By Ray Barrington
News-Chronicle
The sale of water is just one part of the future for the Central Brown County Water Authority. Another is how to get that water to users.
The authority's Technical Committee heard Friday that one system that had been expected to be more expensive would instead likely cost $2 million less.
The system is called a hybrid, and would allow connections between the authority's communities, allowing service even if one link from Green Bay's water supply is cut. Early estimates showed it being more expensive than a "spoke" system, in which each community would connect to Green Bay's system separately.
New estimates at a meeting between authority members and engineers showed the hybrid system would cost $46 million and the spoke system $48 million.
One difference, said committee chairman Joe Linssens of Ledgeview, is that the spoke system would require $10 million in additional costs to the authority for upgrades to Green Bay's system near the connections.
The authority is seeking to buy Lake Michigan water from Green Bay to replace aquifer water, much of which is tainted with radium levels that do not meet federal standards. The standards must be met by 2006.
The committee discussed aquifer storage and recovery, the system being tested to store treated water underground. One test by Green Bay has not gone well, and the authority faces a decision on its use. Having ASR would save construction costs, but testing might go on too long for the system to be used by the authority. It might become available only after money has been spent on increasing pipeline capacity to serve communities directly.
"We have to figure out the point at which we have to draw the line and say ASR won't be available," said Ron Umentum of Bellevue.
Green Bay has tested one well, which failed when the treated water entering the well came out with additional radium. The well has been lined and testing is set to resume soon. No wells in any suburban communities have been tested.
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