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Water utilities are being subjected to progressively greater economic pressures. The demand for water is increasing, due to both a growing number of customers and rising per capita consumption. Consequently, many utilities are faced with declining reserves of water, necessitating additional investment to develop sources of supply. Frequently, new or enlarged facilities to treat, store and distribute the larger volume of water are required. Public policies, also, are promoting the extension or development of public water systems to serve sparsely populated suburban communities, small towns, and rural areas. All these changes affecting the demand for water, combined with rising construction costs, are causing water utility costs to skyrocket.

A summary of findings following a three-year study of the Caracas Water Utility. Included are findings regarding financial costs and returns, social benefits, and a look at the future. THIS findings PAPER of a is 3-yr a summary study of of the the findings of a 3-yr study of the Caracas Water Utility in Venezuela. As consultants appointed by the Utility to make an overall appraisal of the system's operations, the authors analyzed the following features : 1. The National Sanitary Policy as related to investments in water-supply and sewerage systems and their subsequent recompense in the form of social and economic benefits 2. The various studies made to set the rates 3. The future water demand and the time when Caracas will have to make another considerable investment to en

DAMAGE claims arising from the operation of any large water utility are regarded as part of the problem of operation currently, more than ever before. In recent years the public has developed a trend toward capitalizing on misfortunes. In scanning the news, people find numerous items that publicize damage claims and the liberal judgments awarded by today's juries. People are very alert to the possibilities of obtaining easy money. An example of this attitude is a recent accident, in which a missing water meter box cover caused a serious personal injury to a minor. The claimant's father, instead of notifying the water department immediately after the accident, called his lawyer. In another case a basement was flooded by a broken water main. . The department's investigator surprised the occupant in the act of removing merchandise from upper shelves and dumping it into the water. Fortunately, all claimants are not opportunists. The San Francisco Water Department finds itself rather vulnerable to claims, as its hundreds of miles of water mains and connecting services are subject to breaks and leaks, and the possibility always exists for the creation of a flood condition. This situa

of AWWA presented a report (1) reflecting in detail on the state of water utility development in America. In this report an appraisal was made of the difficulties now encountered in providing the best water service to the rapidly growing communities of the US and Canada. Among the obstacles to providing maximum quality service, high significance was placed on the deficiencies of management, the public, and technologists. As a matter of fact, the difficulties noted and the campaign suggested for resolving them and moving toward more positive and prompt accomplishments give one the impression of a severe indictment of water

Public water supplies are sometimes outgrown as are the suits of growing boys. They can be stitched, patched and lengthened for a time, but eventually they may have to be discarded and replaced with new and more suitable material and fashion. Such a time, when it comes, is an opportunity to build for the future and fortunate is the community whose water utility is in a financial position to make the most of the opportunity. Once established, a water supply may and should last for many years with only the changes required for additional units of capacity and minor modifications of treatment for improved quality. A public supply which has made this change should have definite contributions to make to the progress of water supply engineering. It is the purpose of this paper to briefly describe some features of the Springfield development which we believe have some novelty and merit. On Dec. 2, 1936, the new water softening plant went into continuous operation at Lake Springfield and the entire supply of water for the City of Springfield hereafter will be derived from this artificial lake. This statement which seems so simple to write, tells the culmination of a period of continuous and consistent development extending back more than 25 years. It may be said to be the result of a policy of administration involving especially several definite principles, none of which has been maintained without a struggle, but each one of which has been demonstrated to be essential. Before discussing the policy, let us review the changes which have recently been made.

THE operation of a water utility is vital to the health and economy of the c mmunity it serves. If onl for is reason, such a important operation requires able engineeri g and ma agement personnel and able workers in related sciences. The fact that utility operations are becoming more complex is another reason that able people are needed. In large and important operations of electric, gas, and telephone utilities, recruitment and retention of competent personnel are not left to chance.

THE subject of architecture in water utility installations is a very broad one, but there are three aspects of the subject that are of particular importance to water utility men: economic factors, land use requirements, and aesthetic considerations. Being a matter of taste as well as function, architecture is a very controversial matter, even among architects, and it is often possible to find as many opponents as proponents for any particular design. Therefore, in discussing aesthetic considerations, the authors can express only their own opinions (which, because there are two authors, were at times in opposition and required compromise), and there may be some disagreement with the views set forth in what follows.

