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tank and booster pumping station will be installed; several new water transmission mains ranging in size from 15 inches to 39 inches; and a system of 8 -inch, 12-inch and 14-inch loops within the existing system to strengthen the distribution system and to provide improved fire protection. 3. Under the contract with Basic Management, Inc., the W ater District may withdraw 5 million gallons daily from the Lake Mead line. When the District constructs certain improvements in capacity, 13)4 mgd may be taken. The improvements to the existing supply system include the installation of new pumping equipment at the Lake Mead intake. Two new pumping stations will be constructed, one at the take-off point near Manganese, Inc. (3 miles northeast of Henderson), and one at a point about halfway between Henderson and Las Vegas. The construction of the boosting station near Manganese, Inc. will reduce the present static head on the existing 40-inch line, thereby providing additional boosting capacity at the existing pumping station located 2 )4 miles northwest of the Lake Mead intake. The District plans to make these improvements to the Lake Mead supply system as soon as possible. The existing water intake facilities consist of six seven-stage deep well turbine pumps with 182-foot columns suspended into deep water from a steel cantilever structure located on Saddle Island in Lake Mead. These pumps have a capacity of approximately 30 mgd, and they boost water 2)4 miles to an existing reservoir at an elevation of 1400 feet. The lake surface may vary in elevation from 1229 to 1050 feet, causing the static head on the pump to range between 171 and 350 feet. It is proposed to replace the existing intake pumps with equipment of increased capacity in order to provide a total pumping capacity of at least 43)4 mgd. The existing pumps to be removed from the water intake facilities will be modified and installed in the new pumping station to be constructed at the Las Vegas take-off near Manganese, Inc. These pumps will then boost water on to Henderson through the existing 40-inch pipeline. Additional electrical facilities will be required to take care of the increased pumping load. The Colorado River Commission has agreed to obtain power for the District for pumping from Lake Mead at the best available rate. Power for the booster station northwest of Whitney will be purchased from the Southern Nevada Power Company. The existing booster station presently has six pumps with a capacity of about 30 mgd when five pumps are operating and boosts water to the Henderson terminal reservoirs at an elevation of 2035 feet, with a static head of 635 feet. Under the proposed arrangement the existing booster pumps will pump water to a new 1)4 million gallon reservoir at the Las Vegas take-off at 1784 feet elevation, a static head of 384 feet, and will provide about 50 mgd with all pumps operating against the lower head. The new booster station at Las Vegas take-off near Manganese, Inc. will have a capacity of 30 mgd with five pumps operating. This station will be used to pump water from the proposed 1)4 mg reservoir into the existing 30 mg terminal reservoirs at Henderson. The new 1)4 mg reservoir also will be used as a supply reservoir for water that will flow by gravity through a new 36-inch pipeline to the final boosting station located northwest of Whitney. This final station (elevation 1750 feet) will pump water through a 30-inch pipeline to Las Vegas. When the rate of water consumption exceeds the combined capacities of the wells and the Lake Mead supply line, it will be necessary to install an additional line to Lake Mead. The Montgomery report states, however, that the present local supply can be augmented considerably by more effective use. The drilling of a number of new wells is recommended, and seasonable adjustments in the proportion of Lake Mead to local water used in order to reduce losses from the underground storage. It is estimated that the loss from underground storage due to upward leakage, deep-rooted plants, and evaporation is from 1,600 to 2,600 million gallons per year, and that a large part of this loss may be eliminated by the more flexible operation possible with the Lake Mead supply. The total potential daily supply should average about 38 million gallons a day. Montgomery estimates present average daily consumption to be about 370 gallons per capita. Hence the supply will support a population in excess of 100,000 at present consumption rates. This population is reached in 1990, the term of the present bond issue, in the projections of population made by Montgomery. If the population grows more rapidly than the projected amounts, the water supply might be made to serve a larger population than that indicated by present averages, if the high daily per capita consumption cOuld be reduced correspondingly. In Phoenix and Tucson, which are largely metered, the production 4ft gallons per capita per day in. j 950 was 211 and 153, 9 respectively. It would therefore appear probable that public education in water conservation and some general regulation and inspection would reduce the present consumption rate by a consider­able amount with a consequent increase in the period over which the supply will remain adequate. The costs of the project are estimated by James M. Montgomery as follows: Estimated Cost of Proposed Improvements 30-million gallon reservoir in W est Las Vegas................................................................. $ 710,000 l)4-million gallon reservoir at Manganese Ores.................................................... i t ® - 85,000 Control building at Manganese Ores................................................................. .................... 53,500 Booster pumping station on U. S. Highway 95.................................................................. 197,000 Pipeline from Manganese Ores to 30-million gallon reservoir.................................... 1,661,500 Pipeline from Fremont Street to 30-million gallon reservoir via Charleston Boulevard........................................................................................ ................ 292,000 Miscellaneous improvements to production facilities............ ......................................... 133,000 New water wells.................................. 68,000 Improvements to increase capacity of 40-inch pipeline from Lake Mead to Henderson........................................... ............. .................................. 620,000 L Miscellaneous additional transmission pipelines......................... ........... .............................. 555,000 Miscellaneous additional improvements to distribution system.................................... 632,000# Total Estimated Construction Cost................................................................... $5,007,000 Contingencies .................................................................................. 262,000 Purchase of existing water system from Union Pacific Railroad................................ 2,500,000* Acquisition of sites, rights-of-way, easements, etc.......................... ............................... 50,000 Total Acquisition and Construction Costs..................................................... $7,819,000 Total incidental expenses, including return of loans from County, working capital, engineering, legal and miscellaneous............................. 535,000 Total Estimated Cost of Proposed Improvements...................................... $8,354,000 Cash reserve required to cover estimated bond interest during construction and for six months thereafter........................... _?........................ 346,000 Total Amount of Proposed Bond Issue.......................................................... $8,700,000 § Meter installations, if made, can be paid from this sum. * Agreed purchase price; may be raised or lowered due to adjustments provided by contract. The Montgomery engineering report estimates that the District will sell water to the popula­tion inside the city of Las Vegas plus an outside population equal to 10 per cent of the Las Vegas population. The City of North Las Vegas has its own water system. It is expected that the City of North Las Vegas may purchase some water wholesale from the District. The present North Las Vegas supply is from wells. Henderson obtains its water from the existing Lake Mead pipeline, and Nellis Air Force Base has its own well supply. The unincorporated residential areas rely on wells, and it is anticipated that some of the area near the pipelines will purchase water from the District. Reports of the State Engineer of Nevada indicate that 790 deep wells and some 850 shallow wells have been drilled in the Las Vegas Valley. The hotels and motels of the “Strip” are large users of water and have their own wells, but some have inadequate wells and are expected to purchase water from the District. Private pumping is done under permit by the State Engineer, who has the authority to regulate the use of water and to prevent its waste. The Enabling Act of the Nevada Legislature under which the Las Vegas Valley W ater District was formed specifically provides that it is the intent of the law to have all expenses, including bond interest and redemption, paid from revenues. Consequently, although the bonds will be general obligations backed by the full faith, credit and resources of the District, the Board of Directors is under statutory obligation (so long as the rates are reasonable) to maintain water rates at a level that will provide sufficient revenue to meet maintenance and operation costs, bond interest and principal payments and all other charges, without the necessity of a tax levy. 10