Rivanna Water & Sewer Authority
The Rivanna Water and Sewer Authority (RWSA) is an independent public agency that collects, treats, stores and distributes water and transports and treats waste water for residents of Albemarle County and Charlottesville. The RWSA is a wholesale agency with only two customers: the Charlottesville Water and Sewer Division and the Albemarle County Service Authority, agencies that serve individual retail customers. Funding for operations is paid for entirely by ratepayers[1], though local and state funding is part of the RWSA's Capital Improvement Program.
The authority's headquarters are located at 695 Moores Creek Lane and the main phone number is (434) 977-2970.
Leadership
Bill Mawyer, Jr. is the current Executive Director of the RWSA.
The Director's actions are directed by a seven-member Board of Directors, comprising
- the Charlottesville City Manager,
- the Albemarle County Executive,
- Charlottesville's Public Utilities Director,
- the Executive Director of the Albemarle County Service Authority,
- one member from City Council,
- one member from the Albemarle County Board of Supervisors, and
- one member jointly appoined by City Council and the Board of Supervisors.[2]
Current members are:[2]
- Chairman, Mike Gaffney; Appointed (Since 2003[3])
- Vice Chairman, Tarron Richardson, Charlottesville City Manager; Ex-Officio
- Secretary-Treasurer, Jeff Richardson, County Executive; Ex-Officio
- Member, Lauren Hildebrand, Charlottesville Director of Utilities; Ex-Officio
- Member, Gary O'Connell, Albemarle County Service Authority Executive Director; Ex-Officio[4]
- Member, Liz Palmer, Albemarle County Board of Supervisors; Ex-Officio
- Member, Kathy Galvin, Charlottesville City Council; Ex-Officio[5]
Board meetings are generally held on the last Monday of each month, though construction at the RWSA headquarters has temporarily moved the meetings to the last Tuesday of each month.
See also: List of current and previous chairs of the RWSA
Current Projects
The RWSA is currently[when?] in the midst of a nearly $150 million Capital Improvement Program that includes implementation of the Community Water Supply Plan, an upgrade to the Moores Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant, as well as replacements of various sewer lines such as the Meadowcreek Interceptor.
In March 2011, the Department of Environmental Quality issued a consent order directing the RWSA to address repeated discharges of untreated sewage into the Rivanna River, Meadow Creek,Schenk's Branch and Moores Creek. [6]
Infrastructure
The RWSA has four reservoirs, connected by area rivers and a pipeline, as well as several water treatment plants.
Wastewater is processed at the Moores Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant, which is located in the City of Charlottesville, discharging along the Rivanna River near Interstate 64. The RWSA has a permit from the DEQ to release treated sewage into Moores Creek. [6] The agency owns 42.1 miles of transmission pipelines and seven pump station.
History
The RWSA was formed June 7, 1972 as a result of state and federal pressure for Charlottesville and Albemarle to work cooperatively on water and sewer services. After each locality separately filed applications for EPA grants for sewer infrastructure around 1971, the State Water Control Board held a public hearing June 14-15, 1971 and adopted a resolution "to the effect that no further Federal grant would be given either to the City of Charlottesville or the County of Albemarle until the two had formed some type of authority to administer the water and sewerage systems of both, since both were dependent on the Rivanna River for their source of potable water and the receiving stream of their wastewater effluent."[7] [8]
Negotiations between the Charlottesville City Council and the Albemarle County Board of Supervisors led to the signing of the Four-Party Agreement dated June 12, 1973 by council, the board of supervisors, the Albemarle County Service Authority, and the RWSA.
References
- ↑ 'About RWSA', retreived 2008-03-26
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Board Members, About Us Rivanna Water and Sewer Authority, retrieved 16 Jun 2009
- ↑ Charlottesville City Council Minutes. 3 Feb. 2003. City of Charlottesville, Virginia. 24 Mar. 2009 <http://weblink.charlottesville.org/DocView.aspx?id=195903>
- ↑ RWSA Board Members, retrieved on 2008-10-23
- ↑ Web. Board Members: About Us, Rivanna Water and Sewer Authority, retrieved 18 July 2013.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Web. State Water Control Board Enforcement Action - Order by Consent Issued to Rivanna Water and Sewer Authority, Virginia Department of Environmental Quality, retrieved April 28, 2011.
- ↑ Bailey, J. Harvey. History of the Development of the Public Water System of Albemarle County, Virginia. April 1985. TS.
- ↑ Print: The Seventies: Central Virginia Ends Decade of Joy and Tragedy, Doug Kamholz, Daily Progress, Worrell Newspaper group January 1, 1980, Page A1.
- ↑ Web. Four Party Agreement between Charlottesville, Albemarle County, Albemarle County Service Authority, retrieved January 6, 2012.