Water utilities face an ever-growing challenge of meeting customer needs for
service in the face of keeping a lid on escalating costs. These challenges are
exacerbated by the increasing complications of new regulations and newly
discovered needs for maintaining security of the community's water supply.
This paper discusses how cooperation is an effective way to meet these challenges, even when previous
relationships have been strained. Embarking on cooperative ventures can yield
benefits beyond the intended, enhancing the organizational cultures to include a
view of the utility's role outside its corporate boundaries. The paper presents a case study of two water providers serving one city, which might seem like a natural match. Rockwood Water People's Utility District (Rockwood PUD) and the city of
Gresham Water Division both provide water to portions of the Portland (Oregon)
Metropolitan area. Rockwood serves territory within and outside Gresham's
corporate boundaries. Gresham serves approximately 60 percent of the City's
94,000 residents, with the other half being served by Rockwood. However, the history of the
relationship between the two governmental units has not been amicable. The
very formation of the PUD was controversial, putting the City and the PUD at
odds from the beginning. The paper demonstrates how increasing water supply costs and changes in the
indubitable nature of municipal water rights created an opening for a productive
working relationship for the two.
| Edition : | Vol. - No. |
| File Size : | 1
file |
| Note : | This product is unavailable in Ukraine, Russia, Belarus |
| Number of Pages : | 7 |
| Published : | 02/01/2005 |