THE increasing demand of industrial production and the effect of competition in the American way of life are stressing the need for water utility facilities to serve adequately beyond designed expectations. While looking ahead and planning for expansion of facilities, it is well to review those at hand to be certain that every available space or capacity to serve is utilized. Not only must there be capacity to serve, but the service is required to satisfy at least the "Rules and Standards of Service for Water

ligent and efficient decisions are to result. Parts of the analysis presented in this article appeared in an earlier paper by the author (1). The author is distressed that many of the economic facets of water project planning have received to date only the most sketchy sort of consideration and study, and is at a loss to explain why such is the case. The net result is that questions turning on legal issues of water rights and engineering questions of design, capacity, and location have been given extended discussion, while economic issues of primary importance have been almost totally neglected. Yet, economic principles have an important bearing on both the legal and engineering issues, as well as being important in themselves. Although it may be agreed that the final decisions in regard to public projects may be political in nature, rather than economic, it seems evident that sound economic analysis is always needed so that the costs and effects of actions can be clearly weighed. The economist, however, has yet to be admitted as an equal partner in the project-formulation process. Rather, seems to be limited to justifying and checking on decisions already made. All too often, the economist is expected to rationalize existing decisions rather than to explore the problem in its entir ty. As long as basic economic questions are given scant treatment, public

TWO sylvania recent Supreme decisions Court by the 2 Pennoversylvania Supreme Court 2 overturned long-honored legal precedents concerning water utility liability for fire losses. They well may have the effect, in Pennsylvania, as well as in other states, of greatly enlarging utility liability. These two cases raise serious questions of public policy concerning both municipally owned and investorowned water utilities.

A WATER investigation, rate undertaken study is a detailed in orinvestigation, und rtaken in order to predict the total revenue requirements of a specific water utility, and to design commodity and service rates which will yield the required income from water sales. A properly made rate study requires the combined talents of both the management and operating personnel of the utility and the specialized professional services of accounting, financial, and engineering experts. Specialized, professional, accounting experts means those who have specialized in the field of utility accounting as opposed to those engaged in the general public and corporate accounting fields. Specialized financial experts means those especially experienced in handling bond and, if applicable, stock issues for utilities. Specialized professional engineering experts means engineers who are trained and experienced in depreciation, the mortality-survival characteristics of water works property, rate delineation, and numerous other specialized fields pertaining to a water utility's revenue needs.

The water utility business is short of management not short of water. The need for professional management is the number-one challenge today, as it has been in the past. Managing a business is like flying an airplane. The only way to gain stability is to maintain forward motion. The ability to move forward in a business operation depends fundamentally on good business management. The manager needs to see his whole job in perspective, with full knowledge of where the business has been, where it is now, and where it is going. Albert Marien, professor at the University of Illinois, has said that "unless

HTHIS article covers management X rathe than the water utility as an entity. Is ther a distinction? In a very real sense there is no distinction. Over the long run the utility is what management makes it. Management is responsible for what is done and for failures. On the other hand, so far as legal responsibilities are concerned, there is a distinction. It is the utility which renders service and which meets or fail to meet consumer demands. For the purposes of this discussion, legal responsibility will be treated on the assumption that management and utilities are one and the same. For moral responsibility water utility management will mean the people who control and manage. Furthermore, there is no difference in the responsibilities of publicly owned utilities and privately owned water companies. In meeting service demands the responsibilities of both are the same.

Historically we are engaged in an occupation almost as old as recorded history. Egypt, Chaldea and India give evidence that even the ancients had a marvelous conception of the scope and possibilities of water distribution, while the Roman aqueducts to this day are the delight of the antiquarian who can see nothing new under the sun. In our own country we had in the year 1800 only 16 water works plants of which 15 were privately owned, and only one, that of Alexandria, Va., publicly owned. Today we have considerably above 10,000 communities having public water supplies. In our own field, the trend of the last century has been distinctly a shifting from private to municipal ownership. Of the 25 largest cities in the U. S., only one (Indianapolis) is now privately operated, the city of San Francisco having only within the last few months become a municipal utility. The same holds true of the smaller communities and perhaps 80 percent or more of our urban centers now have municipally conducted water systems. It is not the purpose of the writer to discuss the reasons impelling this change from one corporate entity to another except as it emphasizes the importance of the relation of proper accounting methods in this vast field of human endeavor.

