Truckee Donner Public Utility District (TDPUD) acquires its water from aquifers hundreds of feet deep all within the Truckee groundwater basin area. The water is transported to Truckee’s higher elevations through a series of pump stations and is stored in water tanks strategically placed throughout the community. There are approximately 13,750 water customers served by the District. 

Truckee water is pure and of a higher quality than most bottled drinking water. The TDPUD’s water system has been elaborately designed with pump stations and storage reservoirs at different elevations to maintain high pressure for fighting urban fires and for all domestic water uses. 

Commercial customers are charged a water allowance and a zone charge and, in some cases, a variable water fee based on actual metered water consumption. The allowance is based on water service size with a limit on water use. Beyond the allowance, commercial customers are charged a separate fee based on the amount of water use exceeding the allowance. A zone charge is added to the water bill to account for the cost of pumping power to higher elevations. 

Residential water customers are currently charged a base rate, usage, and a variable zone charge based on elevation. The zone charge is designed to reflect the higher cost of pumping water to customers at upper elevations. 91% of homes now a have water meter installed and are charged a metered rate. 

Water systems are expensive to build and maintain. Providing water to a community of about 13,750 water connections in Truckee is more complex and costlier than most other places because of our geographic size, our mountain terrain and our winter weather. 

The water system is built larger than needed to supply water to homes and businesses. The size is determined by the need to have water to fight a fire and meet the maximum daily demand for water during our brief peak summer season. 

There are 49 separate isolated zones based on elevation. These facilities need to be operated, maintained, repaired and replaced on a regular basis. Winter conditions impact tanks, pump stations and well buildings. 

The Truckee Donner Public Utility District has a program for annual pipeline replacement and rebuild of pump station buildings as needed. As a small community, we spread our costs over a smaller customer base. This entire picture means that water service in Truckee is more expensive than in many other areas. We will do our best to control costs, yet provide excellent quality water at the right pressure with minimal service interruption.

Water Supply Reliability Analysis and Supporting Data