DROUGHT
IS OVER !!!!
2007 is turning out to be one of the
wettest years in the last twenty years.
Lake Tawakoni
remains almost full because of all
the rain and the cooler temperatures
this
summer. The District is
currently under NO Drought
Restrictions and our
customers can water whenever and wherever
they
want. Long
range forecasters are calling for a
warmer and
drier than normal winter, but the District
is ready to meet all our customers’ water
needs.
Flushing,
Testing Equals Best Water
 Water quality in Lake Tawakoni has
improved over the last two months.
During the flooding
earlier this year, the run-off
into the lake brought more than
water.
The flood
water moved all kinds of debris
down the creeks and into our drinking
water supply.
In addition, all the plants that
had grown in the lake bed during
the
drought
began
to decompose. This caused an organic
loading of the lake water. Total
Organic Carbon
or TOC cannot be seen or tasted.
TOC level is determined only through
lab
testing.
When our treatment plant operators
saw this spike, they moved quickly
to implement
new treatment processes using a
different coagulant to optimize
the sedimentation
basins and remove the TOC to undetectable
levels.
You
may be wondering, why try to remove
something that you can’t see or taste?
Because organics in drinking water are
a precursor for the formation of Trihalomethanes
or THMs. THMs are formed when the organics
come into contact with the disinfectant
used in the treatment process. They are
known as “disinfection by-products
(DBPs). The Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA) has set limits for THMs in drinking
water at 80 parts per million. The District
reports these levels and many other levels
of contaminants to our customers each year
in our water quality report mailed during
April. You can view last year’s
testing results at our website
cashwater.org.
The
District has started testing for the
next EPA rule, DBP-2.
This rule
requires the District to test
eight new sample
sites
every other month for two years
to determine DBP levels in other
parts
of the distribution
system. The District’s
water quality techs work hard
at keeping lines flushed
to insure that all customers
are receiving fresh clean drinking
water every day.
Because
of all the flushing and
testing done by our operators,
the District
won first runner up for the “Best
Tasting Water” in Austin
earlier this year from the Texas
Rural Water Association!!!!!
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Construction
Report
The
District awarded two construction contracts
this summer. The first project is
for
new treatment plant ponds, the contractor
is Baker’s Contracting Inc.,
of Crandall, TX., with a cost of $247,231.00.
The second project is a new 500,000
gallon
ground storage tank at the Lone Oak
pump station, the contractor is Tank
Builders,
Inc., of Euless, TX., with a cost of
$461,600.00. Both projects should start
this fall.
Online Banking Payments
You
can now pay your water bills online.
Just go to the District’s website
cashwater.org and click on the “On-line
Payment” link. Enter your account
# and first time log-in’s – use “guest” as
pin #. Then go to the Change Pin tab and
choose a new pin name/number to access
your billing history and current bill.
Once you complete the setup you can then
make a payment with your debit/credit card.
Paying online is fast and easy. All payments
will be posted to the customer’s
account by the next morning. There are
no credit card usage fees or other charges
for this service. Questions about this
process should be directed to Shirley
Smith, Office Manager.
Black
Fire Hydrants
 Earlier
this year, lawmakers in Austin passed
a law that requires
rural
water systems who can’t
guarantee fire flow at fire
hydrants to paint them black.
The District is not required
to provide
fire flow, so we are painting
all District hydrants black.
The local fire departments
can continue to use the hydrants
to fill fire trucks as they
have done for many
years.
Comments
or suggestions concerning the District's
service should be directed to Clay
Hodges, General Manager at (903) 883-2695.
Current Directors:
J.A. Humphries, President
Will Reese, Vice-president
James Fortenberry, Sec/Treas.
Bobby Ayers
Bryan Delgado
Vernon Pippin
Virgil Winsett
Norris Mayberry
Staley Cash
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