East Bay Municipal Utility Dist. has many features that will be of interest to those unacquainted with this type of organization. The community served, which includes the residents of thirteen cities on the east shore of San Francisco Bay, is proud of its water utility and has often gone on record to that effect, although almost everyone refers affectionately to the water service as "East Bay MUD." The first water distribution system in the East Bay area was established by the College of California in 1867. From then on, water distribution was handled by a series of privately owned companies that gradually merged their operations until, in 1923, the district was formed to take over water service

though the income from private fire protection in the average water works constitutes only 1 or 2 percent of the total income, quite frequently in rate hearings before regulatory bodies, there is as much evidence introduced relative to sprinkler rates as with respect to all other items of the schedule. It would seem that little controversy should arise over charges for a service which produces savings to the consumers having the service which are usually very much greater than the payments made to the water department which makes the service possible. Automatic sprinkler fire protection service is of direct value to those making the installation, is often of indirect value to adjoining properties and to a smaller extent, is also of value to the water utility and the community as a whole. The owner of the property who has installed an automatic sprinkler fire protection system profits through a reduction in his insurance rates usually in amounts varying from 60 to 80 percent of the total premium. To secure this reduction in premium, he is required to expend for the installation of the automatic sprinkler system an amount usually varying between 1 and 4 percent of the building cost. The annual cost to the owner, including therein the fixed charges for interest, depreciation, etc. on the cost of installation, is from 0.1 to 0.5 percent of the building cost. This annual expenditure, as before stated, results in saving from two-thirds to threefourths of the insurance bill. The cost of installing a sprinkler system is usually repaid in a very few years by reduced insurance premiums. Adjoining properties benefit from the installation made, due to the fact that the risk of conflagration spreading from the sprinklered

should stop or how far the water utility should go in its efforts to please the public, it may be helpful first to describe some of the services that are already being provided. Domestic water supplies in the United States are safe and, for the most part, free from excessive quantities of dissolved salts and objectionable tastes and odors. The incidence of waterborne diseases has been reduced almost to zero in areas served by recognized water purveyors. The rare outbreak of waterborne disease

utilities understand the necessity for organized planning. The engineer designing a water treatment plant must be concerned at the outset with plant capacity which in turn is determined by consumer demand. The needs of today can be calculated with high confidence, but vastly more uncertain is the demand five, ten, or twenty years hence. The water utility executive is continually involved in planning for the future. Price structures are vital, but can be rationally managed only with due consideration to costs. Many factors are involved including interest rates, wages and fringe benefits of labor, and the prices of equipment and materials.

I accordance with the definite ininterest expressed in a fast, accurate means of judging direction and degree of price changes in the water supply field, the JOURNAL (Vol. 45, No.8, August 1953) published an article on cost indexes for water plants for the years 1913-52. The rising cost spirals of all materials and labor involved in the con~truction of water utility plant followmg W orld War II were attributed to such factors as: ( 1) the removal of price controls; (2) demands of the industry for normal replacements and improvement of facilities that were postponed as nonessential during the war; (3) the construction of new homes for a larger population no longer content with urban living; and (4 ) the return of controls and scarcities as a result of the Korean conflict. The continuing acceleration of costs of water utility property in the 1953-63 period should be of similar interest to those engaged in water plant design, planning, construction; management, operation, finance, or regulation of water utilities. The statistical data for the 1953-63 period are presented in the same format as that used for the 1913-52 period and include, for comparison purposes, annual indexes at lO-year intervals for the earlier period (Tables 1-3) . Index Changes

Next to the provision of an adequate supply of water and its efficient and economical distribution, there is no more serious problem confronting the water utility official than the conservation of that supply without unnecessary restriction and its distribution upon an equitable and economical basis. In that conservation and distribution of the supply there is no factor of greater importance than that of meterage of the sj^stem. Universal meterage, though desirable, is, not alone sufficient. For the utmost efficiency and economy, careful consideration should be given to the selection of the type of meter, its operation and record control. The meter should be adequately sized but not oversized, it should have the capability of meeting the quick and changeable volumetric demands of the service. It should be so constructed that wear of parts is minimized. And, finally, it should be capable of continuous registration of all flows through the meter. Since the revenue of the utility is dependent upon the meter, it is essential that its operation be closely supervised. In that, the frequency of meter reading, record control and accuracy tests play no small part. Frequent meter readings insure the utility against lose of service, reduce the period of non-registration of the meter and enable the utility to obtain a closer and more equitable accounting of its supply. They protect the consumer from high water bills through wastage or leakage, frequently unknown to him. Record control is the warning signal of the system. Registration inaccuracies are readily discernible through a system of registration records. Comparisons can be made with previous readings or with those of corresponding periods of previous years. Material increase or decrease of registration should demand an investigation of the conditions and possibly a test of the meter.

