RWSA expresses concern about mandatory regional water supply planning 

The executive director of the Rivanna Water and Sewer Authority was the sole respondent to a request for comments about new rules that call for localities that share a watershed to plan together for future water needs. 

“We would have concern about water sharing projects becoming mandatory in the future,” wrote Bill Mawyer in the only comment made on Virginia’s Regulatory Town Hall. 

Since 2008, the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality has required localities with municipal water supplies to provide plans showing how they will meet future needs. The RWSA maintains reservoirs and water treatment facilities that serve the City of Charlottesville, the Town of Scottsville, and urbanized portions of Albemarle County.

There are two other municipal water supply plans at various stages of implementation with Greene County going it alone to build a new reservoir and Fluvanna County and Louisa County cooperating through the James River Water Authority. 

Legislation passed the General Assembly in 2020 that would appear to require more cooperation in planning. New rules have now gone into effect to put a framework in place for that to occur. 

“The amendments mandate that each locality in a particular regional planning area shall participate in cross-jurisdictional, coordinated water resource planning, and all localities in each area shall together develop and submit a single regional plan,” reads a description of the changes posted to the Regulatory Town Hall. 

Mawyer’s comment asked for clarification about how that would work. 

“We expect the VDEQ Planning Staff to provide support in determining who the voting members of the Regional Planning Unit will include,” Mawyer wrote. Would the Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission get a seat? What about the five towns? How would votes be weighted? 

The Rivanna Water and Sewer Authority next meets on October 22. 

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