I am pleased to report to the membership that Davidson Water, Inc. has 59,996 total connections and 52,991 active meters. That is an increase 463 from prior year. We added 322 new taps in the past year, up 101 from the previous year. That is a significant increase and we believe the trend of decreasing number of new taps each year has reversed. Not since 2007 have we had an increase in prior year new taps and in 2007 the number was 907. Currently, we have 73 employees with one position open.

The Gregg Stabler water plant ran an average of approximately 9.2 mgd. Included in that average was the Clyde Pickle Water Plant, our original plant, that ran for 3 months at 2 mgd average. Our highest peak day was 13.4 mg. All of our state mandated tests including Copper, Lead, Total Organic Carbon (TOC), Total Trihalomethanes and Haloacetic Acids (TTHM/HAA5) have tested well below accepted limits. I would like to expand on the last two of these. THM and HAA5 are undesirable byproducts that form in water as a result of chlorine used to disinfect. We are pleased to report much lower level test results. We attribute this to a pilot study we are doing of feeding chlorine-dioxide. The results are so good we will apply to that state to make this treatment permanent.

We have completed a $1.4 million sludge and maintenance building. Soon, we will start up dewatering equipment to process ferric sludge cheaper and more efficient. Other improvements include the following: Improved security by installing surveillance cameras and upgrading fencing and gates at the river pump station, upgraded the air compressor that blow off screens at the river pump station to improve intake efficiency, made improvements to the CAT generator to meet EPAs more stringent air quality regulations, improved gravel roadways around the plant site and made much improvement of site’s erosion as a result of prior year’s plant construction. We have made progress on the conversion of our original 500,000 gallon clear well to a backwash storage tank. Once completed, we will send our backwash and filter water to this tank and collect the solid sludge for dewatering and processing. Lastly, we have begun the design phase of electrical upgrades which includes new switchgear that controls our two large generators.

Our distribution system saw upgrade and pipe relocation of 57,664’ or 10.9 miles. Projects included Pilot School Road, Friendship Ledford Road, Hill Everhart Road, Sink Road, South Happy Hill Road, Odell Owen Road, 10 NC DOT projects requiring line relocations and 8 different new or expanded subdivisions. We began a hydraulic modeling and Master Plan study with Hazen and Sawyer Environmental Engineers. Long term, this study will give us a roadmap for system improvements through the year 2060 and it will determine our capital improvement priorities for the near future. The complete study will be done by the end of this month.

Our meter department installed 4,935 radio read meters bringing the total number in our system to 35,321. This year we plan to be just as aggressive. These meters are very accurate, have a 10 year warranty and are the best value for the company to measure and bill for water.

Our office has been busy with providing the best customer service as their Number 1 focus. Our customers preferring electronic bank and online payments continue to rise. That number is now over 50% of our customer base. Also, email bill delivery; albeit small at 4,100 customers, is trending upward. Both electronic pay and e-bill is good for us as it is less costly than processing US mail, night deposits and customer service counter transactions. Lastly, we installed a new phone system that was badly needed and plans for enhanced security via cameras are underway.

In closing, I will emphasize our commitment to our mission of providing safe reliable water to our members at the lowest possible cost. We will continue to do that with the leadership of our board and management, the expertise of our professional staff, the dedication of our employees and the support of our members. Thank you.

Ron Sink, General Manager