Aside from soap, which is a water softener as well as a detergent, and from synthetic detergents, which usually include softening agents as additives in the commercial product, there are several methods of reducing the hardness of domestic water. One is treatment by the water utility, either with lime (and soda ash) or with ion exchangers (such as zeolite) using salt as the regenerant chemical. The other is by home treatment with ion-exchange units, either owned and regenerated by the homeowner or rented and serviced by local water-conditioning agencies. The municipal water utility procedure rarely reduces the hardness below 70 ppm, and usually limits the hardness to 100 ppm, so that the calcium hardness protects the distribution sys

DRINKING water quality is the subject of much current comment in both the popular and technical press. It is still, however, a subject not well understood by the layman and one, therefore, of particular concern to the water utility operator. On him rests the responsibility for producing consistently a water of satisfactory quality and safety for human use. The public tends to view the water supply producer as an impersonal utility, and it is sometimes convenient to use this concept for technical purposes. Although this article will describe the effectiveness of water utility quality control practices, the individual efforts of utility operators are not forgotten. There are three premises underlying this article. The first premise is that the data describe the effectiveness of water utility quality control in the broad sense that both the selection and surveillance of the source as well as

B in cast-iron water mains are becoming more numerous each year, and subsequent underground leakage is frequently the principal cause of unaccounted for water." Many leaks, of course, are due to accidents or physical damage to otherwise sound pipe. It has been recognized, however, by water utility personnel that the majority of the breaks occur at locations where the pipe wall has been weakened. Such weakening is the result of graphitic corrosion of cast iron and, although the actual failure may be due to stress, corrosion can be shown to be the real cause. The cost of corrosion to the water utility industry has been estimated conservatively at $150,000,000 annually." This expense, along with the nuisance of pipeline breaks, can be reduced greatly through the application of modern corrosion control methods. Similarly, corrosion control needs to be considered for all new construction. This is essential not only from an economic standpoint, but also because of the increased value of water. Water shortages make reduction of leakage imperative. This article outlines the corrosion process with emphasis on cast iron. Data are cited to show the relationship between breaks and known corrosion phenomena. Finally, recommendations for corrosion control and hence a reduction of main breaks are discussed.

be managed and operated intelligently and efficiently, a water utility must be provided with means for accurately measuring the water it handles. A precise knowledge of the exact amounts of water received by and delivered from the distribution system is required in order to cut costs and prevent water waste. In Southern California, where the end of available additional water supplies is already in sight, the wastage of water will be considered in a far

law was extended to include the regulation of all telephone, heat, light, and water utilities. These 1907 public utility and water utility laws have been copied by many states. They were the first effective utility control laws in the country. Almost every state that adopted the 1907 Wisconsin law as a guide found it necessary to exempt municipal utilities from regulation presumably to assure adoption of the measure. At present the Wisconsin commission regulates 382 municipally owned water utilities and only fifteen privately owned ones. In 1911 another statutory change was enacted, this one providing for regulation of the securities of public utilities, other than those of municipal organizations. In 1915 the legislature passed Wisconsin's water-power laws. These laws applied to the regulation of 1,000 dams, the level and flow of 8,000 lakes, and 11,000 miles of navigable streams within the state. In 1927 the legislature added to the commission's duties

other factors affecting the selection of pumping equipment and the power to drive it. A major portion of this discussion refers to possible outages and their consequences. Before proceeding, it is essential to state that the more pessimistic remarks concern possible emergencies, and there is no intention, or reason, to cast doubt on the reliability of electric-power service to water utility pumping stations. The relative economy, simplicity, and reliability of electric power under most conditions are recognized and generally accepted. Electric-power service has become so dependable, in fact, that undue risks of interrupted water service are probably taken in many instances because of continued reliance

