UTILITIES
Electric Power
The Northern Indiana Public Service Company (NIPSCO). a private investor-owned utility, and the non-profit, member-owned Kankakee Valley REMC (Rural Electric Marketing Co-operative) provide electric power service to Starke County. NIPSCO provides power service to a large region in the northern third of the state of Indiana. The Kankakee Valley REMC serves 16,500 customers in Starke County and six surrounding counties, with approximately 1,800 miles of energized line. In general terms, NIPSCO serves the urban regions of Starke County, and the rural regions tend to be served by the Kankakee Valley REMC.
The Kankakee Valley REMC (KVREMC) is physically connected to the NIPSCO transmission and distribution system. The KVREMC is part of the Wabash Valley Power Association, which purchases power on behalf of 24 member-owned REMC's in Indiana and Michigan. The Wabash Valley Power Association has had particular success in buying and brokering power requirements in this region, passing on the savings to member REMC's. The region is home to some of the lowest electric power costs in the nation.
As an example of attractive power costs, the table below indicates that for typical manufacturing uses, the cost of electric power is generally lower in comparison to other areas of the Midwest. This is doubly attractive as the Midwest generally has lower than average electrical costs relative to the nation.
|
TYPICAL MONTHLY INDUSTRIAL ELECTRIC BILLS | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 500 KW 200,000 Kwh |
1,000 KW 400,000 Kwh |
10,000 KW 5,000,000 Kwh |
50,000 KW 25,000,000 Kwh | ||
| Starke County (KVREMC) |
8,835 | 20,630 | 234,800 | 1,173,800 | |
| Peoria, IL | 14,083 | 78,489 | 315,613 | 1,401,200 | |
| Chicago, IL | 15,449 | 31,063 | 335,802 | 1,276,275 | |
| Indianapolis, IN | 10,226 | 20,142 | 215,066 | 1,065,446 | |
| Detroit, MI | 14,352 | 28,438 | 295,241 | 1,421,918 | |
| Grand Rapids, MI | 11,696 | 23,291 | 267,600 | 1,337,600 | |
| Columbus, OH | 11,623 | 21,985 | 195,030 | 911,965 | |
| Madison, WI | 11,051 | 22,022 | 247,460 | 1,236,900 | |
Sources: Kankakee Valley REMC, and Edison Electric Institute Typical Bills and Average Rates Report, Summer 2000. Mid load factors are used to calculate rates. | |||||
NIPSCO is the power producer and provider to the state's (and nation's) center for steel production in Northwest Indiana. Thus, the utility has extensive experience and capability to deal with large and highly varying electrical demand loads for heavy industrial users.
Natural Gas
Northern Indiana Public Service Company (NIPSCO) provides natural gas service to Starke County. NIPSCO is the largest gas utility in the state of Indiana. It provides service to 2.3 million people in northern Indiana and covers a 14,000 square mile territory in the northern third of the state.
NIPSCO purchases gas from five pipelines and has supply arrangements with 17 producers. Consequently, NIPSCO has been able to offer competitive rates for customers and provide security of supply from a variety of sources.
Telecommunications
Sprint Corporation provides telephone and telecommunications services for Starke County. In total, Sprint Corporation provides local telephone service to 8.2 million residential and business customers in 18 states. Sprint also provides long distance service to the County. Sprint's all-digital long distance network ranks as the third largest long distance service provider in the nation.
Residents of Starke County also have access to Sprint's world-wide Internet network, via its own network or direct connections with other backbone providers. (not sure about this). Sprint's IP (internet protocol) network is estimated to carry about one-quarter of the world's internet traffic.
At the local service level, Sprint has made substantial investments in upgrading to digital switching and installation of fiber optics cabling to enable enhanced security and high speed transmission of data over existing copper telephone lines. Digital subscriber line (DSL) services and complete SS7 services (call waiting, forwarding, voice mail, etc.) for business customers are now available in Knox, and will soon be available in North Judson and Hamlet. Multiple routing systems for fiber optic cables have been installed in these communities to ensure continuous service provision in the event of a cable rupture. In response to specific need, Sprint has installed T1 lines for large-scale users of data in the business community, and for the libraries and schools of the County.
Sprint has made a major commitment to the economic future of Starke County in this information age. Investments over the past few years have included the installation and burial of telephone and fiber optic cable, and the construction and installation new plant and equipment, totalling more than 5.5 million dollars. Sprint has 25 employees working full time in Starke County.
Water Treatment and Supply
The City of Knox, the Town of North Judson, and the Town of Hamlet provide water supply and treatment services to their communities and adjacent industrial parks. The City of Knox operates wells and treatment plants to provide a service level at 750,000 gallons per day (gpd). Current usage is approximately 500,000 gpd. The water treatment plant filters incoming water supply, filters for iron removal, and adds chlorine to and fluoridates outgoing supplies.
Wells are the source for water supply system for the Town of North Judson. The water treatment plant chlorinates and pressure filters water before entering the distribution system, which has a maximum capacity of 1.73 mgd. Two water towers, one at 120,000 gallons, and another at 100,000 gallons ensure sufficient volume and pressure for peak loads and fire suppression.
The Town of Hamlet operates wells that have a maximum pumping capacity of 2.1 million gpd. Water is chlorinated prior to distribution. Average daily water use is 90,000 gpd.
Wastewater Collection and Treatment
The City of Knox, the Town of North Judson, and the Town of Hamlet provide wastewater collection and treatment services to their communities and adjacent industrial parks. The City of Knox wastewater treatment facility has a capacity of 700,000 gallons per day (gpd), and a peak capacity of 1.8 gpd. Current demand is approximately 450,000 to 500,000 gpd. Pre-treatment is provided by many of the industries connected to the system. Storm water runoff has been separated from the sanitary sewer system.
The Town of North Judson operates an activated sludge, class 2-wastewater treatment system. The system capacity is 470,000 gpd, with a maximum design flow of 908,000 gpd. Prior to discharge, treated waste is aerated, chlorinated and de-chlorinated.