HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - Minutes - City Council - Meeting Date: 5/21/2012 MINUTES
CITY OF GLENDALE AD HOC CITIZEN TASK FORCE
ON WATER AND SEWER
PALO VERDE ROOM
ADULT CENTER
5970 W. BROWN STREET
GLENDALE,ARIZONA 85301
MONDAY,MAY 21, 2012
6:00 p.m.
CALL TO ORDER
The meeting was called to order at 6 p.m. by Michael Ashcraft, facilitator. He reviewed the
agenda and gave a brief explanation and anticipated timeframe for the evening's events.
ROLL CALL
APPROVAL OF MINUTES OF THE APRIL 30, 2012 AND MAY 1, 2012 MEETINGS Sally
Melling, Water Services Sr. Secretary, asked for approval of the Final Minutes for the April 30
and May 1, 2012 meetings from the Task Force. Both sets of minutes were approved as written.
Mike Ashcraft asked those members who attended the tour of the water plant for their comments.
One member commented on the small number of personnel actually running the plant in such an
efficient manner. Several members commented on staff's passion and commitment for water
services. One member shared that he never realized what an awful lot of work it takes to bring
water to homes. Another member appreciated the fascinating discussion she had with the lab
chemist and offered staff concerns that budget flexibility is needed to perform in-house testing
and analysis.
Ken-i Logan discussed the upcoming tour at the West Area Water Reclamation Facility, the
planned activities, and transportation specifics. She requested everyone wear comfortable
walking shoes.
Michael Ashcraft asked members to review the Ground Rules document in their binders that are
in draft form. He invited comments and suggestions on revisions that the Task Force would like
to see. No changes were suggested.
The Dot Polling results were briefly discussed. Members were directed to the handout
summarizing the blue/red dot polling information.
Craig Johnson, P.E., Executive Director, Water Services Department discussed Council's
purpose in bringing the Task Force forward. He also thanked the members for their commitment
and enthusiasm for the job ahead.
May 21, 2012
Ad Hoc Citizen Task Force on Water and Sewer Minutes
Page 2
WATER RESOURCES PRESENTATION
Doug Kukino, Environmental Resources Director, provide past, current, and future information
on the water resources for Glendale. He first presented two questions that had been asked by
members at prior meetings. Where does the water come from? (Several sources as will be
pointed out in the presentation.) Does Glendale have a sustainable water source? (Yes, more is
always better but we have a 100-year guaranteed supply.) Task Force members then had several
questions based on his presentation. Doug was asked to clarify what "groundwater" was. Doug
explained there are two types of water: groundwater is water stored in the ground and there is
other water such as aquifers and natural recharge. When is total build-out anticipated? (That
year is unknown at this time.) Do we currently have the capacity to provide that amount of
reclaimed water? (We currently don't have that ability but we are moving to put that
infrastructure in place.) Where does water go when farming/irrigation of the land stops? (If
water is received from SRP, then the land water rights revert to the city, if it is obtained from
another source, then the water use just stops.) Does the city maintain water lobbyists? (No. But
we keep abreast of issues and take action when the need arises.) What is the current capacity of
the water treatment and water reclamation facilities? (Referred to Dawn Slauter whose
presentation on water production is next. And later on, Larry Brotman who will present
information on water reclamation.) What is the Loop 303 area water situation? (That area is not
located within the city's water plan.) One member voiced concerns that the current state
legislature is not acting strongly enough on the state's behalf on water issues and to protect
Arizona's water interests.
WATER TREATMENT AND WATER DISTRIBUTION PRESENTATIONS
Dawn Slauter, Water Treatment Superintendent, walked members through the process to produce
clean water. Many questions were raised by members. What two chemicals are used in the
process? (Chlorine and sodium hypochlorite.) What about security at the plants? (Richard
Levernier, Security Superintendent, responded that we maintain the established industry
standards for high security sites.) Is water delivery only pressure driven? (No, we have booster
stations and pumps that help.) But what if something bad does get into the water? (We have
many ways and instruments to monitor the water.) What if one of the water plants goes offline?
Do the other plants take over? (Yes. Plants are annually taken off line at certain times of the
year for maintenance and the other plants take over water production.) There is a desalination
plant in Yuma, AZ. Have we ever considered going that route as a long term plan? (We have
not but it could certainly be a future endeavor.) Where do impurities taken out of the water go?
(Dawn explained that this is called sludge, and sludge is sent to drying pools where it is tested,
and after it dries it is then sent to the landfill.) An observation was made that city water is better
regulated than bottled water. If that's the case, why do we drink so much bottled water? (City
water is more stringently regulated and as far as Dawn can guess, it's just habit.)
FACILITATED EXERCISE ON PRESENTATIONS
Members were asked to come up with initial policy suggestions and ideas that came out of the
information presented and also any additional ideas that need to be presented to staff. This
information was captured by the facilitators and will be compiled by staff.
May 21,2012
Ad Hoc Citizen Task Force on Water and Sewer Minutes
Page 3
ADJOURNMENT
The meeting was adjourned the meeting at 8:42 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Sally ling, Recordin ecretary