Nodaway County Rural Water District Proposes Rate Hike

The Nodaway County Rural Water District, at its meeting on Monday, put several different options on the table for raising water rates to customers. The Maryville City Council recently approved a rate hike of 50% across the board for 2027. This will mean $615,000 in increased costs for the Rural Water Districts, without factoring in any other price hikes or extra labor should the data center project south of Maryville move forward.

Options for raising the rates included a $3 across the board increase for everyone to a gradated increase which would hit bigger customers such as Sheridan harder. Currently, the Rural Water District charges a $35 rate for a minimum of 1,000 gallons of use. The risk of increasing the minimum water rate is that it would create hardship for customers on fixed incomes. Many of the options presented included leaving the minimum rate as it is.

On the other end, targeting bigger customers with higher rate increases could also affect people on fixed incomes. Barnard has one of the highest rates in the area, charging a minimum of $120 a month for water and sewer. Other cities purchasing their water from the Rural Water District would also have to pass costs on to their customers.

The board took no action on the rate hike at Monday's meeting. It will be on October's agenda as an action item. The district has been seeking water from other sources to reduce costs.

Brock Pfost reported that people from the Rural Water District, the City of Maryville, and two Maryville council members met to discuss the city providing wastewater to the data center should it come. They are seeking formal numbers and parameters regarding usage.

Data Center Generator Marking Off Utility Lines at Work Site

Susie Strauch reported at the Nodaway County Commission Meeting Thursday that Grand River Mutual, the phone provider for the area, was marking off utility lines for White Cloud Generating, which is building the gas-powered generators that would sell power to Evergy, most of which would be bought by White Cloud Acres. 

Ms. Strauch also talked about the J-turn intersection at Arkoe. She said that she had gotten hold of Matthew Stein of the DOT. She said she had asked Mr. Stein about reducing the speed limit for the construction zone and was told that it was the contractor’s problem. Commissioner Chris Burns said that the DOT had told him that signage to reduce the speed limit from 65 mph to 55 mph had been ordered. The project started on August 10th, so the signs have been in transit for three weeks if they were ordered at the start of the project. “The DOT is paying for the project, so that is a pass-off,” said Commissioner Scott Walk.

Mike Wilson said that it was now six weeks into the moratorium on data center construction, and that nobody was getting any new answers. Commissioner Burns said that he had submitted 15-20 questions to the developer, the county’s attorney, and the developer’s attorney reflecting everyone’s concerns. He said that they didn’t know how much the water usage would be, because they didn’t know where their water was going to come from. “We can extend the moratorium if we don’t get answers,” said Commissioner Burns. 

Commissioner Walk said that they were doing what they were doing to protect the county. He said they are looking at an independent consultant knowledgeable about data centers to help them collect information and help them to make decisions.

Commissioner Burns said that most of the discussions Tuesday with the attorney focused on the steps they can and can’t take with regard to the data center. Discussions also focused on the development agreement and permitting. Commissioner Walk said that the DNR is doing a study on the impacts that data centers would have that would come out in November.

Mr. Burns said that Benton County passed a moratorium on data center development and was hit with a lawsuit, so they had to do their due diligence during the moratorium period.

Amy Zeigler of United Electric said that if a data center needed power, they would have to provide it even if there was a moratorium in place. She said they would have to own the land in order to purchase power. The data center developer has taken out options to buy 800-900 acres, but has not exercised that option as of Thursday afternoon. The proposed facility would be serviced by Evergy.

Commissioner Burns said that the data center developer was close to announcing an end user for the project. “They all generally do it that way,” he said. 

On zoning, Commissioner Burns said that the commission found out that they can appoint a zoning board before the election as long as it was advisory. He said planning and zoning would not stop current construction, but any potential expansion of the facility would have to comply with any zoning regulations that are adopted. 

Asked a question about the other two data center developers who had inquired about Nodaway County, Commissioner Walker said he had not heard anything new from or about them.

