Currents June July 2024

JUNE |

Water and Power Newsletter for Your Vera Neighborhood

JULY

| 2024

Inside the Morningside Booster Station: Vera’s water crew meticulously installed two new booster pumps, elevating the total to eight — a significant upgrade to ensure efficient water flow and pressure for the community.

STAY SAFE: Stay away

Your Water, Your Community

from substations

The Morningside Booster Station

We take pride in being more than just a service provider; we’re an essential part of the community, ensuring you can access reliable water and power services. We want to share some news about our operations at the Morningside Booster Station.

Pumping Up the Pressure In our continuous effort to support and enhance our water infrastructure, we’re installing two new pumps to the Morningside Booster Station, increasing the number of pumps from six to eight.

Electricity lights our homes, keeps our food cold, and powers our favorite gadgets.

But electricity can also be dangerous, especially at our substations.

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Our aim is straightforward: to provide water efficiently and reliably to every home.

Introducing these pumps strengthens the “pressure zone” system, especially in the Morningside area, guaranteeing that our water infrastructure meets our community’s current and future needs.

Community at the Core Projects like the Morningside Booster Station upgrade highlight our commitment to our community. By proactively increasing pumping capacity, we’re not just addressing today’s needs—but paving the way for a sustainable future where water, our most precious resource, flows abundantly and reliably.

Homegrown Utility | Neighborhood Owned | verawaterandpower.com |

888-774-8272

Vera’s Historic Wellhouse #1

SIMPLIFY YOUR LIFE WITH AUTOPAY Imagine not worrying about whether you remembered to pay your utility bill. With autopay, you can know that your Vera Water and Power payments are being taken care of automatically, accurately, and on time. Now, with the option to choose the exact day of the month for your payments, you have the flexibility to match your financial flow.

How to Get Started Setting up autopay for your Vera Water and Power utility bill is easy:

❶ Visit the Vera Water and Power website and log in to your account. ❷ Click “AutoPay” on your welcome screen and follow the prompts. ❸ Fill in your banking or credit card information. ❹ Choose your preferred payment date that fits within your financial schedule.

Rest assured that your personal information is protected with state-of-theart security measures, ensuring your transactions are safe, and your privacy is maintained.

Transitioning to autopay is a breeze, and we are ready to help you every step of the way. Contact us or visit the Vera Water and Power website to get started.

What Are PFAS? Per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a group of manmade chemicals used in products worldwide since the 1940s. Due to their widespread use and persistence in the environment, PFAS contamination has emerged as a concern for water supplies across the United States. Understanding the potential impacts of PFAS on human health and the environment, Vera Water and Power has undertaken measures to ensure that our water supply remains free of these contaminants.

Autopay guarantees your payments are on time, every time. Say goodbye to the monthly billing hassle and hello to simplicity with Vera Water and Power’s autopay service.

Testing Confirms Community Water Free from PFAS Contaminants We are dedicated to keeping our community’s water safe. We’ve tested our water to make sure it does not have any PFAS chemicals, which could be harmful. All tests followed strict EPA guidelines.

Testing Results Our first tests were in August 2023 at our Vera 9 Well site. Results showed that our water did not have any detectable PFAS. Encouraged by these results, we did more tests in February 2024 at five extra sites. These tests confirmed the same good news—PFAS were undetectable.

We are committed to keeping your water clean and safe. We will continue to monitor, test, and report on our water quality to ensure compliance with all regulatory requirements and safeguard the health of our customers.

For any updates or more info on how we keep your water safe, call us or visit our website, verawaterandpower.com.

Our water well #4 across the street from Sunrise Elementary was one of five sites tested earlier this year.

These tests confirmed the same good news—PFAS were undetectable.

Save Energy and Money with Rebates

Drip irrigation at work: Each drop counts as water sinks deeply, nourishing roots more efficiently and reducing waste.

We offer a variety of energy efficiency rebates to help you save money and reduce your environmental impact by encouraging you to make smarter energy choices. We also provide financial incentives for purchasing energy-efficient appliances and making home upgrades.

Rebates on Home Upgrades and Appliances Energy-Efficient Appliances: Upgrade to appliances that use less electricity and receive rebates. This includes energysaving washers and dryers, EV chargers, and heat pump water heaters.

Heating and Cooling Systems: Installing more efficient heating and cooling systems in your home can lead to rebates.

