Repairs at Ripley’s water treatment plant continue and are expected to be complete in two to three weeks.
According to Ripley Village Administrator Wayne Gates, Ripley water customers should now be seeing clearer water coming through their faucets.
While the transfer of Ripley’s public water system from the Village of Ripley to Brown County Rural Water Association has yet to take place, repairs that were required by the Ohio EPA continue at Ripley’s water treatment plant, and the recent repairs have led to improved water quality.
Over the years, Ripley residents have dealt with public water issues including brown or black water that stains tubs and toilets, corrosion destroying water heaters and appliances that require water, low pressure, and sediment build up in lines.
A number of Ripley residents have said they will not drink or cook with Ripley’s current public water.
Many of the issues with Ripley’s water quality stem from the water treatment plant not being properly maintained over the years, according to Gates.
The work currently taking place involves the removal of the old media from the tanks and refilling the tanks with the proper media that can do a much better job of filtering out iron, manganese, and a number of other minerals and sediments in the water pipes supplying the public with drinking water, according to Gates.
According to Village of Ripley Utility Manager Greg Wilson, one of the three filtration tanks at the water plant is complete and work is being done to complete the other two tanks. Water is currently being filtered through the tank that is complete with new filter media, and the result has been a significant improvement in the quality of Ripley’s water in recent weeks, according to Wilson. The water softeners at the plant will also be put back into use as part of the project, which will further improve water quality.
“Prior to the project, the filters were totally passed through, not removing any iron, and the amount of iron coming in was the same as what was going out,” Wilson explained.
Compared to before the media was replaced in the one filter tank, at least 95 percent more iron is now being filtered out.
“We’ve been doing it two weeks and we saw results within 24 hours,” said Wilson.
Chlorine added to the water at the plant combines with the iron, preventing the water from coming out clear.
Now chlorine is added to water prior to reaching the filters and again after filtration for disinfection, rather than just adding chlorine after the water has gone through the filtration tanks.
In two to three weeks, all three of the filtration tanks and softeners at Ripley’s water treatment plant should be operating properly, according to Wilson.
“It is gratifying,” Wilson said of how it felt to see all of the work finally result in clear water coming out of the treatment plant. “But it’s not near as much of a gratification as it is a relief, because I was under an enormous amount of pressure to provide.”
Gates said the village has been putting out “clear water” from the treatment plant over the past couple of weeks, even with water only being filtered through the one filtration tank that is complete with new media.
“We were able to bring one filtering tank online, and as a result of that we are getting clean water,” said Gates. “Replacing the media in the other two filter tanks is what’s going on right now.”
The cost to the village for the repairs, which were required by the EPA, is approximately $300K.
“The bottom line is this plant was not properly maintained since its construction in 2007,” said Gates.
The Village of Ripley has contracted with S4 Water Sales and Service of Bowling Green, KY to conduct the repairs currently taking place at the water treatment facility.
In preparation for the repairs and getting the new water filter tanks running properly, the village flushed hydrants regularly to remove rust particles, minerals, and other sediments.
“It has been a long process, and we appreciate the patience of residents,” said Gates. “We are pleased to be providing properly filtered, clean water for residents.”
The ballot issue to sell Ripley’s public water system to Brown County Rural Water Association during the November 2021 election passed 317 to 79 in favor of selling the water system.
It was brought to the public’s attention during special public meetings held prior to the November 2021 election that Ripley’s water system was in need of extensive repairs, including the water treatment plant currently in use, with numerous violations and recommendations from the Ohio EPA.
Funds used to pay for the recent repairs are coming from existing funds within the water department, said Gates. The village is in search of grants that will reimburse it for the cost of repairs at the water treatment plant.
The Village of Ripley had approximately $1.5 million in debt on the current water treatment plant being used when voters passed the issue to sell the water system to BCRWA, according to information provided during a public meeting held prior to the November 2021 election, and the transfer of the water system from the Village of Ripley to BCRWA couldn’t take place without first taking care of the existing debt the Village of Ripley is responsible for.
BCRWA has no plans of using Ripley’s current water treatment plant after taking over Ripley’s public water system, so BCRWA sent Ripley Council a supplement to the original contract for the transfer of the water system that would allow BCRWA to procure financing to pay off the outstanding debt on Ripley’s water system and assist Ripley with the transfer, pursuing financing to pay off the debt on Ripley’s water system. This was discussed during a Ripley Village Council meeting held Jan. 24 with BCRWA representatives present. Ripley Village Council members then approved the signing of a supplemental contract agreement with Brown County Rural Water Association, moving forward with the sale of Ripley’s public water system to BCRWA.
Gates said he recently reached out to Brown County Rural Water Association for an update on the status of the transfer.
In the response from BCRWA to Gates, all of the in-house work by BCRWA has been complete and BCRWA is on the agenda for the Ohio Water Development Authority’s Jan. 29 meeting, its last meeting within the current funding cycle. The BCRWA Board is awaiting the official approval of the OWDA/OEPA and the release of the funding.
For updates on the transfer of Ripley’s public water system to Brown County Rural Water Association, be on the lookout for upcoming editions of The News Democrat, The Ripley Bee and The Brown County Press.