Cowlitz County Public Works staff updated commissioners Wednesday on water‑meter installation progress, ARPA‑funded system work and planning for a wastewater plant replacement.

Meter program: "We still are about a third of the way through for the water meter installs," Savannah Clement, public services, said. Staff reported a five‑person installation crew is operating below full staffing because some crew members are on extended leave, and the county now anticipates the rollout will be complete in spring. Staff said the new drive‑by (radio) meters can read under good line‑of‑sight conditions up to about a quarter‑mile; because the meters transmit on a licensed frequency the county obtained an FCC license through its vendor contract.

Battery life and billing: Staff said the meters use long‑life lithium cells with a typical life span of about 10 years depending on temperature and conditions; battery replacement will be part of planned future maintenance. Accounting staff audited a batch of newly installed meters and found a programming error in one vendor batch that caused incorrect billing for some customers; staff corrected the configuration and said corrected bills were comparable to prior bills for most residents.

Capital projects and ARPA: The county is using ARPA dollars for meter purchases and other water/sewer capital projects. Staff summarized ongoing projects including the Toutle low‑pressure zone improvement, Toutle wastewater plant upgrades and Shadow Mountain; Camelot loss system was sent out for bid and the Redwood emergency water system is prepping for work. The department budget shows an operations beginning balance of about $1.4 million and projected revenues of about $2.7 million with transfers to capital reserves and continued rate‑study work planned.

Woodbrook wastewater plant planning: Susan (county engineer) and staff described Woodbrook’s wastewater plant as an aging lagoon system that is no longer meeting Department of Ecology permit criteria because flows have exceeded the plant’s design capacity and it is failing to meet indicators such as biochemical oxygen demand and total suspended solids. Staff said an alternatives analysis is under way to evaluate options — pump stations to send flow to Beacon Hills/Turwa, a comparable new plant or package plant alternatives — and that the study will provide planning‑level costs and identify likely grant cycles for funding.

Reserves and rate planning: Staff said the water/sewer capital reserve holds roughly $5 million and the department is targeting an operations reserve equivalent to about two months of expenditures. Officials said they anticipate additional grant opportunities and may consider debt to fund large projects after alternatives analysis and rate studies are complete.

Ending: Staff said they will return with the results of the Woodbrook alternatives analysis and any formal procurement requests for major capital work.