Insulation and Windows: Improving a home’s insulation or upgrading to highefficiency windows can significantly lower energy bills. We have rebates to offset some of the upgrade costs.

These rebates benefit you by reducing the upfront cost of energy-efficient upgrades, which, in turn, lower monthly energy bills. Not only do these rebates support individual financial savings, but they also contribute to broader environmental efforts by reducing energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions.

For a details, visit our website and click “Rebates and Savings”.

HOW CAN I SAVE WATER THIS SUMMER? Hot, dry conditions triple water consumption in the Spokane Valley. A lot of this water goes to keeping lawns green. But your grass only needs one inch of water each week, including rain. We have some easy and inexpensive tips to help you use less water.

• Use a sprinkler that makes big drops of water, not a fine mist. Big drops get into the soil better.

• Use a sprinkler timer to program, monitor, and take advantage of rainy days.

• Keep your grass about 2.5” to 3” tall. This shades the soil keeping it cooler and hydrated.

• Check out Outdoor Watering Nerds, outdoorwateringnerds.org. They have a ton of local resources.

JOIN US FOR OUR MONTHLY BOARD MEETING! Want to know how decisions are made at Vera Water and Power?

Come to our monthly board meeting! Learn how we make decisions affecting your water and power services. It's an excellent opportunity to see how everything works.

Remember, we plan what we'll talk about at the meeting ahead of time. If you want to discuss something, please call us. This way, we can ensure time for your ideas or concerns.

The dates, time, agendas and minutes are on our website.

Everyone is welcome!

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Stay away from substations

What’s a Substation?

Substations are critical pieces in our electric system. They help make sure electricity gets from power plants to our homes in safe measurements. However, these places are full of powerful equipment that is dangerous for even our trained linemen.

The fences and “Stay Out” signs are not just for decoration.

These signs and fences are a reminder to keep us safe and protect the equipment so we can consistently provide electricity to our community. Going inside a substation is risky, potentially life-threatening and illegal.

New and Improved Drop Box Our payment drop box is back in action. Now, you’ll find a new and improved drop box that’s modern and secure.

No matter your schedule, our drop box is available 24/7 in our office parking lot.

Our enhanced drop box protects your information and provides peace of mind. So, you can rest assured your payment is safe.

Note: Payments made before 9 a.m. will be processed the same business day.

Vera’s Commitment to Safety

The Tree Trimming Program Trees add charm and fresh air. And, just as we need to trim our hair for health and maintenance, our trees also require grooming. Vera’s tree trimming program isn’t about making the trees look perfect—it’s about keeping us safe and ensuring we have reliable electricity.

When tree branches get too cozy with power lines, they can cause problems, from outages to safety hazards. Here’s why we trim trees:

How to Stay Safe Everyone should know how important it is to stay away from substations: • Understand the Signs: Know what the “Stay Out” signs mean and discuss them with others.

• Tell Your Friends: Share the knowledge of electrical safety with friends and family, particularly young children who may not understand the risks.

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Avoiding Power Outages: Trimming keeps those branches in check, reducing the chance of unexpected outages.

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Preventing Fires: Power lines can create sparks that may catch on nearby branches. Keeping trees trimmed reduces this fire hazard.

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Stopping Flickering Lights: Ever notice your lights flicker during a windy day? That’s often because tree branches are brushing against power lines. Regular trimming helps prevent this.

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Making Repairs Safer: Clear power lines make it safer and faster for lineworkers to fix issues or restore power.

Have Questions or Concerns?

We understand that you might have questions or concerns about how trimming is done—or maybe about a specific tree near your home.

Please contact us at 888-774-8272.

OFFICE LOCATION 601 N. Evergreen Rd., Spokane Valley, WA 99216 MAILING ADDRESS P.O. Box 630, Spokane Valley, WA 99037

OFFICE 509-924-3800 TOLL-FREE 888-774-8272

verawaterandpower. com

© Copyright 2024. All rights reserved. Vera Water and Power.

• Don’t Get Too Close: Always stay far away from substation fences. Never try to go in, touch, or climb on them.

• Report Concerns: If you notice any damaged fences or signs around substations or see someone in or around a substation, contact Vera Water and Power immediately. Your vigilance could save lives.

You can insert your payment into the box with the orange handle labeled “PLACE PAYMENT HERE. DO NOT USE CASH.”