MUD shows nearly 9.8M gallons lost in July

Water loss topped one-third of MUD’s available July supply as utility board heads into its Tuesday meeting

9:45 a.m. Aug. 10, 2026

DUANE CROSS
MCO Publisher•Editor

The Metro Moore County Utility Department heads into its Tuesday, Aug. 11, board meeting with a short agenda but a monthly packet carrying some sizable numbers — including nearly 9.8 million gallons of water listed as lost during July.

The board meets at 6 p.m. Tuesday. The posted agenda includes recognition of visitors, approval of minutes, the engineer’s report, the manager’s report, and adjournment. No individual projects or action items are listed separately.

Behind that brief agenda, however, the packet provides an updated look at water loss, department finances, and several infrastructure matters discussed last month.

Water loss tops one-third of July supply

MUD produced 24.77 million gallons of water in July and purchased another 2.78 million gallons, putting about 27.55 million gallons into the system.

Customers were billed for approximately 17.77 million gallons.

Under the calculation MUD reports to the state, that leaves 9.782 million gallons lost – 35.5% of the water available to the system during the month.

MUD also tracks known uses that do not generate a customer bill. In July, those included 409,310 gallons attributed to leaks, 60,880 gallons used for flushing, and 29,385 gallons of in-house use.

After accounting for those 499,575 gallons, the department’s internal calculation puts the remaining loss at approximately 9.282 million gallons, or 33.7%.

With 2,788 connections, the packet calculates the loss at roughly 339 gallons per minute across the system during July.

The sewer report also shows a sizable difference between treatment and billed volume. MUD treated 4.207 million gallons of wastewater during July while billing for about 2.94 million gallons. The statistical report lists the 1.266-million-gallon difference at 30%.

July rainfall totaled 7.6 inches.

Chapman Creek project remains on the radar

Tuesday’s packet also includes minutes from the board’s July 14 meeting, when members discussed replacement of the water line along Chapman Creek.

Engineer Bryant Griffin had walked the line with MUD Manager Ronnie Cunningham before that meeting, according to the minutes. No additional project details were presented at the time.

Board member Glen Thomas also raised the possibility of talking with local government about borrowing $1 million. The minutes estimate payments of about $80,000 annually for 25 years, although they do not tie that borrowing discussion specifically to Chapman Creek.

Chairman Barry Posluszny also told the board in July that he had asked Cunningham to begin working on a five-year plan for the utility department.

Those matters could return through Griffin’s engineer’s report or Cunningham’s manager’s report Tuesday, but none is separately identified on the published agenda.

July books show $111,672 accounting loss

MUD’s July accrual-basis profit-and-loss statement reports $320,831.05 in income against $432,503.02 in expenses, leaving a net loss of $111,671.97 for the month.

Expenses included $140,053.11 in payroll costs, $114,710.04 in depreciation, and $81,108.60 in debt-service interest.

Because depreciation is an accounting expense rather than a current cash payment, the $111,672 loss is not the same as a $111,672 cash shortfall.

Metered water sales generated $226,066.93, while domestic sewer charges brought in $78,727.87.

July minutes recap policy, infrastructure decisions

The board will also be asked to approve minutes from its July 14 meeting, which record several policy and infrastructure decisions.

The board created separate government and nonprofit customer categories while keeping both at the same rate charged to residential customers.

Members also voted to require commercial bulk-water customers to establish an account and pay a $500 deposit before purchasing water from the treatment plant.

The board also voted to move forward with the County Line Road and Highway 82 line-extension project by turning the plans and project over to the state for approval.

Tuesday’s published agenda may be lean, but the packet behind it is not: water loss remains above one-third of July’s available supply, while several infrastructure matters carry over from last month.