President’s Report Annual Meeting 2015

Shareholders,

On the 6th of June, the Annual Shareholders Meeting of the Blue Lake Springs Mutual Water Company was held and was fairly well attended. Board Director, Treasurer and Chair of the Long Range Strategic Planning Committee (LRSPC), Tom Schneider, covered the company’s financials and delivered an incredibly detailed report outlining the company’s goals and objectives for the future. His outline, which is available on the website, was direct and to the point, leaving little to the unknown. Tom didn’t do the work alone, as he has four other members: Board Directors George Paul and Sharon Tobias, member at large Joe Morgan and General Manager David Hicks. I thank and applaud them all.

Tom Elson, from Luhdorff & Scalmanini Consulting Engineers (L&SCE) spoke of the water issue in California and the impact of the drought years on wells and well exploration. His message continues to re-enforce the need for conservation.

General Manager Dave Hicks highlighted the impact of system wide conservation and growing interest in the use of graywater or used water. Check the website for graywater ideas and facts.

Unfortunately there was very little time left over for questions. Here are the questions that homeowners brought to me after the regular meeting:

Q) Does the water company plan on adding additional fire hydrants? Do you involve the fire department?
A) As we complete the pipeline replacement (replacing the old in the yard system and moving the new pipe into the utility right-of-way) hydrants will be added. The hydrant placement is overseen by the Ebbetts Pass Fire Department.

Q) I have a meter. Will the new meter project replace mine?
A) The proposed grant that we have applied for includes all residents to be metered. If the grant is successful, all new meters will be installed. If we are not successful in the grant proposal, all existing meters will be surveyed to insure compatibility with the new units and brought up to date as needed.

Q) Do you expect the rates to increase next year?
A) Yes. The Board studies the rate structure every fall. I do not see any drop in rates, in light of the infrastructure demands that are in front of us.

Q) What do you foresee if we have another dry winter?
A) In the coming months, we will be crafting a Stage Four for our Drought Action Plan, which will further curtail use of water. Stage Four may lead to various forms of rationing, to include limiting hours of operation or odd/even day restrictions. The more we conserve now, the better we can plan for that future.

Not everyone had questions. Some were telling me of their newly designed graywater system, or relating experiences of how easy it is to better use water. One example: Using a hand full or a glass full of ice on plants uses a lot less water than a hose or a drip system. No; the ice doesn’t freeze the plant.

We are very interested in these ideas and ask that you forward them to us. I thought the morning’s effort was productive and once again thank you for attending.
More importantly: THANK YOU for CONSERVING!!!

Hope to see you next year.

Robert Maginnis
President of the Board