WATER utility plant is designed and built o satisfy two cr teria of operation eco omy and s fety. Because, in regard to the second of these criteria, there can be no absolutely saf plant, it is the job of the safety engineer to provide the best possible safety program. Personnel rotection and safety must b an i teg al part of the to al plant environment, with consistency of practice, thod, and de gn in all phases of operation throughout the pl nt. A less broad concept would tend to overemphasize certain areas, neglect others, and result in piecemeal design with little general continuity. Four purposes of design to promote safety are to protect: (1) personnel from equipment; (2) equipment from personnel; (3) personnel from personnel; and (4) equipment from equipment. In regard to the protection of personnel from equipment, there are many situations in which personnel might be injured by operating equipment, and only the injury would result, with no malfunction of the equipment involved. There are many other instances in which the protection of equipment from personnel is just as applicable as the reverse. In such instances, the mishandling of equipment could have devastating results indeed, a whole plant could be affected. A typical example of the protection of personnel from personnel is the use of tags on out-of-service valv s : during a maintenance job, such as the repair or cleaning of a basin (in which the valves at the influent end are closed

When the presence of residual chlorine in water can be demonstrated, the effectiveness of chlorination is definitely insured, and continues as long as the residual is present. Soon after the practice of water chlorination was started about 50 years ago, it was discovered that a control was necessary to insure disinfection. The method of control devised was the addition of enough chlorine to water to bring about the residual effect. A few years later, water utility engineers became aware that residual chlorine could

THE directly strength related of any to organization its personnel. is directly related to its personnel. The water utility executives of today are the applicants of yesterday, and the applicants of today are the basis for a successful operation tomorrow. Although considered by some people merely a problem of filling vacancies, selecting and hiring employees is one of the most important operations of an organization that expects to establish and maintain an economical, efficient, and profitable business with flexibility to meet the requirements of the future.

THIS paper reviews some of the many hases of water utility management where engineering assistance can be used to advantage. The full responsibility for continuous, orderly, and efficient operation lies with management, which, in turn, must depend largely on studies and analyses by engineers and accountants to guide its judgment. Through coordinated efforts, a program can be developed from past experience and predicated on the best possible forecasts of future requirements. The maintenance of good records is, in itself, the best aid to management in formulating its plans and supporting its program. Regardless of the competence of staff members or consultants, the results of their studies will be only as good as the basic recorded data that they use. Moreover, the continuous compilation of statistical and financial records by clerical help is more economical than the employment of technicians in an attempt to reconstruct and estimate the data for

THE term "fire protection service" designates the service which the water utility furnishes a community by having a reliable source of water supply, pumping equipment, storage facilities, and transmission and distribution mains and hydrants. This service should be adequate to supply the firefighting apparatus of the city, village or town with all the water it requires at any time and under conditions of peak demand by the general-service customers.

"What are our system needs?" This is the question each utility-management team should be asking, according to a statement in the May 1971 special issue of Willing Water. The special issue further states that recognition and acceptance of these needs is a prime prerequisite of programs that will provide further improvements in service and quality. As part of the Action Now program, AWWA developed a self-evaluation questionnaire to assist in appraising the technical needs of a utility. Michigan State Univ., through the AWWA-WPCFsponsored Inst, for Water and Wastewater Utility Management, is developing a self-evaluation audit format that will assist a utility in appraising management-related problems. The author's industrial experience indicates that the utilization of a management-audit format usually results in improved management performance. Use of a practical management-audit format should provide similar benefits to a water utility.

THE ment primary head, whether function his of any department department head, whether his departme t has three employees or a hundred, is the development of an efficient organs zation. This function is probably even more important for the head of a water utility distribution department, because of his department's direct involvement with customers, public, and management, and because the work of the distribution department is largely manual and cannot be programed and performed automatically by machines. Therefore, each employee, whether laborer or skilled technician, must perform his duties efficiently if the department is to be successful. The Indianapolis Water Co. administers a program to improve the performance and morale of its distribu

THE systems complex has resulted expansion in of substanwater systems has resulted in substantial adoption of instrumentation by the water industry. Modern instrument systems have made possible the surveillance and remote control of wells, treatment facilities, pumping stations, storage tanks, and transmission main valving, while rising labor costs have prompted water utility management to follow other industries in establishing some degree of automation and centralized control. Examples of instrumentation for both production and distribution facilities are provided by the water system of Dayton, Ohio, and the Pinellas County Water System, Clearwater, Fla.

EVERY public utility has two main points of contact with the public : the meter readers and the office personnel, who receive remittances,, answer questions, investigate complaints, sell services and provide for the furnishing of water to new customers. The contacts at the office are very important, since the customer is being touched on a very sensitive spot his pocketbook. The Association is placing a great deal of emphasis on improving the public relations of the water utility. Because the business office is the focal