By springtime, all residents of Fox Road will be on the county waterline that will be installed starting in November.
Several years ago, the drinking water on Fox Road just north of Rockingham off U.S. Highway 1 was found to be contaminated with a chemical known as 1,2-DBCP or 1,2-Dibromo-3-chloropropane, according to the Environmental Health Office of the Richmond County Health Department. The contamination was deemed to be from peach orchard pesticides, according to County Manager Rick Sago.
Phase I of this project stretched about eight miles, and covered 111 potential residents, and not all of them had contaminated wells, according to Sago.
Phase II of this project will begin next month, according to Ben Clawson, project manager with Municipal Engineering.
“The project will consist of constructing a 12-foot waterline that will run along Fox Road and N.C. Highway 177,” said Clawson. “The length of this line will be approximately 25,000 linear feet and also include fire hydrants and other related appurtenances.”
Richmond County Public Works Director Bryan Land said funding has been good.
“One of the largest accomplishments of all on this project was the funding assistance that we have been able to secure for the project,” said Land. “Richmond County will only be responsible for approximately one percent of the total cost, not the standard 10 percent that we are accustomed to cost-sharing. This is almost unheard of for a project of this magnitude and speaks volumes to the teamwork and many hours of sweat equity that goes into these projects, not just from Richmond County, but also Municipal Engineering and the numerous state funding agencies that were involved in making the dream of county water to the residents of the Fox Road area a dream come true.”
“Project funding is being provided in part by North Carolina Rural Economic Development Center, The Department of Commerce - Community Investment, and the Bernard Allen Memorial Emergency Drinking Water Fund,” said Clawson. “The low bidder was Concord Builders and other firms that bid on this project include Temple Grading and Construction, Hall Contracting Corporation, Landsdown Earth and Pipe Inc., DeVere Construction, and State Utility Contractors, Inc.”
The start date for the project is expected to be mid-November with the completion date being expected sometime around mid-May, according to Clawson.
“Fox Road Phase II is a great addition to our county water system,” said Land. “It helps us to complete a vital loop within our county’s water system and helps assure quality drinking water for our citizens.”
— Staff Writer Dawn M. Kurry can be reached at 910-997-3111, ext. 15, or by email at dkurry@heartlandpublications.com.
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