Karegnondi Water Authority
| Agency overview | |
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| Formed | October 26, 2010 |
| Agency executives |
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| Website | karegnondi |
Karegnondi Water Authority (KWA) is a municipal corporation responsible for distributing water services in the Mid-Michigan and Thumb areas of the U.S. state of Michigan. Members of the authority are the cities of Flint and Lapeer, and the counties of Genesee, Lapeer and Sanilac. Karegnondi is a word from the Petan Indian language meaning "lake" and another early name for Lake Huron.
Flint built its first water treatment plant (now defunct) in 1917. The city built a second plant in 1952.
At the time of Flint's population peak and economic height (when the city was the center of the automobile industry), Flint's plants pumped 100 million gallons (380,000 m3) of water per day. With the decline of the city's industry and a significant drop in the city's population (from almost 200,000 in 1960 to about 99,000 today), Flint pumped less water. By October 2015, when the Flint plant ended full time operations again, it pumped just 16 million gallons (61,000 m3) daily.
In 1963, Flint moved to build a pipeline from Lake Huron to Flint, but a profiteering scandal derailed that pipeline. This led the city to sign a contract to purchase water for 30 years from the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department on June 6, 1964.
For years, the City of Flint purchased Lake Huron water from the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department (Detroit Water) under a now expired 30-year contract. Flint resold the water to the Genesee County Drain Commissioner who then sold it to municipalities in the county. Genesee County officials had disliked the high cost and usually high percentage increases of the Detroit Water, as the Department's formula penalized the area for its elevation and distance from Detroit. Detroit Water avoided direct rate discussions with Genesee County, working only with the city of Flint. Sanilac County has never previously had a public water system depending on individual wells instead. The City of Lapeer has been a member of the Greater Lapeer County Utilities Authority (GLCUA) which purchases water from Detroit Water. Future members that are clients of Detroit Water (Flint City, Genesee County and GLCUA) use 10% of the water but pay 21% of the costs.
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