Q: Will the new hookups pay for the expansion?

A: There is an effort to have new customers pay for new capacity, as much as possible in the form of connection fees. Although that is still the goal, there are other needs that will be met by the Phase 4 Expansion as well that must be taken into consideration. As the system has aged, large and expensive parts need to be maintained or replaced as they have worn out. This adds a significant amount of costs to upgrade the existing system and these costs are typically considered to be the responsibility of existing customers.

Clark County, Clark Regional Wastewater District, and the City of Battle Ground want to make sure that our shared wastewater management system continues to meet the needs of the people and maintain a healthy community environment. We are committed to sharing the costs as fairly as possible between existing ratepayers and new development and we will continue to balance this goal with the desire to minimize rate and fee increases overall with cost-effective financing opportunities.