Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Rural Water Project Proceeds Nicely

Gurdon's rural water project is coming along nicely. In fact, about half the lines have already been laid.

Harold Hurst, manager of the Gurdon Water and Sewer Department, said if the weather stays warm and dry the construction crews can finish putting the lines in quickly.

Still, he said, there is a lot of work to be done to get the project completed. The tank crew will have to be brought in to install two water tanks, while the well site will have to be fully developed.

Hurst said the test drills on the well site found about 60 feet of sand. This, he said, is a good sign.

When the well near Lowe Field was drilled, Hurst said, it took three test drillings to find sand.

He said the new well, which will be near the new Gurdon High School, could be the best producer of all the city's wells.

Early estimates on the new well show it could produce more than 300 gallons per minute. "I hope it pans out this way," Hurst said.

Water samples have been sent to the Arkansas Department of Health and a private lab for testing. Hurst said the preliminary results show the water to be good.

The ADH, he said, has given a verbal OK to finish developing the well. With treatment, the manganese and iron will be removed. "It really looked good," Hurst said.

Discussing the construction of the system, Hurst said everything has been great with no major complaints being raised by the people along the way.

"It's all on schedule," he said. However, once the pipes have been laid, work will slow down. This is because it will take more time to get the well completed as well as the pumping stations installed and on line.

"Everyone's tickled about it (the project) now," Hurst said. "We've had some sign up when the construction began. But the one's signing up now have learned the penalty of not signing up before April 1. They can't do it for $125."

Prior to the April 1 deadline, potential rural water system customers could have the water lines installed for a fee of $125, which covered the installation of the meter as well as a deposit to be on the system. Now, though, it costs customers $350 or more to sign up, depending on the cost of having the meter installed and putting up the deposit, as well as running the lines to their homes.

Hurst said the way things are going the project should be finished by the Nov. 10 deadline. By then, he said, those 350 who have signed up should have the city's water being pumped to their homes.

"There'll still be some cleanup left to do by then," he said, "but everyone should have water in their homes in time for the winter months. It'll be worth it in the long run as they'll have plenty of safe drinking water."

When wells in the area were tested last summer, more than 70 percent were found to be unsafe. In one instance, a family's well was almost pure fecal matter.

Those who have signed up and are having the city water installed can still use their wells, so long as they are not connected to their houses. These wells can be used for any other purpose than household use.