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Home My WebLink AboutACSA200600005 Executive Summary 2006-12-13 COUNTY OF ALBEMARLE EXECUTIVE SUMMARY AGENDA TITLE: AGENDA DATE: Public Hearing - Red Hill Community Well— December 13, 2006 Request to amend the Jurisdictional Area Boundary for the Albemarle County Service Authority ACTION: X INFORMATION: SUBJECT/PROPOSAL/REQUEST: CONSENT AGENDA: To amend the Jurisdictional Area boundary for the ACTION: INFORMATION: Albemarle County Service Authority to provide water service to Tax Map 87B, Parcels 4, 4A, 6, 6A, 6B, 7, 7A, 8, and 10, located on Taylors Gap Road (Route ATTACHMENTS: Yes 710) and Tax Map 87B, Parcels 9, 10A, 11, 12, 60, 60A, 60B, and 61 located on Red Hill School Road (Route 760). REVIEWED BY: STAFF CONTACT(S): Ii Tucker, Foley, Davis, Cilimberg, Benish, Swales LEGAL REVIEW: Yes BACKGROUND: County staff has been working with the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality(DEQ)since 2003 on a study to find a replacement water supply in the Red Hill area The replacement water supply is needed due to a major groundwater contamination incident originating at the Trading Post on Route 29. To this date, 11 wells have been contaminated by gasoline and 7 of these have had carbon filtration units installed, some for many years. DEQ has already expended over $1 million on investigations, remediation, and maintaining carbon filtration units. To date 4,400 gallons of gasoline and 4 million gallons of contaminated groundwater have been extracted from the ground. Although the contaminant plume appears to have stabilized, the complete cleanup of the site is not expected in the foreseeable future due to the extent of contaminated groundwater. DEQ continues to be concerned that a permanent, reliable water supply needs to be provided for the impacted properties and those still at risk for contamination. The leaking tank case summary is outlined below. • December 16, 1988 an anonymous complaint was received at DEQ of gasoline taste in a private water well, resulting in the initiation of a petroleum release case, PC89-0679. • In 1990, an Underground Storage Tank (UST)was removed at the Trading Post. A report of contaminated soil and free product in the UST basin was made as a result of the unearthing of the tank. • Numerous residential water wells reported and tested positive for hydrocarbon contamination from 1993 through 2002. • Contaminated wells were offered to be fitted with carbon filtration units(CFU),and most residents accepted. DEQ is paying for the ongoing maintenance of the CFU's. • A second petroleum release occurred in 1998, but was not reported until 2002. PC01-6021 was opened as the second petroleum release from the Trading Post. • Dual-phase Soil Vapor Extraction and a groundwater pump-and-treat system was initiated at the Trading Post in 1998 to remediate contamination • A third known petroleum release at the Trading Post occurred in 2002, initiating case PC03-6034. • Ongoing groundwater remediation is taking place at the Trading Post site; CFU's maintained by DEQ. Albemarle County's involvement is summarized below • At its March 5, 2003 meeting, the Board authorized County staff to work with DEQ to facilitate a long-term water supply solution. • DEQ and the County held a public meeting at Red Hill School on April 22, 2003 to inform the public about the situation and seek input on whether a replacement water supply would be supported. • On December 10, 2003, the Board authorized the County Executive to sign an interagency agreement with DEQ. The agreement allowed the County to procure consultant services to study and recommend a replacement water supply, with all study costs to be reimbursed by DEQ. • A Request for Proposals was developed in the fall of 2003, and after a competitive process, Golder Associates AGENDA TITLE: Red Hill Community Well— Request to amend the Jurisdictional Area Boundary for the Albemarle County Service Authority December 13, 2006 Page 2 was chosen to conduct the study The study involves evaluating the feasibility of various water supply configurations: individual replacement wells, shared wells, or a community water supply. The work is divided into two phases. Phase 1 is a preliminary groundwater investigation, and Phase 2 involves more detailed geologic and engineering work to analyze particular water supply options Phase 1 was completed in the summer of 2004. • On August 11, 2004, based upon the results of Phase 1 of the study and staff recommendation, the Board authorized staff to proceed with Phase 2 of the study, with the selected water supply configuration of a medium size community water well to serve the 11 impacted properties plus additional properties immediately surrounding and/or down gradient from the contaminant plume that may be impacted in the future. • DEQ and the County held a public meeting at Red Hill School on December 13, 2004 to present the results of Phase 1 of the study, the options for developing a community water supply system, and the upcoming Phase 2 study. • Phase 2 of the study continued through 2005,which included negotiations with landowners to establish a location for exploratory water well drilling. • On May 9, 2006 DEQ sent an open letter to the residents in the immediate vicinity of the Trading Post advising that a location for exploratory water well drilling had been secured on the Oakey property. • On August 31, 2006 DEQ sent an open letter to the residents in the immediate vicinity of the Trading Post advising that a successful exploratory water well had been drilled on the Oakey property, and that the County, Rivanna Water and Sewer Authority, Albemarle County Service Authority, and Albemarle County Schools were coordinating the potential establishment and maintenance of a community water system. • On November 1, 2006 the Board of Supervisors took action to approve a Public Hearing to be held December 13, 2006, concerning amending the Albemarle County Service Authority jurisdictional