What We Know: The city of Willard is turning to satellites to help track down millions of gallons of missing water.
What It Means: City leaders are moving forward with a $48,000-a-year contract with Asterra. The company uses satellites to detect underground water leaks.
And Willard has plenty of water to find.
An audit showed the city lost more than 72 million gallons in 2024. That jumped to 81 million gallons last year. City officials blame much of the problem on Willard’s roughly 40-year-old pipe system.
Public Works Director Trevor Hoffman says underground leaks can be difficult to find, especially when the water never reaches the surface.
The satellite system can reportedly detect leaks as deep as 10 feet underground and as small as two-tenths of a gallon per minute.
What’s Next: City Administrator Matthew Henry says the technology should give crews a more exact location to start looking instead of digging up water lines only to discover there isn’t a leak.
There’s no exact date yet for the satellite surveying to begin. Willard plans to get started as soon as the contract is finalized.
(Photo provided by the city of Willard Facebook page)