By Wesley Harris
The Town of Dubach plans to spend $39,500 from its water/sewer account on water system upgrades.
Mayor Mona Wilson said, “We chose to pay for the $39,500 in water system upgrades out of our Water/Sewer account and use the LGAP Funds [originally planned for that purpose] to do [Main Street] paving.”
The upcoming project follows other changes to Dubach’s water system in recent years.
Wilson said the town replaced antiquated water meters with radio-read meters. The newer equipment allows the town to record water usage more accurately at individual residences.
“We were able to obtain radio read water meters to better retain the amount of usage for each house,” Wilson said. “Our water meters were over 50 years old.”
The town also completed a rate study of its water system and raised rates in an effort to make the water/sewer account financially sustainable.
Wilson said residents sometimes misunderstand how municipal decisions such as rate increases are made.
“We have a rate study on our water system and increased the rates to at least sustain the water/sewer account,” Wilson said.
The rate review was part of Louisiana’s water system accountability requirements. Community water systems must have a rate study performed at least once every five years, with the study examining whether current charges are sufficient to maintain the system’s financial sustainability. The Louisiana Department of Health can deduct points from a system’s annual water grade for failing to complete a rate study or failing to implement adequate rates indicated by the study.
Upcoming improvements to the water and sewer systems include new pumps for the sewer system, paddle wheels for the water aeration system, and professional cleaning of the system’s two water tanks. The work is intended to rectify water system deficiencies that led to an “F” letter grade from the Louisiana Department of Health in its annual Dubach water system report. Dubach has already addressed high levels of TTHM, a contaminant that played a role in the low audit score.
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