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WAHOO, Neb. — A potential rural water system involving the city of Columbus and two smaller communities is moving out of the talking stages.
The Lower Platte North Natural Resources District and the Village of Bellwood have been discussing the possibility of a rural water system. Richland also could be part of the plan.
Eric Obert, project engineer for JEO Consulting Group, told NRD officials this week the time has come to do more than talk.
Obert also met with Bellwood officials on options for the town’s drinking water supply.
As permitted by state law, the NRD could serve as a rural water administrator and oversee construction of a pipeline between Bellwood and another community that can provide water.
The NRD and Bellwood are looking about 10 miles to the northeast, in Platte County, for that water supply.
Getting water from Columbus would mean building a rural water system that crosses the Platte River. That would still be more economical than getting it from another town in Butler County, said Mark Sousek, rural water manager for the NRD.
Bellwood, a village in northwest Butler County with about 450 residents, has two wells.
Obert said one of the wells has been shut down for a number of years because of high levels of uranium in the water.
“The second well is now in violation for arsenic,” Obert said. “So they are in a heap of hurt. They have to do something.”
Sousek said more connections to a rural water line would help spread out the costs. That’s where Richland, a village of about 90 across the river in Colfax County, comes into the picture.
Obert said Richland does not have a community water system and would like to hook into a reliable drinking water source.
He said there are still a lot of details to work out, but it is possibile that one rural water system could be built to supply both Richland and Bellwood with water from Columbus.
Putting Richland on the line would add 40 to 45 connections, he said, and Bellwood currently has about 180 water customers.
How much Columbus would charge for water, and how much it would cost users to hook onto the system, still need to be hammered out.
Bellwood and Richland are both eligible for a $500,000 federal water assistance grant that could help pay for construction of the rural water system.
The NRD is working with federal officials to determine construction costs for both communities.
At its meeting Thursday, the NRD board gave approval to JEO Consulting Group in Wahoo to put together a capital improvement plan for the proposal.
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