Construction and number of employees was discussed. Commissioner Burns said that the developer has always said they would have 100-130 permanent employees. Commissioner Walker said it would be an estimated 4-5 year build. “They typically build one unit at a time,” said Commissioner Burns, who noted that the plan is for four buildings to house the electronics for the center along with other outbuildings. 

Susie Strauch said that she had talked to people about the data center, and many are against it, but they assume it can be put up for a vote. “They don’t understand it won’t come up for a vote,” she said. If the data center developer exercises its option to buy the 800-900 acres in question, it would be a private land transaction. Details would be public knowledge like any other land transaction and would be available at the Recorder of Deeds.

Jeff From brought up the impact the proposed project would have on roads and bridges. “The Evergy project is already having an impact,” said Mr. From, referring to the substation project that is being built in the same area. “Rock quarries are already out of rock,” he said. Susie Strauch said that people are already using Jet Road to get around the construction. 

Scott Wilson said that the elevation of Bolckow was similar to the elevation at the proposed facility, so any draining of the 102 would affect Bolckow downstream. He said that the depth of the wells they had were just 37 feet, which is shallow. “We don’t have the money to spend to dig new ones,” Mr. Wilson said. He noted that they had spent their ARPA money to buy a generator, which turned in useful during a recent 12-15 hour power outage; the city was still able to pump water. 

The commissioners received a response from Dan Scheffler, Vice President of Development for Data Centers at Scale Microgrids, which is developing the proposed facility south of Maryville, regarding water usage. Mr. Scheffler said that the Rural Water District would have authority to determine service parameters based on its system capabilities, existing customer needs, and overall system requirements. White Cloud Generation is requesting service of up to 500 gallons per minute, which would establish the maximum flow rate for the facility. Anticipated average demand for water would be 100 gallons per minute over the course of a year. The additional capacity for up to the 500 gallon per minute limit would primarily accommodate periodic operational needs such as filling the system, rather than represent the facility’s typical or sustained water demand. Final service parameters would be established in coordination with the Rural Water District. 

Mr. Scheffler, in his email, said that any capital improvements required to serve the project would be the financial responsibility of White Cloud Generating. The costs would be borne by the project and would not be passed on to the Rural Water District’s existing customers or local constituents. 

Commissioner Burns said that any development agreement would mean no digging of wells, drawing water from the 102, or dumping it in the 102. That did not sway some opponents of the project. “Your lawyer is not going to beat one who is hired by billionaires,” said Donna Tompkins.

Asked about where the proposal to have one law firm represent the City of Maryville, the Rural Water District, and the County went, Commissioner Burns said that there were too many factors at work for one lawyer to represent all three entities. “More should have been done back then,” said Ms. Tompkins. Commissioner Walk said all three entities had different agendas, so it wasn’t practical. 

Talking about the duties of a consultant, Commissioner Walker said the duties of such a position would involve working five days a week and reporting on what they found back to the commission. “We want someone who is independent,” Commissioner Walker said. “Property is going up for sale because of this,” said Tompkins. Commissioner Burns said they didn’t have to sign anything. While there was only so much they could do, “If they don’t meet DNR or EPA health standards, we’re not signing anything,” he said. 

Nodaway County Rural Water District Says it Can’t Deny Water to Data Center

The Nodaway County Rural Water District pushed back on calls to deny water service to the proposed data center south of Maryville. Board President Dean Adwell, other board members, attorney Nick Robb, and water operator Ed Waldeier all provided more answers to the people than they had at the June meeting about what they can and can’t do, but the answers did not please most of the people present.

Mr. Adwell explained that the Rural Water District is a public utility and not a business and can’t deny service to whoever it wants. “We can’t discriminate against anyone,” he said. What they can do, he said, is determine how much water they can feasibly provide and tell the data center that this is all they are going to get. This was the reason for the recent feasibility study, the draft of which was recently released to the public. Another thing the Rural Water District can do in the event of a drought or a water shortage is ensure that residential customers are the last customers to be turned off. Mr. Robb said that whether a data center locates in the area is up to the city, county, and state. One board member said he had been on the board for over 30 years and that they had never denied anyone service, except for non-payment.

