Rivanna is a wholesale water & wastewater utility
What Rivanna Does: We store and treat water for consumption, then deliver to City of Charlottesville and Albemarle County Service Authority (ACSA); then collect, recover and treat wastewater from the City of Charlottesville, ACSA, and septic service companies to safely return it to the river.
How we do it: Own or operate all major water supply, recovery facilities (reservoirs, treatment plants, major transmission lines). To do this, we establish wholesale rates and charges for the cost of that service which include operating and capital costs. These rates and charges are then used to bill our two customers, the City of Charlottesville and the Albemarle County Service Authority (ACSA). As a wholesaler, Rivanna is not responsible for billing or providing service connections the individual end users.
We deliver to City of Charlottesville and Albemarle County Service Authority (ACSA).
The City Utilities Department and ACSA are retail public water & wastewater utilities
What the City/ACSA Do: Deliver drinking water from Rivanna to residential, commercial, and industrial users; provide fire protection through network of fire hydrants; collect all wastewater from households and businesses to send back to Rivanna for proper treatment before returning to river.
How they do it: Own/operate water transmission facilities and wastewater lines in the City of Charlottesville/ACSA service area. Provide guidance and planning to Rivanna for future quality and quantity needs of their customers; set retail rates to cover cost of distribution, collection, and fire hydrants, as well as Rivanna’s wholesale cost. The City and ACSA bill individual customers based on the rates set by each retail utility respectively.
Who Benefits?
The Community At-Large (homes, industrial facilities, hospitals, restaurants, farms, fire departments) and the Environment!
