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<br />The other thing that was mentioned by the engineer is that their <br />system is leaking. In some cases, this is an understatement. In <br />many systems, I think they leak as much as the customers get. This <br />is because water mains, in many cases. were constructed some 40 or, 50 <br />years ago. and they are now falling apart. We know of some cases <br />where the unmeasured loss is an extremely high proportion of ,what is <br />delivered to the customers. This results in great inefficiency in I <br />the system and much higher cost. Water is something we do not have <br />to waste. This is common, throughout the small communities of this <br />state and some of the larger ones as well. <br /> <br />The other factor that was mentioned by the consulting engineer is <br />that the mains and distribution system are inadequately sized. This <br />is understandable. When the system was built, say for the Town of <br />Bennett. it was built for 200 people, and suddenly they have a thousand <br />people. Obviously, they are inadequately sized. What we are trying <br />to do in all of these projects is to not only take care of the present <br />population but to size these mains so that we 'can take care of an <br />anticipated growth for some 30 or 40 years in the future. The reason <br />is obvious. The differential cost between an eight-inch main and ,a <br />twelve-inch main is quite small. <br /> <br />The major cost is in laying that pipe. So if you lay an eight-inch <br />main and have to dig it up and start allover 10 years ,from ,now, the <br />cost almost quadruples over the incremental cost between the two sizes <br />today. Unfortunately, in. the past, there have been policies by vari- <br />ous agencies that they would only finance to take care of the present <br />population. We think this was very. shortsighted. In every case,we. <br />are now insisting that the mains be sized to take care of a projected <br />future population. Although we do increase the cost today by doing <br />that, that cost is very small in proportion. to the total cost that <br />would be incurred if we had to replace that main 10 or 20 years down <br />the line. <br /> <br />So I think you will find there is a common theme in all these projects. <br />Again, I wish to emphasize that it is the responsibility of all of us <br />to impress upon our legislators and the Governor and the gubernatorial <br />candidates, whoever they may be, that this is a critical matter in <br />this state, as well as other states throughout the nation, and that <br />the state government must actively participate in assisting municipal- <br />ities with their problems. <br /> <br />The state of Wyoming this year created a hundred-mill ion-dollar Water <br />Project construction Fund. The small state of Wyoming, with only <br />about a quarter of a million population--Iess than 25 percent of the I <br />population that ColoradO has~-has created a hundred-million-dollar <br />fund to help out with projects in their state. If they can do that. <br />the state of ColoradO should be able to do more than we have in the , <br />past. <br /> <br />MR. ROBBINS: It might be of interest. also. Mr. Sparks. that I read <br />in the paper last night that Oregon voters voted to use the full state <br />bond limit to construct projects somewhere in the neighborhood of <br />500 million dollars for the construction of water projects. <br /> <br />-6- <br />