Fairview charts its water future

FAIRVIEW—Fairview is taking steps to protect one of its most valuable assets: clean, reliable water.

At a city council meeting Thursday, March 19, Justin Jackson, the city’s water and power superintendent, outlined an $11.6 million upgrade to the water system designed to serve residents for the next several generations.

As Jackson put it, the project is “a longrange reinvestment” into what now exists, including new piping that can serve Fairview for 70 to 80 years” and a new 1.5-million-gallon water tank that should be good for 100 years if well maintained.

For decades, Fairview has relied on mountain springs, canyon wells, and a network of tanks and pipes to deliver water to homes and businesses.

Much of that system was installed in the late 1970s and early 1980s and has served the community for 40-50 years or more. Over time, city crews have done most small towns do: fix leaks as they appear, repair broken pipes and patch older equipment to keep everything running.

Those efforts have paid off. In recent years, Fairview has significantly reduced the amount of water lost to leaks, even while the number of homes has increased.

Last year, based on measurements of water put into the system and water delivered to customers, losses dropped from about 30 percent down to under 20 percent—a change of roughly 8 million gallons.

“This is the first year ever that we’ve actually been able to get within a reasonable, acceptable threshold (set) by the state,” Jackson told the council, noting that state officials are looking at setting an acceptable loss range between 15 and 20 percent.

The comprehensive upgrade Jackson described would rebuild and improve the mountain springs that supply most of the city’s culinary water; construct a new 1.5milliongallon storage tank above town; and install long stretches of pipeline in place of aging lines that are prone to leaks and failures.

The new tank is sized so that Fairview can take two smaller, older tanks out of service and still more than double its storage.

Jackson explained that when all the pieces are put together, he expects the project to increase available water by close to 100 million gallons a year, mostly by fixing leaks and inefficiencies instead of relying on large new sources.

“It more than doubles our water supply, and it’s not through a whole lot of new sources,” he said. “The system itself is the biggest factor in our water supply. It can leak out more water than any home can actually use.”

Anyone who has experienced a sudden water outage, a boil order, or a major break knows how disruptive it can be. One of the biggest goals of the project is to reduce those surprises.

With newer pipes and a new, larger tank, water pressure should be more stable and consistent across town, Jackson said, and the system will be better prepared for emergencies such as large fires or very dry years.

The city will also be less likely to face latenight main breaks or sudden failures in older equipment, such as the joints that recently failed near the museum and the old iron line that fractured on 200 West.

Jackson reminded the council that Fairview is operating under a longterm corrective action plan set by the state, and if the city does not move forward, it could be required to shut down one of its major wells, Well 1, by January 2028. Losing that well would mean giving up roughly 40 percent of the city’s drinking water.

“We can avoid this (upgrade), but we’ll lose 40 percent of our drinking water. Or we can bite the bullet and do whatever is necessary,” he said, emphasizing this project is the path to a calm, planned transition instead of a crisis.

Another quiet but important benefit of the project is what it does for Fairview’s water rights, the legal permission the city has to use water from its sources. Fairview holds rights for about 2,525 acrefeet of water, but last year it used only 216 acrefeet.

With the project in place, Jackson estimates the city could realistically use around 576 acrefeet, which is still only about 8.5 percent of its total rights.

Past generations worked hard to secure those rights, giving Fairview options and security even during dry cycles, Jackson said. Today, the state is moving toward a “use it or lose it” approach, where communities that do not show growth in actual water use may see some of their unused rights reassigned.

“It is essential that we have some growth. I’m not saying we got to go crazy, but without growth, I cannot keep hold of our water rights,” Jackson warned.
By improving its springs, storage and pipelines, Fairview can show that it is actively developing and wisely using its water and protecting rights that will keep the city supplied in the long term.

Residents do not need a technical report to know that water patterns are changing. Winters can be unpredictable, snowpack can be thin, and runoff sometimes arrives earlier or weaker than expected.

This year, Jackson expects the city will have to rely more heavily on its wells, especially in the summer, which makes it even more important that the system is tight and efficient.

Because project of this size naturally raises questions, Jackson asked the council for permission to start a public information campaign right away. The plan is to share a simple map showing where the new tank, rebuilt springs and replacement pipelines will be; to explain in plain language what the project does and why it matters; and to lay out both the benefits of moving forward and the risks of doing nothing.

Council members agreed wholeheartedly that residents should be brought into the conversation early. They asked that information be shared through city channels so people have the entire summer and beyond to learn about the project, talk it over with neighbors, and ask questions.

Far from being a backroom decision, this is meant to motivate a community discussion about how Fairview wants to secure its water for the long haul.

In the end, Jackson’s message to the council and to Fairview residents is hopeful. The city has a proud history of making the most of its water, a set of water rights that many other communities would envy, a clear understanding of where its system is strong and where it needs help, and a realistic, forwardlooking plan to turn old weaknesses into longterm strengths.

If carried out as envisioned, Jackson said, the water project will mean cleaner, more reliable water at the tap, fewer leaks and emergencies, better fire protection and a much stronger foundation for Fairview’s homes, farms and businesses.

For more than a century, the city’s water system has quietly supported daily life here. With this new investment, Fairview is making sure that one hundred years from now, future residents will still be able to turn on the tap and take for granted the work the current generation did to keep the water flowing.