March 10, 2010 - CFPUA Board Approves Rate Increase

Current Action

The Board of the Cape Fear Public Utility Authority considered and approved a 14% rate increase effective May 1, 2010. This rate increase will serve to: 1) meet required bond coverage minimum of 1.0 by the end of the current fiscal year; 2) sustain eligibility for bonding in 2012 and 3) provide revenue to cover current CIP projects to include significant system expansion, maintenance, and repairs like those to the Ogden Interceptor wastewater system estimated at $6 to $7 million dollars.

Rate changes per block are as follows:

Tier 1: 0 – 9,000 gallons. Old rate $1.95. New rate $2.22. Difference of $.27 per thousand gallons

Tier 2: 9,000 – 18,000 gallons. Old rate $2.95. New rate $3.36. Difference of $.41 per thousand gallons

Tier 3: over 18,000 gallons. Old rate $3.95. New rate $4.50. Difference of $.55 per thousand gallons.

Examples of how customer bills may reflect these changes are as follows:

A current bill for a customer with bi-monthly usage of 5,000 gallons is $63.20. A bill under the applied new rates is $72.05 for a difference of $8.85 every two months or $4.43 per month.

A customer with bi-monthly usage of 15,000 gallons is $116.20. A bill under the applied new rates is $132.47 for a difference of $16.27 every two months or $8.14 per month.

Fixed meter charges for water previously $19.20 will now be $21.89 and sewer at $20.50 will be $23.37.

Background

During the planning stages of the CFPUA, certain projects were identified on behalf of the City of Wilmington and New Hanover County as 1) projects that CFPUA would inherit and continue and 2) projects that were newly identified to become part of our system improvements moving forward. Inherited projects totaled $142 million dollars and projects for immediate consideration to be bonded and added to the scope of work to be performed by the CFPUA added another $188 million. Such projects include the completion of a $42 million NH County designed nano filtration facility in the northern part of the county, a $74 million Wilmington designed Sweeney drinking water facility expansion, completion of a $80 million City of Wilmington expansion and upgrade project for the Northside wastewater treatment facility and many more critical infrastructure projects to ensure safe, clean, drinking water and enhanced wastewater collection efficiency and increased environmental stewardship.

The initial planning and organization of the Authority identified necessary revenue to pay for in-progress projects and those bonded in 2008 whose repayment begins in 2012. The initial planning documents of the CFPUA included 9% overall rate increases for 08, 09 and future years. The Board carefully considered the economic hardship facing our customers in 2008 and delayed the increase slated for that year.

This $300+ million in 2008 projects is essential to the provision of the health, safety and welfare of our customers and environmental stewardship of the service area. Additional projects for future funding consideration will also contribute to the efficiency of utility services and are estimated in the range of $600 million.

This news release was issued on March 8, 2010 in compliance with North Carolina General Statute 143-215.1C (a portion of the Clean Water Act of 1999). For further information, contact the Cape Fear Public Utility Authority at 910-332-6704.

Cape Fear Public Utility Authority Operations crews responded to and resolved a sewer system overflow (SSO) of approximately 2625 gallons that occurred on Saturday afternoon, March 6 at a manhole located on the Ogden Interceptor sewer main at the end of Robin Dale Court in Wilmington. The first notification received of this SSO was at 1:45 PM; responding crews stopped the overflow at 2:20 PM. The spill entered the wetlands of Smith Creek.

The overflow was caused when a downstream bypass pump became overwhelmed with increased flow from dewatering occurring at an upstream pump. This increased flow subsequently overflowed an adjacent manhole. Enhanced pump synchronization was performed to resolve. These pumps were being used to bypass wastewater and groundwater around sections of the Ogden Interceptor during repairs.

CFPUA Environment and Safety Management is performing water quality monitoring to determine the impact of the spill. Monitoring will continue throughout the response and repair. NC DWQ has been notified of the spill and the response.
[Additional info...]

Cape Fear Public Utility Authority Operations crews responded to and resolved an SSO of approximately 3,500 gallons that was reported on Saturday afternoon, February 27th at a manhole located on the Ogden Interceptor sewer main between the end of Jamey Court and the intersection of Grathwol Noland Drives in Wilmington. The first notification received of this SSO was at 3:15 PM; responding crews stopped the overflow at 3:45 PM. The spill went into Smith Creek.

The cause of the overflow was a blockage of a pump that was being used to bypass sewage around a failed section of the Ogden Interceptor. The blockage of the pump was caused by a heavy accumulation of fibrous debris, wipes, paper and rags. Customers throughout the system are reminded to refrain from flushing any materials other than toilet paper and human waste. Many products, although labeled as ‘flushable’, do not break down and cause blockages of the sewer system.

CFPUA Environment and Safety Management has performed and will continue water quality monitoring to determine the impact of the spill. NC DWQ has been notified of the spill and the response.

This news release was issued on March 1, 2010 in compliance with North Carolina General Statute 143-215.1C (a portion of the Clean Water Act of 1999). For further information, contact the Cape Fear Public Utility Authority at 910-332-6704.