Waterbury evening Democrat., 1907-01-18

propriation.
 At the present time s15.oo0 Is barely sufficient to meet the calls made. on this appropriation. When we consider pended yearly in payment of salaries and labor charges, leaving $3,lSl for purchase of stock, tools and other mel dental expenses. it is easily seen that too large for running this part of the department.
 The amount has been slightly increas- ed from year to year to keep pace With the increasing expense of the depart ment. This seems reasonable and 1t is only proper that 1t should be increased yearly, as with the several hundred rect of new pipe. new hydrants. valves, etc, in the care and maintenance of same is necessitated. Last year $24,000 was appropriated for Water Pipe ENten- sion" which was used in the extension of the system, S3,500 was appropriated for the purchase of land at reservoirs. This money was expended in purchasing land near the reservoirs which 1t Is de- sirable for the City to own.
 All these appropriations. when sum med up, make d total of $52.500, which is necessary every year to maintain the reservoirs, run the department, extend and replace the piping system and pur- chase land and reservoirs.
 Supply and Consumption.
 
 It has now come to point in Wa terbury where we must either start very soon to build another reservoir to supply more water, or save what we have, for our present supply has about reached its limit. At the present time tthe latter part of septemberl,, the ply is down 6.1 feet below the low spillway. While our eastern supply is down to AS, feet. and this too, after one of the rainiest seasons We have had in some years. (23.63 inches of rain having fallen in the early part or the season.) If it had been a dry season during the early summer, 1t Is not very difficult to imagine how low the reser- voir would be at present. .-. We find that the Low Service IS using daily supply of from 6,1S7.00O to G. 3S250O gallons of water. while the High Service is using about l,500.0O0 gallons making total of approximately 7,50o,- 900 gallons for the whole city.
 With 47,000 consumers in Waterbury and daily consumption of about 1,- 500.0O0 gallons. our average daily con sumption is rather high. Last year our report showed an average daily con sumption per consumer of from 1O9.9l gallons in May to 127.72 gallons in Sept, 1905. This is higher than most cities of this size, as We find by comparison that from 2S to 40 gallons, per capita, is the average consumption.
 From May 1st. to November lst.. 1904, there was drawn from the Wig wam Reservoir 105.39S.500 cubic feet, while from May 1st to November 1st., 1905, there was drawn from the same source l3I9l9,000 cubic feet. making an increase in the use of water from that supply of 32.520. 800 cubic feet or 24S.- 9Q3,750 gallons during the same period Of two successive years.
 As the total storage capacity of all five of the City reservoirs is 9l5,000,- 000 gallons, about four times the in- crease in the consumption for the per- iod Is shown above. it is plainly evident l that our water supply would not be a very abundant one, if dry season If we build another reservoir, we would probably build one larger than the present Wigwam Reservoir. As the Wigwam Reservoir cost approx imately $S69, ,1l5.31, it Is only reason- able to suppose that another reservoir will cost nearly as much more.
 The interest on and sinking fund for Water Bonds, as paid by the City of Waterbury this year was s6S,S25 co In other words. the City paid out this amount of money as interest and sink ing fund for the present water supply. If another reservoir is built at the same expense, the City will probably assume the same amount of debt, and conse- quently will be called upon to pay an- other amount Of yearly interest equal ly as great as the present amount. So terest and sinking fund every year. we shall be called upon to pay possibly si3s. 900
 This is big debt for any City to as- sume. and the citizens should think we'll before shouIdering any such bur den. The City of Hartford had this same problem to face. It was the same with them, either save the supply they al- ready had or build another and larger one. After thinking the matter over carefully. 1t was decided. as much cheaper and better. to save the present supply rather than build another and larger one. This they did by motoring the entire City. It was found that in 1900. with no meters. the City was using from 9.00o.0OO to 10O0O,000 gallons daily: while at present. with the City entirely metered. the average daily consumption. with the attendant in- crease in population. is 5.2O0. 900 gallons The supply. which was very low in 1900 is now plentiful. and the necessity of spending a large amount of money for a newer and larger supply was put on for some years.
 There Is another factor that enters into the problem in Waterbury We are not. like other cities at tide water able to discharge our sewage into some bay or sound But being an inland city We must dispose of it in a more cS- pcnsiyc manner. We are. at present. engaged in the building of an extensive sewage disposal plant at the outlay of a