Summit Tuesday to discuss water solutions
Mon, Jul 14, 2008
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The Northwest Ottawa Water System is holding its second summit to discuss solutions to the Tri-Cities' water shortage.
NOWS members and the public will discuss possible solutions to the water system's intake problem at 7 p.m. Tuesday at the Grand Haven Community Center, 421 Columbus Ave.
While the NOWS intake system is rated to intake 28 million gallons of water per day (mgd), lake conditions only allowed the system to intake 12 mgd in the past.
At times, the roughly 42,000 residents served by the system require more than it can produce, forcing NOWS to purchase water from the Grand Rapids system.
"It is possible to have a situation where sprinkling restrictions could become a real possibility, even though we can purchase water from Grand Rapids," Grand Haven Water Facilities Manager Joe VanderStel said.
The NOWS Administrative Committee wants a solution to the intake dilemma before moving forward with plans to expand the water treatment plant.
The Northwest Ottawa Water System includes Grand Haven, Spring Lake, Ferrysburg, and Grand Haven and Spring Lake townships.