by SC Reporter Emilie Alfino
Diana Wilson, General Manager of the Island Water Association, gave a presentation to Sanibel City Council on water system resiliency. The IWA is working on a Water System Master Plan, which was interrupted by COVID, Ian, Helene, and Milton, which presented other system priorities.
IWA, with 31 employees, supports 5,222 connections on Sanibel and Captiva and more than 50 miles of pipes. Sixty percent of the water used is for irrigation (“When I see everybody sprinkling, I know that’s our drinking water,” said Vice Mayor Holly Smith). IWA’s capital budget is up 200 percent since 2020, and nine new employees (or one-third of the workforce) are new employees since Hurricane Ian.
If everybody adhered to two days/week watering, Wilson said, we would not have a problem.
IWA is making some resiliency improvements, including changing its water treatment method from chlorine to carbon dioxide and sodium hypochlorite. These increase safety and cost benefits.
• The causeway failure highlighted vulnerability of chemical deliveries.
• 30-day chemical storage maintained onsite is an improvement.
• The treatment method selected uses easier-to-transport chemicals.
• There are additional safety and cost benefits.
All that said, Wilson said IWA is “butting up against our maximum capacity.” She told Council, “Your resiliency is our resiliency, and we will always support you.”
The project design phase begins shortly, with construction slated for 2026-2027. The project is scheduled to be in service end-of-year 2027.