Clarksburg Water Board approves disinfection services for facility, final projec…

According to General Manager Dick Welch, the services would cost $6,800 per week and would include disinfection of the main floor of the water treatment plant, the distribution office and all vehicles.

“It’s my recommendation that we use this service to aid in avoiding a possible COVID-19 outbreak at the Water Board,” Welch said. “As a critical infrastructure, such an event would limit or possibly prevent us from providing our customers with our essential services.”

Welch said the service is eligible for reimbursement under the state’s COVID Relief Fund. He also said that Bacteria Busters found that one of its customers is currently getting reimbursed from the fund.

General counsel Tim Stranko confirmed the services are eligible for reimbursement.

Water Board member Paul Howe motioned for approval of the disinfection service, and member Jonathan Calvert and President Al Cox approved it on the condition it’s reimbursed by the state.

The board can choose to terminate the service at any time, Welch added.

“As they spray in here, it protects the environment here in the building, but it doesn’t stop anyone from bringing it in, such as an unsuspecting employee or customer,” Cox said. “If this goes on for six months, we are talking about $17,000 in our budget. It’s worth it if it saves someone from getting sick.”

Also at Tuesday’s meeting, board members approved the fifth and final payment to Michel Inc. in the amount of $49,814.55 for work completed on the Water Treatment Plan Sediment Basin upgrade project. 

In his manager’s update, Welch said project replaced the treatment plant’s original sediment basin, which had been in service for over 30 years. Railing improvements also were made for safety purposes, he said. 

The total cost of the project was $962,641.00. The notice of bid was issued on Jan. 28, with work completed in August.

The Thrasher Group did the engineering work for the project.