Rural water company service varies widely

Sep. 7—At least 16 rural water districts supply water to customers in small towns across Cherokee County.

Some have as few as 60-80 meters, such as District 12, Sparrow Hawk Village, and as large as 1500 in Stickross.

Hulbert, District 11, does the billing for several districts, and also sells water to some, cutting out the need to operate and maintain its own plant. Hulbert covers an area from the old Pepsi plant, to Gibson Lake, to Peggs and Norwood, approximately 20 miles from side-to-side, with 200 miles of water.

Billing is handled by Hulbert for six districts, and some districts purchase water instead of having their own plant.

Sunset Valley, District 9, is one of the districts that buys water from Hulbert. The district services 90-100 meters.

"Sunset had their own plant, but it was hard to keep up with Department of Environmental Quality's [Water Quality Division] standards," said Joshua Hubbard, plant manager in Hulbert.

Hulbert added a 6-inch line to tie Sunset's system into Hulbert's master meter. Sunset's system starts one-half mile from Hulbert's.

"Smaller towns can get grants instead of a loan," said Hubbard. "It all depends on what shape they are in financially."

The Hulbert plant, on the outskirts of the city, has plans to add two more trident water filters in another building, and high-service pumps to transport the water to the water tower, about four miles from the plant. The district encompasses Lost City and Shady Grove.

"Once the new pumps are installed, these older filter tanks will be taken off line, drained, filter media checked, painted, and anything else that needs done," said Hubbard. "We have such good water to start with that we don't have to do as much upkeep as other [plants] do."

Water for the Hulbert plant comes from Double Springs Creek and 14-Mile Creek, said Hubbard.

Each water district is overseen by a board and an annual meeting is held so members can vote on new board members.

New customers pay a membership fee for a new meter, which is nonrefundable, although a customer can sell their membership, and water is priced on usage based on an ascending scale.

"The minimum is $38 for any usage under 1,000 gallons [for our district]," said Hubbard.

A two-family's usage averages 3,000 gallons a month, said Hubbard.

District 8, Briggs, serves about 425 customers, and runs from the Illinois River bridge on U.S. Highway 62 to the top of Eldon Hill, encompassing a mile on either side of the highway.

"We are just completing the water line relocation project for the Highways 51 and 62 expansion," said Bruce Bardell, chairman of the Briggs Water District Board. "The old line is still in the ground, as we had to use both lines for a while."

The state paid to move the old water lines and the board paid for the pipe, upgraded to an 8-inch line. The Cherokee Nation gave $105,000 to help pay for part of the cost.

This district runs from the Illinois River bridge on U.S. 62, to the top of Eldon Hill, covering a mile on either side of the highway.

"Around three miles of 8-inch line was laid," said Bardell.

This work entailed relocating the lines so road construction could happen.

The Oklahoma Resources Board works with rural water districts issuing permits for water rights.

"If [a district] is using water from a ground well or surface body, we would be the one that handles that permit," said Robby Short, marketing and communications coordinator.

Another aspect of ORB's work, is long-term planning for the state. Currently, a 50-year plan is being updated. This is to learn how much water is available.

"We track how much water is in the lakes and aquifers, to determine maximum annual yield we can pull out without draining the [supply]," said Short. "We use bathymetric mapping using radar."

Every time it rains, silt is picked up by waterways and deposits it on the bottom of lakes. Bathymetric mapping can determine the depth of a body of water.

"[Lakes are] usually built to last 50 years," said Short.

District 13 in Cookson is working on putting bids out for another backup filter and a pump dock.

"We've also just put in an application for a grant to build another tower so the old tower can be taken off line for repainting," said plant operator, Shan Sokhuh.

The new tower, planned for completion by next summer, will double Cookson's storage.

Financing for new systems is either received through a grant or financing. ORB offers districts the option of a loan if they are unable to qualify for a grant.

Applicants for loans benefit from the triple bond rating held by ORB, allowing for the best rates.