Wayne Beatty said that this was a national security issue. “If we go to war, what do you think people are going to target,” he asked. “We don’t need that around here.” The US is currently fighting an intermittent war against Iran. Russia and Ukraine are currently fighting a full-scale war and are targeting each other’s infrastructure.

Mr. Adwell said that the water the district had was finite. “We’re always looking for more water,” he said. Brock Pfost said they had been having discussions with other water districts for years about getting more water.

While the District is in good shape financially now, Mr. Pfost said that there would be pressures on them in the future with Maryville raising its water rates by 50% as of January 2027 and 50% more on January 2028. “We’re going to pay like everyone else,” he said. He said that would result in $500,000 in increased costs for the district next year.

The answers did not satisfy most of the 50+ people present, many of whom repeated calls for a town hall with the Rural Water District, Nodaway County Commission, Maryville City Council, and Economic Developer so that everybody could be on the same page as to what people can and can’t do. “We’ve been left out in the dark,” said Jennifer Gillespie.

“There’s going to be air pollution and cancer, and you will be responsible,” said Ms. Gillespie. “And it’s just getting started. They’ll spread to Gentry County, Worth County, Atchison County. People are already being approached. They are coming for all of us.” The ultimate goal, said Ms. Gillespie, is a world in which AI takes everyone’s jobs.

Rob Duvall talked about a situation in Wyoming in which a data center got bacteria in its water supply, and it spread to the treatment center that it was getting its water from, shutting down the treatment plant for three months. “And don’t forget heat islands; it gets five to 15 degrees hotter near these places,” said Ms. Gillespie. Monday’s high temperature was 97 degrees, which could turn into 112 degrees if the worst-case scenario turns out to be true. That is hotter than the record temperature for the area, which was 110 in 1980 and 110 in the drought year of 1936.

Mr. Robb said that the project, if it is built, would be done without cost to the water district as the data center would build its own infrastructure like any other new customer. He said he shared a lot of the concerns people raised, but that if people want the project stopped, “Talk to Congress or your elected officials.” He said that the situation was beyond the board’s control. “We have to supply them with the water if it’s available,” he said.

Many people were skeptical of a water usage agreement between the proposed data center and the district. But Mr. Adwell said, “They’re only going to get so much. If they come back to us later and want more water, they’re not getting it.” “But then they will dig up water from the ground,” said Ms. Gillespie. Many people in the area of the proposed data center have well water and are not hooked up to the district. The fear is that digging up water from the ground would mean they run out of water.

“People tell me all the time to go talk to other people,” said Ms. Gillespie. “I’ve already talked to everyone. Think of all the crop production being lost.”

Mr. Beatty said the data center was looking for more and more land and that they would not stop if they got the current proposed project off the ground. He said people near Bedison were getting offers and someone else had been looking at 500 acres of land. “And they’re all real estate agents. They don’t tell you who they are working for,” said Mr. Beatty, noting that one landowner had backed out after they didn't get straight answers about why they wanted the land.

The Rural Water District is currently serving 2,828 customers. Water usage is high due to recent rains and washouts. Repair expenses are expected to rise.

The project hooking up some new rural Sheridan customers is nearing completion, with $204,000 of the budgeted $250,000 having been spent.

The district got the audit back from the auditor; it will be approved at the next meeting.

Future meetings will focus on rate increases due to the City of Maryville raising its water rates.

The board went into closed session to discuss legal matters under Section 610.021 (1).

 

 

Details of Data Center Feasibility Study Draft Released

A feasibility study draft commissioned by the Nodaway County Public Water Supply District was released Tuesday afternoon. It was conducted by Lamp Rynearson of Kansas City under the supervision of White Cloud Engineering. It evaluated potable and non-potable water service alternatives for the proposed data center for southern Nodaway County. This is a draft report and is subject to revision.

The District has not made any determination regarding whether water service will be provided or what their preferred alternative. Upon completion, the study will serve as one of several resources available to the board as it considers future requests. The board will take no action until it reviews the final study, considers applicable legal and regulatory requirements, evaluates impact on existing customers, and listens to further public comment. The board has a stated goal of putting residential customers first in the event of a drought or other serious water emergency.

