NICK GOSNELL
Hutch Post
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — The Hutchinson City Council approved selling water to Yoder Water District 101 Tuesday. Reno County Public Works Director Don Brittain said it's what they have to do.
"The county appreciates you considering this," Brittain said. "We've had this nitrate problem with the Yoder residents for about a year and a half. It fluctuates up and down, so we tried to wait it out. The way the existing well was drilled in the 80s, I thought maybe nitrate was coming in from the surface or not clear at the bottom of the well. I had a test well drilled just in the last three weeks, which was over $9000. We encased it around the casing to where nitrate levels from the surface couldn't get to the bottom, but we still have high nitrates, even with the new well."
Brittain said they'll get to work on a solution immediately.
"I will start that engineering study tomorrow if you approve it today," Brittain said. "If you do approve it, we will probably be buying water from you. I just had to go through this to see if you'd approve it and then start this engineering and then determine what it's going to cost to run seven miles of water line down there, go underneath the state highway, underneath the river. It's going to be very expensive, but that will all be on us. The only thing that I believe you will provide is connection and a single meter. If we have to have more pressure to get it down there, then it will be on us to put in a pump."
The intent is not to use Hutchinson city water exclusively, at least as Brittain sees it right now.
"What we'll probably do is we'll try to blend your water and their water to try to keep rates down," Brittain said. "Their rates are going to get very high down there for those people. They're going to have to pay for this infrastructure. They're already paying for their infrastructure and I believe we're proposing paying one and a half times what you charge your people. The rates are going to get high down there. This is my last option."
A public town hall meeting is scheduled for residents in and around the Yoder area Thursday, Aug. 11 at 6:30 p.m. at the Journey of Yoder activity center, located two miles north of Yoder.