Atascadero residents could see water rates increase by 25%. Here’s why
Atascadero residents could see their water bills spike to pay for a new water treatment plant.
The Atascadero Mutual Water Company has proposed increasing customers’ water rates by 25% for the 2024 fiscal year, and 4% for each year after that.
The company’s board of directors will consider the budget recommendation during its April 12 meeting, which begins at 4:30 p.m. at 5005 El Camino Real in Atascadero.
The 25% increase will cover increases in health insurance costs, which are expected to rise by about 8% in 2024, as well as energy expenses. Electricity is expected to increase by about 10% and natural gas by 20%, according to a staff report to the board.
The biggest reason for the drastic increase in customer prices is because the mutual water company is planning to build a new water treatment facility to remove contamination from perflouroalkyl substances (PFAS).
That treatment plant is currently in the design phase, with plans expected to be sent to the city of Atascadero and the San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors later this year.
PFAS were first detected in Atascadero’s water in 2019, after the state ordered purveyors to test their water for the toxic substances.
The mutual water company took four of its wells out of service in February 2020 due to detected levels of PFAS.
In 2021, the Atascadero Mutual Water Company sued 3M Co., DuPont and Chemours Co., in San Luis Obispo Superior Court for allegedly putting the harmful chemical in the water.
The water company is currently blending the contaminated PFAS water from the four wells it had taken out of commission in 2020 with water from other wells with significantly less PFAS contamination.
“The blending program has proven successful so far, but staff feels that blending is only a stop-gap solution to the issue,” the water company said in its report to its board before its next meeting. “Utimately (the water company) will be required to treat the water to remove the PFAS and possibly other contaminants due to more stringent water quality requirements.”
The water treatment facility is expected to use granulated activated carbon to remove PFAS from the water. The system would pump water through the granulated activated carbon, which will absorb the chemicals.
The treatment facility is expected to cost $1.2 million to design and $15 million to $20 million to build, according to the water company’s board report.
The company also expects to need to hire a water treatment operator and pay for increased PFAS sampling, which are expected at $62,000 annually.
A 25% increase to Atascadero water consumers will increase the average single-family residential customer’s bill from about $59 per month to $73.50 per month, according to the company’s report.
This story was originally published April 11, 2023 at 5:30 AM.