The proposed data center will need an estimated minimum of 82,000 gallons per day, on average, to run the site. It covers 12,000 for potable water and 70,000 gallons per day for cooling water. The cooling water demand is seasonal; however, the fluctuation levels are unknown at this time. The cooling system may require an initial fill that may necessitate a 500,000 gallon per day flow rate. The study assumed the data center would have equalization and storage on site to be able to handle swings in demand. 

The first option looked at involves potable water from the Rural Water District. The proposed site would be able to tap directly into a 4” diameter transmission line, which should enable a draw of 400,000 gallons per day. If more flow is needed, there is a six inch diameter line two miles south of the proposed facility. The Rural Water District could be used to meet just the domestic water demand or the total site water demand. The price is estimated to be $9.15 per 1,000 gallons based on current information, but is expected to rise due to recouping the impending costs of planned infrastructure improvements at Maryville.

The estimated cost would be $450,000 to the data center if only potable water were used, and $1,450,000 if it drew all of its water from the Rural Water District.

The advantages listed include no additional water conveyance infrastructure required, since Evergy is building a power station right next to the proposed facility that will need 90,000 gallons of water per day. There is minimal additional treatment needed, and the Water District has the capacity. Disadvantages listed include the fact that it may hinder future industrial or residential growth in the service area if demand nears capacity. Another disadvantage listed included poor optics over the use of potable water for industrial activities.

The second option involve using potable water from the Maryville water system, where the data center could construct a dedicated pump station at the Water Treatment Plant and draw the water to the site. Maryville is permitted for an average 1.5 million gallons per day and a total design capacity of 5.6 million gallons per day. It would have the capacity to meet the data center’s needs. It would require construction of a dedicated pump station and pipeline, using right-of-way along existing roads. Maryville water could be used to either meet just the demand for potable water or the entire industrial demand of the site. 

Advantages listed include minimal additional treatment needed by the data center, minimal need to acquire additional right-of-way, and the fact that Maryville has the capacity.

One disadvantage is the cost; it would cost $1,370,000 if they drew potable water only from Maryville and $6,260,000 if it purchased all of its water from the city. Other disadvantages listed included limited industrial or residential growth in Maryville and the surrounding areas if water demand nears capacity, poor optics over the use of potable water for industrial activities, and the fact that potable water piping will prevent using the same trench for wastewater piping should the facility need to send wastewater back to the Maryville Wastewater Treatment Facility.

The third option involves onsite wells. The proposed project is in one of the areas of lowest water yield. Many users in the area obtain water from wells; however, the groundwater in the area is variable. It would incur the lowest capital cost; however, the study said it was unknown whether local aquifers could meet the demands of the data center. At this time, the study said that the uncertainty around that option rendered it infeasible. Additional test wells could determine whether such an option is realistic.

Advantages listed included minimal additional treatment needed by the user. There would be no need to acquire right-of-way or easements. There would be no need for the data center to coordinate with Maryville, the Rural Water District, or other entities other than regulators. There would be no off-site pipeline construction required. Disadvantages included the fact that it would require test wells and drawdown studies to determine if it was feasible. There would be no revenue generation for Maryville or the Rural Water District. There would be poor optics from using potentially scarce groundwater for industrial purposes. There would be no backup plan if supplemental water was needed.

The fourth option is effluent from the Maryville Wastewater Treatment Facility. This involves construction of a pump station at the effluent and pipe it to the data center. They would construct their own storage tank or pond and treat it to meet cooling specifications. The Maryville Wastewater Treatment Facility discharges 2.6 million gallons per day, which would cover the needs of the data center. The 102 has a flow range of 100 to 300 cubic feet per second, so the study says that the plant effluent would affect it minimally, given that it would average four cubic feet per second. It would require construction of a dedicate pump station. The estimated cost would be $6.3 million.

Advantages listed included the fact that it was a new source of revenue for Maryville, no need to acquire right-of-way or easements, the ability to use the same trench and right-of-way to send water back to Maryville, and better optics for the data center and the government by avoiding use of fresh or potable water. Disadvantages listed include the fact that more water treatment would be needed and the fact that water quality may vary.

