Wastewater rates are changing

In the past 20 years, West Lafayette’s population has grown considerably, and the demand for wastewater treatment also has grown. When a wastewater treatment plant reaches 90 percent capacity, the Indiana Department of Environmental Management requires the utility to invest in infrastructure to add capacity to adequately service customers.

Because we have reached more than 90 percent capacity at our facility, we need to increase capacity. The Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission provides regulatory oversight of independently owned utility providers. The IURC has approved the capacity increase and will approve the customer rate increase to pay for it.

Details about how rates are determined can be found in the IURC Utility Guide.

The Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission is a state agency that oversees the operations of independently owned utility providers. The IURC requires wastewater utility providers to maintain facilities that meet customer demand, and the agency mandates rates.

The Indiana Department of Environmental Management is the state agency that implements federal and state regulations to protect human health and the environment. IDEM oversees utilities to ensure they operate in an environmentally sound way.

Our investments in the wastewater treatment facility infrastructure will reduce the amount of noise coming from the treatment facility and make the disinfection process safer and more environmentally friendly.

We care about the safety and comfort of our neighbors, employees and partners. We are investing in materials, processes and technology to reduce the noise produced from the wastewater treatment facility.

We are investing in ultraviolet light disinfection technology to treat wastewater. UV treatment is a chemical-free process that adds nothing to the water except UV light. UV disinfection is preferred to chlorine or chemical disinfection because it is safer for the people in and around the facility.

Our partners at TrojanUV describe the safety benefits of UV light disinfection technology. “UV requires no transportation, storage or handling of toxic or corrosive chemicals – a safety benefit for plant operators and the surrounding community.”

Learn more about the benefits of UV disinfection vs chlorine disinfection from our partners at TrojanUV here.

The plant expansion will be placed in service in late 2018. Construction schedules are affected by weather conditions, so this may change.

In early 2018, when changes to federal tax laws saved our utility company money, we passed back those savings to customers in the form of a rate reduction.

In 2019, we anticipate a rate change due to the infrastructure additions needed to expand capacity to meet customer demand as required by the IDEM.

We anticipate rate changes in the future. When rate changes take place, updated rates will be posted in the Rate Schedule.

Rate changes must be approved by the IURC, and when rate changes take place, updated rates will be posted in the Rate Schedule.

Because rate changes must be approved by the IURC, anticipated rate changes are not known at this time. When rate changes take place, updated rates will be posted in the Rate Schedule.

If you’re having trouble paying your bill, contact Customer Service to discuss options. Call 765.463.3856 between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.