The Kennewick courier-reporter. [volume] (Kennewick, Wash.) 1914-1938, 1923-08-23
NobodyKnows Much About
it But Everybody is
Interested
COST TO CONSUMER
IS FIRST QUESTION
Crawford Figures it Out on
Basis of City's- Annual
Coal Bill

SINCE it became known that a prop
osition to pipe natural gas from the
Rattlesnake wells to Kennewick had
been made, members of the city coun-
ell and of the Commercial Club have
been doing some thinking, mostly in
circles.
Eugene Enloe proposes to pipe the
gas to the city limits if Kennewick
will install distributing system and
pay for 25O,OO0 cubic feet day at 80
cents per cubic foot. This means a
minimum daily purchase of SIS or
$27 900 for the year. AS yet nobody
has very definite idea of what an
adequate distributing system will cost.
It is variously estimated from S25, 900
to $4,000.
If it does not exceed this amount
a municipal system could be installed
by bond issue. The city has only a
small margin left on its limit of gen
eral bonded debt, but the state law
provides that the city may bond for
five per cent of its assessed valua-
ton for public utilities eight, water,
etc., even though its general bonded
debt has reached the legal limit. The
city Of Kennewick has never issued
any utility bonds and has the full five
per cent upon which to operate.
After the cost of installation comes
the cost Of maintenance, operation
and bond retirement Ideas on this
are likewise hazy., 1t has been esti-
mated off hand that the cost to the
city of delivering the gas to the con-
sumner would be from IL to Is cents
per 1000 cubic feet. Some estimate
the cost higher. A fairly good guess
seems to be that gas could not be
sold to the consumer for less than 70
cents per 1000 cubic feet.
Then comes the question, is it rea-
sonable to expect Kennewick to con-
sumo 250,00O cubic feet daily. While
data collected to date is meagre, w.
r. Crawford, secretary of the Com
mercial Club, has gotten together
some facts which shed light on this
question,
Mr.. Crawford figures that insofar
as domestic use is concerned, the gas
will be used for cooking ard heating
purposes, with little or no use being
made of it for lighting. During the
year 1922 Kennewick used for cooking
and heating purposes 124 carloads
of coal, which at $12 ton cost the
consumers approximately $4,000
This is for coal alone and does not
lnclude>the cost of wood, the gasoline
the coal oil, and the electricity used
for cooking and heating.
There are 700 users of electricity
in the city of Kennewick This in
cludes the large users, hotels, busi-
ness houses, etc, as we'll as resi-
dences, but figuring each user as a
family, Mr.. Crawford estimates that
the average family coal bill in 1922
was 500. Figured on the basis of
coal at SIP ton the $4,000 worth
OF natural gas, which the city would
be required to take, would be equival-
ent to 48 carloads which divided be-
tween the 700 families would mean an
annual coal bill of $3.50. This how
ever is figured on the basis of the
price at which the city would buy
the gas and mott at the retail price.
No data as to how many cubic feet
OF gas is the equivalent of ton of
coal In heat values has been prepared.
It is known, however, that gas from
the Rattlesnake field contains 1886
3. I. o. cheat units) compared to
about 500 B. T. U. for manufactured
gas.
Mr.. Crawford ascertained that in
"alia Walla where they only used
gas Tor cooking and water heating,
ene average consumption per family
is 1900 cubic feet in summer and
l5OO in winter The rate is $1.70 for
the first 400 cubic feet and 10 cents
per 100 for the next 600 cubic feet
making total of $3.50 for the first
iooo cubic feet. The rate in Portland
is understood to be S1.OO per 1000
cuhic foot -