March 28, 2024

Not feasible

Reservoir commission takes no action on new reservoir study, water superintendent validates original choice of lake site

Clarke County Reservoir Commission (CCRC) has decided no action is the best action.

During a Feb. 18 CCRC meeting, the commission discussed the study for a reduced-size lake in its plans for a new reservoir project.

“The essence of the study is, for about $22 million more than the lake we’re planning, we could wind up with less water than what we need by about half of it,” said CCRC member Bill Trickey. “So, in the interest of trying to be responsible with this project, I would suggest that we not take any action on this – that it was a worthwhile study to look at and understand.”

Dan McIntosh, a CCRC member who represents Southern Iowa Rural Water Association (SIRWA), said his board doesn’t want to move forward with the proposed engineering study either.

CCRC decided to take no action on the proposed task order and to continue with the progress of the lake project.

Original plan

The original plan was for CCRC to build a reservoir project located at Squaw Creek Watershed in northwest Clarke County.

The reservoir was to provide a water supply for Osceola and Southern Iowa Rural Water Association (SIRWA) with an 816-acre lake, which could provide 2.2 million gallons of water per day.

Funding for the project includes many sources, especially funding from the local-option sales tax.

However, there have been many legislative setbacks and issues with landowners and eminent domain, which has caused CCRC to look into reducing the design of the reservoir.

There were concerns about the alternative spillway study in the same reservoir location resulting in an estimated cost increase of nearly $22 million, including structural and overall construction contingencies.

The other big problem was the available water supply in million gallons per day went from 2.2 million to 1.2 million.

West Lake woes

West Lake, the current water source, doesn’t meet the needs of Clarke County and SIRWA. There have also been problems with taste and odor issues at West Lake.

An algae-bloom treatment is done every year at the lake.

During the public comment section of the meeting, many people were upset at the site choice of the chosen Squaw Creek Watershed area. They wanted to see feasibility studies done on the Arbor Valley lake area.

Patterson speaks

That’s when Osceola Water Superintendent Brandon Patterson spoke at length to essentially shut that talk down. He said the regulations he has to meet every year for water quality become more and more stringent.

“We have phone calls, lots of complaints (and) consumers very upset that we’re not doing what we should be doing,” Patterson said. “We have worked with our engineers for every possibility that we can do for the treatment plant that we have at the lake that is beside us. And, I’ve seen these other studies that these people are asking for being done … We’ve proved that the site they’re working on is the site that we need.”

According to Trickey, the site in northern Clarke County wasn’t chosen by the commission. It was done by NRCS after many feasibility studies were done in different areas.

Patterson said the chosen reservoir site provides for the future growth of Clarke County, has a quality watershed and sufficient distance that he can start treating the water before it ever even gets to the treatment plant.

“So, this summer, when the water tastes bad and these complaints start coming in, I want you people to realize that I’m struggling with the treatment plant we have and the processes we have in place,” he said. “This isn’t just about somebody getting rich. This is about quality of water for the citizens of Osceola and southern Iowa.”