Fayette County officials routinely get requests from citizens for help with things like water problems. But lately some of those problems have occurred in areas that do not have county water, and that can make things a bit complicated.
County administrator Steve Rapson gave a report during the Jan. 26 regular meeting of the Board of Commissioners outlining ongoing efforts to resolve some issues in specific areas where residents are using private water systems, which means the county has limited – if any – means to correct problems.
Yvonne Smith of Fayetteville spoke during the meeting’s regular public comment period about what she said were some serious problems in the Newton Plantation community, where she lives. She pressed the board for answers and Rapson said he would be addressing them in a few minutes during his regular report.
Rapson pointed out that Newton Plantation uses a private water system, and Georgia Environmental Protection Division reports about problems there having nothing to do with the county. The fact that the neighborhood is not on county water also explains why, as Smith mentioned, there are no hydrants there and the water pressure is relatively poor. One thing Smith did not mention, but Rapson did, was that Smith’s house burned down about 10 years ago and when the fire department responded to the scene, fire service personnel quickly “pumped that system dry,” as Rapson put it. In cases involving private water systems the fire department sometimes has to go back and forth between that site and the county system when responding.
“That’s not a great system, but it’s what you have to do,” he said.
There are five private water systems in the county right now, four of which are based on local wells, Rapson said. The other private system is the one serving Brooks. The county has retained the consulting firm of CH2MHill to take a look at all five and assess each one’s viability in several ways, including the feasibility of the county acquiring any of them and connecting them to the county system.
The firm is tasked with collecting data on each system and taking inventory of its infrastructure, including what improvements would be required to tie into the county system. Also underway is an economic analysis to help county officials determine the appropriate acquisition costs if necessary. Or course, in such a situation the county would have to consider what the private water system’s owner might accept as a reasonable price just like any another acquisition, Rapson added.
Each private water system under review is relatively small, with fewer than 300 connections. This can impact EPD response, Rapson noted, as the state agency would obviously prefer to deal with the county regarding one large system when issues arise compared to several much smaller ones.
When asked Monday about specifics regarding the private water systems, Rapson stated via email that in addition to Newton Plantation (Smithstone Path in Fayetteville, 124 connections) the affected areas included Dix-Lee-on Estates (214 connections), Rolling Meadows Estates (115), Lafayette Drive and Corinth Drive.
The CH2MHill report is expected in three or four weeks, Rapson told the board at the meeting, and he does not know which system will be evaluated by his staff first. “It is not a simple proposition to buy a privatized system,” he said, pointing out that there is due diligence required on infrastructure as well as coordinating with EPD and the necessity of some permits.
Any such proposal would go before the Water Committee for review before being forwarded to the Board of Commissioners.
There are some storm drains in these areas that are a county concern, and Rapson said his staff is mandated to check them once every five years, which means they need to be done in the next few months. Areas with private water systems do not fall under the county’s stormwater mandate, he added.
As for water quality, which Smith mentioned in her remarks, Rapson said residents can ask at any time to have their water tested by county officials or the EPD.
Commissioner Charles Rousseau, who has been working with Smith and other residents on their concerns, said that the county needs to have its fire chief visit the community to assure resident that plans for fire protection are in place there. That and water quality are his two main concerns, he said.
