is now in the final design phases, nearing the bidding process, and construction could begin as soon as November.
The ozone system, takes liquid oxygen “bubbled into the water” via a pipe and kills pathogens, and then is removed and destroyed. “It’s a well-known process, very effective and safe, and doesn’t change the taste,” said Kearney, noting that Bangor and Brewer have used ozone water treatment systems for two decades.
Ozone is “one of the best disinfectants and unlike chlorine, which breaks down into other compounds.” Some of those breakdown compounds of chlorine — different varieties of haloacetic acids and trihalomethanes — are considered safe by federal authorities up to certain limits. In higher doses over the long-term, research suggests some of the byproducts can be potential carcinogens, bringing a 1 in 10,000 risk of certain cancers if consumed over the maximum level for 70 years, Kearney said.
In 2014, Presque Isle’s 900,000 thousand gallons of daily public water generally exceeded federal standards. Levels of haloacetic acids were detected at an average of 34 parts per billion over the year, below the 60 parts per billion maximum federal limit. Trihalomethanes, though they appear higher a in the summer, appeared at 42 parts per billion over the course of last year, also close to half the maximum limit.
With the new ozone system, the Presque Isle Utilities District estimates that chlorine use will be able to be reduced by 50 percent. That will likely not bring a corresponding 50 percent decrease in by-products, but they should fall in part, Kearney said. The water is also pure enough that it does not have to be extensively filtered.
The Presque Isle Utilities District chose an ozone system over other treatment methods, such as filtration and ion exchange systems. They all have benefits and drawbacks, Kearney said.
They went with the ozone treatment based on a 20-year life cycle study. “It’s not cheap,” and uses a fair amount of electricity, Kearney said. But it should last and be predictable over the long-run.
In addition to the new revenue from ratepayers, the utilities district is borrowing money from the Maine’s revolving water infrastructure fund to pay for the new treatment system, taking out a 20-year loan with a less than 1 percent interest rate.
“The $185,000 doesn’t pay the full payment on this,” and there may be future rate increases in the coming years, Kearney said.
But that shouldn’t be a cause for financial worry, he said. Even with the 15 percent increase, Presque Isle residents will still be enjoying comparatively affordable water. The average 2 person household will be paying $49 a quarter (up from $44), while households in Aroostook County’s 10 largest municipalities pay an average of $60 a quarter and the average American pays $180, or $60 per month.
The utilities district is also planning to build a second water main under the river, at a cost of $1 million, as a backup in the event of a failure in the current sole water main.
The Presque Isle Utilities District is holding a public hearing on the rates and changes on Tuesday, Sept. 15 at 6 p.m., in the city council chambers at 12 Second Street.
