RLCD approves water contract

May 27, 2009 11:02 pm

— By TESA CULLI
tesa.culli@register-news.com
BENTON — The Rend Lake Conservancy District has approved a standard water contract to be used between the district and municipalities.
“We have made some changes such as instead of analyzing rates every five years, to do it every year,” RLCD General Manager Keith Thomason said. “We have also reduced exclusivity.”
According to the standard contract, “the purchaser shall have prior right and primary responsibility over the District to provide water service to customers within the boundaries of the purchaser and to customers within 1.5 miles of the purchaser’s boundaries.”
While not requiring purchasing municipalities and water companies to provide water to everyone, the issue is addressed in the contract as being “encouraged.”
“The purchaser is encouraged to provide water to all customers in the water service area to the extent that it is financially feasible to do so,” the contract states. “If the purchaser does not wish to furnish water to water customers within said purchaser’s water service area, then the District may provide water service to customers within this area if they come within the basic policies and regulations of the District for furnishing water to separate and individual customers outside of municipalities or authorized water districts.”
Residents within Jefferson County who do not have water service has been an issue for years. Residents in Moore’s Prairie have been working to get grant funding for engineering a water system to supply their homes and farms, while seven residents near Opdyke have also been outspoken in their lack of water and inability to get a water system to provide the commodity. The water systems which would be closest to all those residents are Northeast Water Co. and Belle Rive Water — both of which are not customers of RLCD, but rather purchase water from the city of Mt. Vernon.
Mt. Vernon City Manager Ron Neibert said he believes there is nothing keeping RLCD from supplying water to those people except the District’s own policies and regulations.
In February, Belle Rive Mayor Don Wilkey said it was not financially feasible for the village water system to run the lines to those in Opdyke, and said the village was working on trying to help the residents in Moore’s Prairie.
The new standard contract will not affect the existing contract between Mt. Vernon and RLCD, since there is another 23 years on that contract.
RLCD Board members approved signing Tamaroa to the new contract, and a contract between 37 North water customers between Johnston City and West Frankfort. The 37 North contract will be for 40 years, as requested by the water company for financing purposes.