OML Partner To Help Municipalities With Infrastructure Upgrades & Economic Recovery
Legislative changes influence general use buildings, water & wastewater facilities
City budgets are strict, and sometimes there is not enough to cover all the maintenance required for local facilities and infrastructure, which increases the deferred maintenance list year after year. The recent economic crisis has made the situation more difficult.
Water plants and wastewater treatment facilities represent some of the most significant costs for municipalities. In addition to operation costs, municipalities must account for expensive and necessary upgrades of old equipment. As a result, water and wastewater facilities are forced to run longer without necessary maintenance or upgrades.
The impact of Covid-19 and the economic crisis has diverted finances for many cities away from these needed improvements. Fortunately for municipalities in Oklahoma, the state legislature recently enacted changes to Title 62 O.S. § 318 (OSCN 2019) “Performance-Based Efficiency Contracts With Qualified Providers”. These changes make it easier for municipalities to pursue cost-efficient upgrades for existing systems, such as smart water metering. Smart water metering gives municipalities the data they need to monitor, and potentially recover costs for unbilled water use. Other opportunities in water and wastewater plants such as UV disinfection, aeration basin upgrades, pumping improvement, sludge drying/dewatering/disposal and other opportunities through-out the plants now have an alternative method to address the needs. Through this legislation, these alternatives can be addressed through funding mechanisms that require little to no capital outlay, while also laying the groundwork for future project expansion.
OML has recognized this convergence of beneficial legislative change and needs within its municipality member base. Following a period of robust due diligence OML has partnered with Schneider Electric to offer their services to OML membership through the OMSC partnership program. These services will allow members to take advantage of the legislative changes and move towards necessary improvements in a more efficient manner.
Schneider Electric is a global leader in energy efficiency and with offices in the State of Oklahoma, offers a local presence important to OML and its membership. “OML is pleased to partner with Schneider Electric to offer sustainability solutions to our communities.” Mike Fina, Executive Director, Oklahoma Municipal League. Continuing, he further states, “Schneider Electric is rated as the number one ESCO firm in the world by Navigant Research. We believe Schneider Electric will provide world class products and services to our membership.”
Roger Flud, Account Executive for Schneider Electric, comments that, “This program can be beneficial for municipalities large and small. Small and medium sized cities have needs that can cost more than they could afford to do. Large cities may have more money but also have more needs. Even the largest cities do not have the funds to do all their projects. So, this program can be a very good supplement to other on-going efforts regardless of community size.”
Balance the Scales While Accelerating Recovery
During difficult budgetary times, projects like these create jobs and increase revenue for service businesses in town while providing much needed upgrades to city facilities. Roger Flud further comments, “At Schneider Electric we take great pride in developing projects that help communities, provide jobs and increased local revenue. We can help find financial resources and provide the project implementation expertise to accelerate progress towards economic recovery.”
Municipalities of all sizes face the same challenge in determining priorities with a static budget, while balancing resident expectations, existing improvement demands and future planning.
Finding a partner with expertise in innovative funding strategies and municipal operations is critical for cities to improve their water and wastewater infrastructure. With the right types of partners, municipalities can not only plan their budget to fund immediate improvement projects, but also extend that funding throughout the project by recognizing the savings generated.
For information about Schneider Electric, visit the OMSC Partner page on the OML website or contact Roger Flud from Schneider Electric directly by phone (918) 629-5687 or Email roger.flud@SE.com.