Drinking Water Planning - Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet

What is the Capacity Development Program?

The Capacity Development Program was created under the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) Amendments of 1996. Capacity Development is a process for public water systems to acquire and maintain the capacity (or capability) to consistently provide safe drinking water now and long into the future.

There are three components of capacity development: technical, managerial, and financial. Technical capacity consists of source water adequacy, infrastructure adequacy (including source, treatment, distribution and storage), and technical knowledge and implementation. Managerial capacity consists of ownership accountability, staffing and organization, and effective external linkages. Financial capacity consists of revenue sufficiency, credit worthiness, and fiscal management and controls. Short- and long-term planning is where these three components overlap, as illustrated in the Venn Diagram below:

Venn diagram illustrating short- and long-term planning as the overlap of technical, managerial, and financial capacities

In this context, capacity means the capability, adequacy, and competency of a drinking water system to supply safe drinking water now and into the distant future.

The Division of Water evaluates drinking water systems across the state based on these three components during a process called the Sanitary Survey. Sanitary Surveys are conducted every 3 years for Community Water Systems and every 5 years for Non-community Water Systems.

The Capacity Development Strategy.pdf has been revised according to requirements of America's Water Infrastructure Act of 2018 and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, based on recommendations made by the Kentucky Water Utilities Advisory Committee.

Asset Management

An effective tool that can be used to help drinking water systems achieve technical, managerial, and financial capacity is Asset Management. It is a process of managing our utilities by maintaining the desired level of service at the lowest life cycle cost.

Five Core Components of Asset Management:

Asset Inventory
Service Level
Critical Asset Assessment
Life Cycle Costing
Long-term Funding Strategy

Benefits of Asset Management:

Increased knowledge of asset location and condition
Increased understanding of which assets are critical to the utility
Greater ability to plan and pay for future repairs and replacements
Better prioritization of capital improvement projects
Better operational decisions
More efficient operation
Improved emergency response
Rates based on sound information
Increased acceptance of rates
Improved customer communication and service

Resources for Asset Management:

Emergency Response Plans

Preparing, maintaining, and exercising an Emergency Response Plan (ERP) are all essential to the fluid operation of a public water system. The purpose of an ERP is to spell out a water system's plan of action in the event of a disaster or emergency, i.e., tornado, staff shortage, winter storm, MCL violation, flood, drought, etc.

An effective ERP will prepare each staff member for any emergency situation. In the best-case scenario, all infrastructure, equipment, and personnel will be ready and out of harm's way in the event of a natural or man-made disaster.