Questioning key assumptions of the community water supply plan can result in more information
being considered. Without certain assumptions on the table, alternative approaches may appear
more attractive and less expensive. Also, leaving out components of the water plan that we
have no choice but to fix can hide the full costs and prevent an apples to apples comparison of
alternatives.
In the extensive public process that led to the plan’s approval, the community in effect
accepted the following assumptions:
• We need to plan for fifty years
• There are engineering firms qualified to accurately assess our current system
and future needs
• We will make estimates for a certain rate of population growth and demand
for water
• We will plan to conserve a certain amount of water
• We need to have enough safe yield from the water supply to handle severe
droughts
• We will ensure that a certain level of stream flow remains in the Moormans
River and the Rivanna River, even during a drought
• We have to repair or replace the Ragged Mountain Dam
• We have to replace or retire the Sugar Hollow Pipeline to Ragged Mountain
• We have to upgrade our water treatment facilities
• Dredging should get further study, but not be mandated as part of the water
supply plan
• We need a plan which can receive the approval of the state and federal
regulators
Eliminating or reconsidering any one of these assumptions opens up all sorts of new options.
If we choose to give consideration to alternatives, we must ensure we do not wear blinders to
the data that has been collected to support our community’s original goals and to the lessons
learned in the 2002 drought.

We should expect to receive and evaluate new information throughout any plan’s implementation
as part of a continuous improvement process. Deviating from the plan’s original assumptions
and goals, however, is not a choice that should be taken lightly or without a full understanding
of both the legal and financial consequences. It should also involve an extensive community
engagement process just like the one that brought the community together behind this plan in
the first place.
MiSS An iSSue? www.cvilletomorrow.org/water
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