At its monthly meeting Feb. 14, the Clancy Elementary School board received a presentation from the Clancy Water and Sewer District regarding a potential water sharing agreement. The school board expressed grave concerns about the proposal and the public water district more broadly, but was ultimately open to continuing talks.
In order for Clancy Water and Sewer to establish a community water system, it must first identify a suitable water supply. The Clancy School District sources its water from its own private well, which would adequately supply the proposed system while diluting contaminant levels to an acceptable level. The Clancy School Board indicated it is hesitant to enter a water sharing agreement, as the provisional permit it possesses on the well is bureaucratically difficult to acquire. Rewriting the existing water rights to accommodate public access, it believes, may jeopardize the existing permit.
“This certification is extremely difficult to get, and I’m unsure we want to give it up so easily,” said Clancy School Board Chair Sarah Brown. She said she also was hesitant for the district to needlessly take on a monthly water expense, and for the fees associated with engaging an attorney to navigate an agreement with Clancy Water and Sewer.
“The water rights are an extremely valuable asset,” she said. “We have a responsibility to protect it.”
Clancy Water and Sewer indicated it is willing to consider costless service to the school and its outlying facilities, though that would significantly increase the average cost per household. The water district, should it provide Clancy School with free connection and service from the public water system in exchange for well access, estimates monthly cost per serviced household at $90-100 per month. With the school included and serviced in the district as a paying customer, that figure drops to $70-80 per month.
The school’s inclusion in the water district itself was brought into question, as Brown questioned the reasoning behind the public system’s proposed territory. “I’m not sure why the school is even included in the district,” she said. “It looks like it’s only about keeping costs down.”
Collette Anderson, project manager for Great West Engineering, the consulting firm working with Clancy Water and Sewer, responded to the board’s accusation by reiterating that, while the school’s inclusion does address cost concerns, it was included for primarily logistical reasons (geography, pipelaying, planning) and built upon the evaluation of the water district’s contributing hydrologists and engineers. Clancy Water and Sewer board member Bill Hammer reminded the school that its septic leach fields are likely contributing to the town’s contamination, while his colleague Bob Johnson was more explicitly resigned to the school’s unwillingness to move forward in water sharing.
“We have nine dots on a map, all of which are potential options. You (Clancy School) are obviously not one of the dots,” said Johnson.
While there are many issues to navigate before those involved arrive at a clear resolution, the meeting concluded with both sides expressing willingness to continue a dialogue. Clancy Water and Sewer will return to the school in the coming months, with a water rights expert suited to addressing concerns raised by the school board.
