To the editor:

Article IX Section 9.01 of ICWD’s water systems contract was written by ICWD’s team of lawyers and water utility experts to serve them with best possible outcomes, not Polk County. If our county was really after what’s best for the folks of Polk, they would have hired a matching team of experts to ensure our best outcomes. But they haven’t.

The Pack team, equipped with blinders on, is comfortable accepting ICWD contract terms like: “In the event…due to prior riparian rights of other parties, Polk County is unable to make available to ICWD the max amount of GR withdrawal, Polk shall make available the max of raw water available…subject to the riparian rights of other entities.”

Translation: In the event ICWD cannot withdraw its (agreed) maximum amount of water (10MGD) from the Green River due to Northbrook Carolina Hydro tying it up with their own contractual obligations and rights to supply Duke Energy Cliffside Coal Plant downstream, Polk agrees to making this maximum amount of raw water (10MGD) available from Lake Adger to ICWD. Now, because there is already in effect a max ‘regulated’ withdrawal cap of 8MGD on Lake Adger, Polk cannot withdraw any more waters for its own citizen’s needs. Polk just gave up our ‘reserved’ amount of 2 MGD raw water from Lake Adger that they negotiated back on pg. 5 of the contract. Further, any future plans for our own water treatment plant are squelched with all water supplies and rights being fully obligated/utilized by Northbrook Hydro and ICWD of S.C.

Warning: Competition over use/demands of same raw water supply and with the county’s contractual obligations to them both sounds like a double-fused legal landmine waiting to happen, and still the majority BOC shows no appropriate concern?

Truth be told, sometimes it’s of more importance what is not being said or done, that really speaks volumes. Could it be the Pack team is stubbornly refusing the prudent action of professional purview of this very complex, multi-party, multi-agreement, multi-competing, water contract because they want it to happen at any and all costs or for some other unknown reasons? We just don’t know.

What we do know is that if the entire BOC were in fact seeking the very best outcomes for their citizens, our water supplies and our future, they would be investing in bringing in the experts necessary to represent Polk County’s best interests and write a much better contract agreement. But they haven’t.

Sky Conard
Mill Spring, N.C.