Agenda - Council - 11/27/2001 - Laserfiche WebLink

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I I 1 INTERNAL MEMORANDUM I I I I I Date: November 16, 2001 To: Jim Norman, City Administrator Dean Kapler, Public Works Director CC: Brian Olson,. City Engineer Mark Boos, Park/Utilities Supervisor Subject: Bi-Annual Watermain Flushing The purpose of this memorandum is to summarize the fall 2001 watermain-flushing program. As you are aware, there continues to be periodic complaints with regard to discolored water and iron staining of clothes, fixtures and dwellings. Since this most recent incidence of complaints, staff has asked the firm of Bolton and Menk to re-evaluate our distribution system in part, to compare our earlier flow and demand modeling (as part of the Water Study) with the locations of rusty water complaints. Their evaluation and staff's assessment should be available soon. This memo may be considered for forwarding to Council within the Weekly Update in advance of that report. The following description is the draft-flushing paragraph from the annual Consumer Confidence Report* which will be prepared this spring. FLUSHING Each April and October, the water department flushes every segment of the more than 50 miles of watermain in Ramsey's system. Flushing the watermains creates a high velocity of water movement, which "scours" any accumulation of iron in the distribution system and discharges it with the water out of the hydrant and onto the street. Approximately seven million gallons of water is used each spring and fall in this process. This process also is an important check of system integrity - as every one of the several hundred hydrants are inspected, serviced and flowed as part of the bi-annual flushing program. In addition, because each segment of watermain is "dead-ended" in order to