A fifth option, drawing water from other facilities, was not deemed feasible. The two nearest sources are the ANR Pipeline Company’s Maitland Compressor Station and the City of Barnard’s Wastewater Treatment Plant. The danger is that at minimum flow, even both plants together cannot meet site water demand.

The sixth option, drawing water from the 102, would meet water demand of the data center and use existing rights-of-way to route water to the site. It would require just over one mile of piping and a pump station near the river to draw water. Estimated cost would be $1.9 million, making it one of the lowest-cost options; however, the study said the costs would be higher due to the higher variable of water quality. 

The biggest disadvantage, as locals have noted, is that during droughts, one can walk across the 102. Others listed include variable water quality and quantity, poor optics of using surface water in a region where droughts have occurred, and no new revenue source for Maryville or Public Water Supply District #1.

Wastewater treatment costs would be in addition to the costs presented above. Assuming usage of 70,000 gallons of water per day, the center would need to treat 35,000 gallons per day of wastewater. It would be administered through a DNR permit requiring some form of a physical, chemical, or biological treatment before discharge into the 102. 

The study says that evaluation of wastewater treatment feasibility is limited because the quality is unknown and discharge limits are not set until DNR review. 

The report recommended using potable water from the Rural Water District, using industrial water from the Maryville Wastewater Treatment Facility, and then sending pretreated industrial wastewater back to the Maryville facility. 

The study recommended discussion between the Rural Water District, the City of Maryville, and the data center to determine who pays for which components of the system, estimate water quality, and finalization of industrial water demand. 

Draft of Data Center Study Released to Water District

A draft of the feasibility study that was commissioned by the Nodaway County Rural Water District has been given to the board, the District announced at its regular meeting Monday. The board members will review the study and then it will be released to the public following approval.

The study looked at four options regarding data center development for the proposed facility south of Maryville. The first was drawing water out of the 102 River. Scale Microgrids, the developer of the project, requested 12,000 to 15,000 gallons of water per day for domestic use by the employees and 70,000 galloons a day for production and industrial usage. The center would be responsible for complying with DNR, EPA, and District standards.

The study in question looked at the following options:

--Expansion of District infrastructure to allow the volume to come from Maryville;

--Increasing the scope and costs to allow the center to piggyback onto the nearby Evergy project, which is drawing water from Andrew County;

--Using wastewater presently discharged from the City of Maryville, then piping it back to Maryville for discharge into the 102;

--Drawing directly from the 102. This could bypass Water District input, but would then make it subject to Army Corp of Engineers regulations.

Some options have already been ruled out. One is digging for groundwater. The other option ruled out was drawing water from the Missouri River.

The study is paid for by Scale Microgrids and conducted by an outside agency with oversight from Brock Pfost.

Around 50 people were present, several of whom spoke at the meeting Monday. Board President Dean Adwell had participants limit their speeches to five minutes. “We’re all adults here,” he said.

Jennifer Gillespie said that her family had lived near where the proposed project would be built and that they own 40 acres right next to where it would be built. She said that the reps at the public meeting at Mozingo were not there to ask for approval, but to make a sales pitch. She said that there were two data centers in Smithville, one in Platte County, and one planned for St. Joseph and that part of the goal was to train AI so that they could eventually take everyone’s jobs. “That’s pretty scary for our kids,” Ms. Gillespie said. She cited recurring concerns about light, water, and air pollution. “The elites can’t make water,” she said. She said that the proliferation of data centers was “like a disease spreading all over the US. Are you for profit, or are you for providing rural water,” she asked. “If this project is built, what happens to our rural water?”

Holly Caviness asked, “What guarantees will be have that we will have equal priority? What oversight and monitoring will you do if they draw from the 102? Will you commit to commissioning an independent study?”

