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Sustainability

“For a solution to be truly sustainable and good it must have a positive return on the environment and society. At the heart of any design problem is a question: Are we trying to make something less bad or are we trying to make things better?... It’s not just about solving for the negative, it’s about creating a positive.
- Eric Wicks
water thing

Sustainability in relation to a water system implies that a water system has developed managerial, fiscal, and operational plans and strategies to be able to endure many of the water supply challenges we will face - now and well into the future.

In other words - the ability of a water system to be able to sustain its water production and water quality goals, at relatively affordable rates, are directly related to the water systems ability to adapt to the critical changes we will face.

The challenges we face in the water supply communities are many and complex - but some of the more common ones which we believe we can lead out on are as follows:

District Sustainability Challenges and Objectives 
  • Climate change - and the water supply constraints that it will impose upon us all.
  • Protection of the Environment while developing resources and producing water.
  • Conservation and Optimization of Source - New sources will begin with the capacity derived form our conservation efforts - through:
    • Conservation Rates
    • Minimizing System Losses
    • Targeted Pipeline Flushing
    • Source Optimization - using the proper source at the proper time of year
  • Achieving a Higher Water System Resiliency - through:
    • System Robustness
    • Redundancy in Storage & Sources
    • Redundancy in Booster Station Design
    • Computer hydraulic and water quality modeling of water system
  • Reducing Operating Costs, by:
    •  Controlling Power and Energy Costs
      • Source Prioritization
      • Appropriate Rate Selection
      • Installing Jockey Pumps
      • Achieving Optimal Pump Operating Points
      • Improving Heating & Cooling Loads
      • Improving Surge Tank Charging
    • Utilizing In-House Maintenance when possible
  • The Reliability or Stability of a System is only as good as a knowledgeable and agile staff which can professionally respond to events and critical emergencies.
Presentations on Mountain Regional and Sustainability 

Summit County Council in 2016 

This presentation was given to the Summit County Council in 2016 by Scott Morrison and Chris Braun - to update the County on the latest accomplishments of Mountain Regional, and incorporates therein many of our Sustainability objectives:

Council-Work-Session_MRW_May-2016_Braun-Morrison.pdf

2016 Annual Intermountain Section of  AWWA Conference

This presentation was delivered by Scott Morrison to the 2016 Annual Intermountain Section of  AWWA (American Water Works Association) Conference in St. George, UT and describes in detail the need for water systems to endure (sustainability) the challenges facing them today and into the future:

AWWA-IMS-Annual-Conf-2016_Morrison.pdf
District Water Modeling Efforts 

Mountain Regional Water employs a professional staff which regularly evaluates the performance and capacity of it's water system infrastructure through a detailed computer modeling system, which:

  • Allows District staff to “see” how water moves throughout the District
  • Provides capital improvement project evaluation and analysis of alternatives
  • Presents water quality modeling and potential issues
  • Provides an infrastructure health assessment; are things operating as they should?
  • Allows for critical fire flow analysis
May contain: rock, outdoors, nature, sea, and water
Hydraulic Model Representation: water quality simulation