August 1, 2024

Building Resilience in Rural Water Systems

In the face of increasing climate, environmental and regulatory challenges, the need for resilient water supply systems has never been more critical. For many small rural systems, resilience is about avoiding a single point of failure. These systems often rely on a single river intake, a single lake intake, or a single connection to another water supplier. If that source fails, they can be left without water in a matter of hours.

While drought may be a trigger, the issue at hand is more about overall system resilience. It’s about having a backup supply, emergency interconnections with other suppliers and adequate storage. Many of these systems lack storage, leaving them with perhaps 24 hours of water if they’re lucky when their supply is cut off.

For these smaller systems, water storage is likely to involve a storage tank or a terminal storage reservoir. Water quality is another significant concern. If a system’s source has poor water quality due to a chemical spill, they have limited alternatives to provide that water.

At Freese and Nichols, we’re helping communities identify the state of their small rural systems and prepare for these challenges in NE Oklahoma. We conducted surveys to understand their existing infrastructure, sources of supply and potential failure points. We gathered GIS data to examine their system in relation to others and identify potential interconnects.

We are also assisting in developing individual drought plans. Many communities do not have a drought plan, or a set of guidelines that dictate what actions to take in an emergency when water supplies reach certain levels. We help craft these plans, which individual communities can then adopt or modify.

Our services extend to looking at infrastructure for interconnections with neighbors, conducting water master plans to examine system pressures and modeling systems. If a community is looking at a new water supply source, we can help identify and design it.

In the end, we assist our clients on their path towards resilience. Whether it’s through studies, infrastructure design, or drought planning, Freese and Nichols is committed to making sure the communities we serve are never left high and dry.

For more information on how we can assist you on building resilient rural water systems, please contact Jeremy Rice.