Nancy Zeliff talked about what she saw as the lack of transparency and the secrecy. She said that Iowa, which has a lot of CAFO’s, has one of the top two or three cancer rates in the nation. “And we found this out 30 years after the fact,” she said. She said that Palo Alto County (IA), where she was originally from, had the highest cancer rate in the state and that Northern Iowa stinks because of the CAFO odor. She said that since she had gotten involved in the struggle against the data center, she had received notes of encouragement from people in Fairfax and Rock Port. She noted that Rock Port’s citizens had banded together to successfully stop a toxic waste incinerator from being built there in 1986. “70% of Americans don’t want data centers,” she asked.

Scott Wilson of Bolckow said he was not convinced that the wastewater method would be safe. Regarding the option to draw water from the City of Maryville, Mr. Wilson said, “It would not be popular to turn Mozingo Lake into a mud puddle.”

One of the arguments made against the proposed data center was that of Riparian rights, or the principle that people downstream have just as much right to water usage as people upstream. Speaking of the Bolckow water system, Mike Wilson, who is the father of Scott Wilson, said, “We pump millions of gallons of water to people. We don’t want it contaminated.” He noted that the study said nothing about the rights of downstream water users like the City of Bolckow.

Julie Nielson, who lives three miles from the proposed project, said that since noise affects cattle even more than humans and affects fertility by as much as 40%, it would harm their cattle operation. “This is cattle country, and future generations want to live here too,” she said. “We want to know what was said between you and the developer and why we weren’t included.”

Wayne Beatty is a sixth generation cattle producer who lives near the project. “You’re trying to turn this into crap,” he said. He feared the rise in heat near the data center, which he said could be between five and 25 degrees. “What if it’s 100 degrees out? If we fight this, we will still have our air, cattle, and water.”

“You haven’t said one thing; do you even care,” asked Jennifer Gillespie. “Either you are for it or against it. Would you want to live next to one? I know you guys enjoy the outdoors and conservation.”

At that point, people began answering questions about the project. Brock Pfost said that the focus of the district was on water and that the topic should stay on water. “I’ve lived here for over 60 years,” he said. Board President Dean Adwell said that they will take into account everyone’s comments and that they were not for the data center or against it; they were gathering information.

One topic that came up was that of droughts. While this has been one of the wettest years in recent memory, there has been a lot of drought in the area in recent years. If there were an extreme drought, under the district’s policy approved by the board, the water district would give service to residential households and the hospital first; they would be the last customers to be shut off in the event of such an emergency.

If the data center were to draw water directly from the 102, there would be the problem of what to do in the event of a major drought. “I can walk across the 102 during a drought,” Mr. Beatty said.

Mr. Pfost said that the district has a lot of contingency plans for droughts. They have alternative connections, including with Clarinda and Red Oak if the need ever arises. They are working on one in Atchison County where, if it goes through, would allow the district to use some underutilized water from Rock Port. They also own the pond south of Gentry that serves Grant City, Stanberry, and Parnell. The Rural Water District gets 90% of its water from Maryville, and the ongoing goal is to diversify its water sources in the event of an emergency.

The topic turned to the Evergy plant that is being built next to the proposed data center. It will use 90,000 gallons of water per day, and the water will be piped from Savannah through Andrew County Rural Water District #3 to the Nodaway County Rural Water District. Evergy will fund a tentative 95% of the costs to build the infrastructure. But Mr. Pfost said that the District has not signed an agreement with either the data center or Evergy regarding water service.

Nothing was on the agenda or voted on regarding the data center at Monday’s meeting. Nick Robb, who serves as the attorney for the Water District, said that before any action was taken, it would be put on the agenda and people would have an opportunity to weigh in. “All the board is doing is their due diligence regarding the project,” Mr. Robb said.

The Water District hooked up one new Nodaway County customer last month. They received 302 locate requests. Parnell had two pump stations taken down by lightning by the recent storm; they were replaced. The storm also had seven washouts. The Water District finished their 3” line to the Sheridan area and is in the process of hooking up 13 new customers.

While the Water District is on a sound financial footing, one area of concern is water rates. Maryville is raising its rate to the Water District by 50% effective January 1st, 2027 and by another 50% effective January 1st, 2028 to help pay for its new treatment plant. The water loss rate was 13% for May and is around 16% for the year.