Castle Valley advisers weigh ultrasonic meters, security and maintenance hurdles for a townwide metering plan

A technical presenter (S6) told the Castle Valley advisory committee the group is preparing a catalog of metering options with costs and tradeoffs and recommended the town consider higher‑accuracy ultrasonic meters combined with a secured, dedicated network for data collection.

"I would really love to talk to the person who is available for technical talks and doesn't get bored with it," the presenter said, describing the need to coordinate with a Division of Water Rights technical contact and to plan for maintenance and battery replacement cycles. Committee members noted local Wi‑Fi coverage is too spread out to support simple wireless monitoring and flagged the additional cost and staffing implications of setting up a dedicated telemetry system.

Chair (S1) and members agreed the committee should contact Cash at the Division of Water Rights to identify the appropriate technical reviewer and suggested the town produce a general proposal describing specifications rather than endorsing a specific device before seeking state input. The presenter said some grants and loans for small entities could help cover implementation costs, but availability and eligibility need more research.

Why it matters: Accurate and secure metering is central to the committee's larger goal of documenting water use, satisfying state requirements and protecting surplus rights. Members said they prefer solutions that automate measurement while keeping human review in place for data validation and maintenance planning.

Next steps: Sarah (S5) will contact Cash and the committee will prepare a technical outline to share with state technical staff for review.