Biddeford & Saco Water Company

The Latest Biddeford & Saco Water News Updated August 9, 2010 Welcome to our web site. The site was created as an informational, educational, and historical tool for our customers and the general population. We intend to regularly update this page. Please let us know what you like about the site, what you don’t like, and what’s missing. Water Rates May Rise Last year’s rainy summer, an economy that has been very slow to recover, and federal stimulus spending may impact area water bills sometime next year as the Company may have no choice but to file a rate proposal with the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) to seek a modest rate increase. The bad weather and bad economy combined last year in a perfect storm to suppress water use, which automatically pulled the Company’s revenues down. As we all know, the weather this year has been much better, but this year’s good weather cannot make up for all that was lost last year and the year before. Federal stimulus spending also spurred an unusually large number of road and infrastructure projects, mostly during 2009. The company is required to deploy construction crews to help local and state crews complete their work, by doing whatever is necessary for the water system. That includes a variety of substantial tasks, such as upgrading, relocating, or disconnecting and then reconnecting water lines and services. When that happens, the Company is not compensated, nor did the Company receive any stimulus monies. All while other costs, including water quality components and medical insurance, continued to rise, and the Company’s own planned upgrade projects remained to be completed. If the Company does ask for a rate adjustment, it will be for as little as possible, just enough to keep the high standards the Company has for outstanding water quality. The Company’s rates are among the lowest when compared with other water utilities, and even with an increase, will keep that distinction. Even if the Company does file a rate request, the application will not be filed until the early winter of this year, and customers probably won’t see a change in their bills until sometime in the late spring of 2011 at the earliest. 2009 Water Quality Report Now Available Like to know what’s in your drinking water? Or what’s not in your water? Our 2009 Water Quality Reports will tell you. The 2009 report was mailed to all of our customers earlier this spring and is also available for viewing online here on our website in the ‘water information’ section through this link 2009 Water Quality Report. If you would like to have a hard copy of our 2009 report, or any of our reports from prior years, simply call our office at 282-1543, and we will promptly respond. Empty Barrels We have lots of empty food-safe barrels. We would be glad to give these away to anyone who would like one (or more) to use for whatever reason. Each barrel has one or two 2-in. threaded openings in one end, and the other end is solid; however, we would be glad to cut the top off the barrel for you if that would make the barrel a better fit for your plans. If interested, just call our treatment plant at 282-9141. We Now Offer Direct Payment! We are pleased to offer a new service - The Direct Payment Plan. Now you can have your payment made automatically from your checking or savings account. There is no extra charge to become part of the program. You will still receive a bill showing the amount that you owe, and when it will be withdrawn from your account, which will be at least three weeks after the billing date. If you have a question or concern with your bill, simply call us when you receive the bill to discuss. If you would like to take advantage of this free new service, either send us an email at info@biddefordsacowater.com or give us a call at (207) 282-1543 and ask us to send you a blank authorization form, or simply click here if you would like to print a copy of the blank authorization form now. New Vehicles for Meter Readers You may notice our meter readers in your neighborhood driving a small car instead of the more traditional little blue or red pickup truck. The new cars will have our water drop decals on the doors to identify them, and are considerably more fuel efficient than the pickups. We have purchased one car already, a light blue Chevrolet Aveo, and expect to put a second car on the road later this year. New Saco River & Adjacent Wetland Crossing We recently completed the installation of a new transmission main across the Saco River. The new main parallels an existing main, and enhances the reliability of our system by providing back-up for this critical and difficult to repair pipe. In order to minimize the environmental impact of construction, the new main was installed using directional drilling techniques, which only required excavation at the start and end of the new main. A hole was bored between the start and end points; the new pipe was then pulled into place. And there’s more good news, installation of the second parallel transmission main is now being continued from the end of the new Saco River crossing main across a wetland area immediately adjacent to the River. The wetland crossing is being completed using construction techniques similar to those used to complete the river crossing. The funds necessary for both projects were made available through a state revolving loan fund, which was set up to provide money for such projects at a low interest rate. Water Conservation We have a supply of conservation kits that can help reduce water use in your home. The kits include a low flow showerhead, two faucet aerators, and a weir that can be placed to reduce the amount of water used each time a toilet is flushed. The cost for each kit picked up in our office is eight dollars ($8.00). If you can’t come to our office, we would be glad to mail one or more kit(s) out to you if; postage and handling costs are four dollars for the first kit and one dollar for each additional kit in the same request. Simply send us a check for the number of kits you want and we will mail them along to you. Saco River Watershed Monitoring Program A few years ago, the Saco River Corridor Commission initiated a water quality monitoring program. For the last few open water seasons, volunteers have monitored various water quality parameters at over twenty locations along the Saco, Ossipee, and Little Ossipee Rivers. Each of these three rivers is located within the Saco River Basin. The basin covers an area of 1,700 square miles in total. The data gathered through this process will establish a water quality baseline for the entire watershed. If anyone is interested in becoming a volunteer and participating in the valuable program, please contact the Saco River Corridor Commission.