area boundary for the Red Hill area A new well referred to as Red Hill School Well No. 5(Well#5)was drilled to the east of the affected area in July,2006 and a 48-hour drawdown test was performed. The well was drilled to a depth of 500 feet and is constructed as a Class IIB public water supply well as required by Virginia Department of Health's Waterworks Regulations. Significant water- producing fractures were encountered at depths of 380-385 feet, and 420-430 feet, in addition to a minor water-bearing fracture at 73 feet. Water quality analyses indicate that the water source complies with all state and federal water quality standards. Water levels were monitored before, during and after the drawdown test in Well #5 and a monitoring well located approximately 320 feet northwest. The flow rate during the test was maintained at 29 to 31 gpm. The monitoring well showed no drawdown during the aquifer test. The water level at the beginning of the drawdown test in Well#5 was at a depth of 34 feet and exhibited drawdown of 105 feet at the conclusion of the 48 hour test. Upon shut down of the pumping phase of the test, Well#5 exhibited relatively rapid recharge. Based on the measured drawdown rate and the rapid recovery of the producing well, Golder&Associates concludes Well#5 can be pumped for sustained periods at 29 gpm, which is equivalent to 41,760 gallons per day. This source capacity far exceeds the estimate of 9 gpm (12,960 gallons per day) which was estimated as the minimum flow rate necessary to supply the school and residents that are located within the boundaries of the current jurisdictional area boundary request. STRATEGIC PLAN: Goal 2 Protect the County's Natural Resources. DISCUSSION: The subject property for this request is not within a Development Area. The Comprehensive Plan provides the following guidance concerning water service in the Rural area: General Principle: Discourage the utilization of central water and/or sewer systems or the extensions of public water and sewer into the rural Area except in the cases where public health and safety are at issue. Rural Area development will be served by individual water and septic systems only(central water facilities are considered wells, springs, or other systems capable of serving three or more connections). Recommendation: New central water systems in the Rural Area shall be strongly discouraged except for solving potable water and/or health and safety problems Any new central systems approved due to potable water and/or health and safety problems must meet ACSA standards and not allow residential densities to increase beyond the density achievable with individual on-site facilities AGENDA TITLE: Red Hill Community Well— Request to amend the Jurisdictional Area Boundary for the Albemarle County Service Authority December 13, 2006 Page 3 Staff opinion is that the existing groundwater contamination poses a significant health and safety issue and a water system is needed in the area to provide safe potable water to existing parcels. Therefore,this request is consistent with the intent of the Comprehensive Plan. The Comprehensive Plan provides the following guidance concerning the designation of the ACSA jurisdictional area boundary: Only allow changes in jurisdictional areas outside of designated Development Areas in cases where the property is. (1) adjacent to existing lines, and (2) public health and/or safety is in danger. As outlined above, there is a definite health and safety issue Due to the location and extent of the threat(which includes the Red Hill Elementary School) this request is consistent with the intent of the Comprehensive Plan even though the location is not adjacent to existing lines. Staff finds the central well system is the only alternative to adequately address the problem. BUDGET IMPACT: The community well and water system will be owned by RWSA and operated by ACSA, who will bear the financial impact of the long term operational cost The Virginia Leaking Underground Storage Tank (LUST) fund is being utilized by DEQ for this project, and the current case has access to a total of$1 million. A portion of these funds are being used and will continue to be used by DEQ for remediation of the Trading Post site and long-term monitoring of groundwater. These funds will also be used by DEQ to develop the well and distribution system and connect households to the system. DEQ has committed that any funds remaining will be provided to the ACSA to subsidize the operation of the system so that customer costs are in keeping with the rest of the County. While this will alleviate the burden of operating this small system for a period of time, it can be assumed that the system will operate ata financial loss in the long-term to maintain a reasonable customer cost. RECOMMENDATIONS: Staff recommends amending the jurisdictional area map to allow for water only designation for the properties Tax Map 87B, Parcels 4,4A, 6,6A, 6B, 7, 7A, 8, and 10, located on Taylors Gap Road (Route 710)and Tax Map 87B, Parcels 9, 10A, 11, 12, 60,60A, 60B, and 61 located on Red Hill School Road (Route 760). These properties have been identified by DEQ as having contaminated wells or continue to be at risk for contamination in the future. Staff recommends that the communii well only serve the residents/parcels whose private wells are contaminated or identified by DEQ to be at risk for contamination. These properties do not include parcels in the Southern Hills Subdivision,which in the past was considered to be at risk of contamination. According to the most recent opinion of DEQ, while the Southern Hills Subdivision is certainly downgradient of the contaminant plume, DEQ does not consider the wells in that area to be at risk at this time based upon the continued monitoring of a sentinel well located on the south side of South Branch—this well has remained free of contamination to date. indicating that the stream may be acting as a local groundwater divide. ATTACHMENTS A— Location Map 06.179