Portsmouth prepared to buy water from Norfolk if it needs to

By Dave Forster
The Virginian-Pilot
© August 26, 2010

PORTSMOUTH

With its reservoir levels well below historic averages, the city prepared this week to buy water from Norfolk in case of an emergency.

The City Council on Tuesday approved spending up to $2.25 million to buy raw water from Norfolk should it need to. There is no imminent need to purchase water, but the city wants to be ready, said Bryan Foster, director of public utilities.

The money would allow Portsmouth to buy as much as 10 million gallons a day for up to 28 weeks, according to a city manager's report.

Portsmouth's reservoirs are currently at about 75 percent. This time of year, they generally are at about 90 percent, Foster said. The city is also entering what is usually the driest part of the year, he said.

Norfolk's reservoirs, meanwhile, were at 86.8 percent, just above its historical average this time of year of 86.3 percent, said Vernon Land, the city's water quality manager.

Portsmouth's reservoirs, which are in Suffolk, didn't benefit as much as Norfolk's from a storm in late July that dropped more than 4 inches of rain in parts of Hampton Roads, Foster said.

If Portsmouth bought Norfolk's water, it would flow through a pipeline that was completed earlier this decade and intended for droughts. The pipeline was used once before, about three years ago, according to the Portsmouth manager's report.

Dave Forster, (757) 446-2627, dave.forster@pilotonline.com

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Thank Goodness for Lake Gaston

Submitted by RLS on Wed, 08/25/2010 at 11:12 pm.

I suppose it's good for Ptown that Va. Beach is getting water from Lake Gaston so Norfolk has surplus to sell them. What's it been, over a decade since that fight, has the lake drained dry, like NC claimed it would? Are the boat docks on dry land? Have the wildlife downstream been adversely impacted? Been awful quiet from the lakefront and NC since that pipeline went on line. Just wondering now what all the huffing and puffing was about back then.