OTHELLO — With water concerns being a hot button issue in Othello and questions being about projected growth and water needs, the Othello City Council has taken a major step to address those concerns with the execution of a contract to create a Water System Plan.

The Water System Plan is required by state law and can help position the city to implement projects that are needed to address current deficiencies and help serve future growth in the city. The city budgeted $79,274 for the plan and tasked their engineering firm, Varela & Associates, with its creation.

“The Water System Plan provides the road-map for the water system on a 20-year horizon. It lays out the improvements needed and the triggers that will dictate timing of implementation,” Varela representative Jesse Cowger stated in a memo to the city. “It also looks at the cost of planned improvements and the adequacy of existing water rates for funding the planned improvements. This will help the city set goals for the type of funding to pursue for these projects and also help prepare the city if rate increases are needed.”

The plan serves as a single, unifying document that ties together all of the water system improvements the city has been pursuing, including:

• Water supply: Creation of a new well in the near future, surface water treatment and industrial water reuse in the long term.

• Storage: Creation of a new reservoir to address the city’s current lack of equalizing water storage and possibly employ Aquifer Storage and Recovery (ASR), as the aquifer the city relies upon acts like an underground reservoir.

• Distribution system: Planning of a future grid to serve the city’s future growth.

• Water rights: Provide the city with an ability to meet projected demands and estimate a need for future groundwater or future surface water sources.

• Water quality: Address fluoride issues with Well No. 6 in the city.

• Small system consolidation: Integration of the conclusion of water system consolidation studies into the city’s plans for its water system.

Councilmember John Lallas, who is a member of the city’s water committee, stated that from a committee standpoint he couldn’t find anything wrong with the overall scope of the plan, the time it will take to be completed and its overall cost.

“It gives us a plan in hand to go to these agencies and not only are we looking to bring water to the city, but we have got to find funding for that,” councilmember Genna Dorow said. “And it helps immensely when it comes to applying for that funding to have this document.”

The council unanimously agreed Monday night to task Varela & Associates with the creation of the Water System Plan.

Richard Byrd can be reached via email at city@columbiabasinherald.com