U.S. Water News Online
AUBURN, N.Y. -- The city of Auburn is missing 1.1 billion gallons of water it treated last year.
City officials are trying to determine where the water went -- and is likely still going. The lost water amounts to a $350,000 loss in potential revenue, a big hit for a city facing a $500,000 budget deficit in 2006-2007, said Comptroller Lisa Green.
There are a number of possible reasons for the city losing so much water, said Anthony DeCaro, the city water treatment plant's chief operator. Among them -- waterline leaks, firefighting, street washing, flushing of water mains and fire hydrants, malfunctioning water meters and theft, he said.
The 1.1 billion gallons represents about 42 percent of the 2.6 billion gallons of Owasco Lake water that was treated by the city last year, DeCaro said. On average nationwide, municipalities lose about 20 percent of their water, or roughly half of what Auburn lost, he said.
The city's system supplies water to more than 47,000 customers in the city of Auburn and Cayuga County.
Councilor Matthew Smith said the city will consider hiring an expert to make an inspection in the spring. An inspection could cost as much as $50,000.
"I want a full investigation because it's the taxpayers who are getting soaked. This is something that should have been done a lone time ago," Smith said.
Mayor Timothy Lattimore said he wants to see what city workers detect before committing to an outside inspection.
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