Dredging Task force membership coming together

Holly Edwards will represent Council on the task force

The make-up of the South Fork Rivanna Reservoir Stewardship Task Force is slowly becoming known. City Council has appointed Holly Edwards to represent Charlottesville, and the Board of Supervisors has named Dennis Rooker (Jack Jouett) to represent the interests of Albemarle County. 

The task force was created last month by local officials to examine whether dredging would be conducted to reclaim storage capacity lost to siltation, or for other possible reasons. The group will establish a scope of work to guide an eventual study that will be conducted by a firm hired by the Rivanna Water and Sewer Authority.

“The issues before this task force will be, ‘Should we dredge? And if so, why should we dredge?” said Mayor Dave Norris, one of the “four chairs” along with RWSA Chair Mike Gaffney, Albemarle County Services Authority Chair Don Wagner and Albemarle County Board of Supervisors Chair Ken Boyd (Rivanna). Edwards volunteered for the assignment at the City Council meeting on July 7, 2008.  Rooker was approved by the Board at the end of their July 9, 2008 meeting. Supervisor Sally Thomas (Samuel Miller) will also serve on the task force as the representative of the League of Women Voters of Charlottesville/Albemarle. 

In addition to the elected officials, the task force will be made up of one member representing each of the following:

• Rivanna Water and Sewer Authority Board
• Albemarle County Service Authority Board
• Rivanna River Basin Commission / Nature Conversancy
• League of Women Voters
• Ivy Creek Foundation
• Citizens for a Sustainable Water Plan
• Greater Charlottesville Chamber of Commerce
• One citizen representing property owners around South Fork Rivanna Reservoir
• One representative from the University of Virginia as an entity with “recreational interests”

According to Mayor Norris, the task force’s work will begin with a public hearing.  It will conclude with a presentation to local officials.  “The hope is we’ll have a joint meeting of all four bodies, not just the chairman, but a joint meeting in November,” Norris said.

During Council’s July 7 meeting, Councilor Satyendra Huja objected to the County being represented by two people in the form of representatives from the ACSA and the Board of Supervisors. “We ought to have at least equal representation between City and the County, unless the Rivanna Water and Sewer Authority Board member happens to be a City member,” Huja said. Brown said that many of the interest groups are made up of both City and County residents, so a balance would have to be struck to ensure equal representation. 

According to the RWSA’s FY09 operating budget, 52% of the RWSA’s water is estimated to be sold to the City, and 48% was sold to the County. ACSA Executive Director Gary Fern said he has calculated that 66 percent of County residents are ACSA customers.

Members of Citizens for a Sustainable Water Plan appeared during Council’s public comment period to request that the Sierra Club send a representative to the meeting. Norris said he would raise the question with the other three chairs. “It’s not that they were excluded, it just hadn’t been brought up,” Norris said.

Some groups have already named their representative. Chamber of Commerce Chairman Christopher Lee will serve as the Chamber’s representative. Ridge Schuyler is believed to be the representative from the Nature Conservancy. Karen Joyner of the Ivy Creek Foundation said her group's appointee
will be announced on Friday. Gary Fern says the ACSA representative will likely be determined at the ACSA Board meeting next Thursday.

Sean Tubbs

Comments

[Sean Tubbs]

Dede Smith will represent Citizens for a Sustainable Water Plan on the task force.

[Ernest Lapp Jr.]

It is my opinion that members of the City Council and Board of Supervisors should NOT be on the Committee. I suspect that these people have vested interest in one way or another with the outcome of the study. Just as they have, in my opinion, as members of the RSWA Board. And I beleive that both Council and Board members have more on their plates than they can handle already. They should leave this to others.

I suggest that SCORE be asked to staff the Dredging Committe, totally. I am not a member of SCORE, so I have no current vested interest in that venture. But I would willing to participate, except for the fact that I don't have appropriate transportation at this time