Lansing Board of Water & Light
Encyclopedia
The Lansing Board of Water and Light is a publicly owned, municipal utility
that provides electricity and water to the residents of the cities of Lansing
and East Lansing
, Michigan
and the surrounding townships of Delta
, Delhi
, Meridian
and DeWitt
. The Lansing Board of Water and Light also provides steam and chilled water services within the City of Lansing
.
The Lansing Board of Water and Light pumps an average of approximately 23 Million Gallons per Day (MGD) from two conditioning plants through approximately 775 miles (1,247.2 km) of water main. Maximum daily demand is on the order of 33 MGD, while the maximum hourly demand rate can be on the order of 42 MGD. Raw water is obtained exclusively by pumping from 124 wells located throughout the Lansing area. All system pressure is generated via pumping; the Lansing Board of Water and Light does not maintain any elevated water storage tanks.
At the John Dye conditioning plant, two pumping stations located on the north and south sides of the plant draw finished water from three ground level storage facilities and pump to the distribution system. The Dye pump station, located on the south side of the conditioning plant, pumps water to the north towards Dewitt Township, Bath Township, and Watertown Township, to the west to Delta Township, and to the local distribution system. The Cedar Street pump station provides supplemental pumping capacity during periods of high demand. The Wise Road conditioning plants similarly pumps water directly into the distribution system, and generally feeds portions of Windsor Township, Delhi Township, and Alaiedon Township. Using a series of normally closed valves and booster stations, a pressure boundary exists roughly along I-96.
The Lansing Board of Water and Light retail customers consist of residential, commercial and industrial customers within the service areas, totalling approximately 56,000 customers. Approximately 48,000 of these customers are residential, 7,000 commercial, while the remaining customers consist of industrial customers. In addition, the Lansing Board of Water and Light sells water on a wholesale basis the local distribution systems in Delta Township and Meridian Township.
LBWL's largest power plant is the Otto E. Eckert Station, and was named after the utility's general manager from 1927 to 1966. The coal-fired generating station is located in downtown Lansing on the Grand River
adjacent to General Motors' Grand River Assembly Plant
, and the now-demolished Lansing Car Assembly Plant
. Begun in 1922 and completed the following year, the power station has undergone numerous expansions and additions since, with the addition of the three chimneys in 1981. The station has a generating capacity of 351MW, produced by burning coal from Wyoming's Powder River Basin
. This plant has three 615 feet (187.5 m) smokestacks, the tallest self supporting structures in south central Michigan
. These stacks are visible from fifteen miles (24 km) on a clear day. The stacks are known locally by the names of Wynken, Blynken, and Nod
, after the fishermen in a poem of the same name by Eugene Field
. It was announced in May 2008 that the plant is scheduled for a phased decommissioning that is scheduled to begin in 2017 and end in 2025.
The LBWL's secondary generating plant is the Claud R. Erickson Station, named after general manager of the utility from 1966 to 1972. The plant located in Delta Township
on Canal Road just south of Mt. Hope Road. This plant, built in 1973, is coal-fired
and has a single generating unit with a capacity of 159 megawatts and is connected to the power grid by three 138,000 volt lines.
The utility's power plant inventory once included the 25 megawatt Ottawa Street Station
on the Grand River
in downtown Lansing. This steam and electrical plant operated from its completion in 1940 until 1992, when it was decommissioned as a power station, with steam and electrical production transferred to the Eckert Station. The station was put back into partial usage as a water chiller plant for the utility in 2001 to cool downtown buildings. In late 2007, LBWL sold the most vacant station to Accident Fund Insurance Company
, national insurance company, that was renovated into their headquarters. At the end of December of that year, in preparation for the renovation, the iconic smokestack portion of the building was taken down.
In July 2010, the Board of Water & Light announced plans to construct a $182 million natural gas-powered electric and steam generation plant along Washington Avenue in Lansing
's REO Town
district. The eight-story, 160000 feet (48,768 m) facility is expected to create 180 jobs upon its opening in January 2013. Construction of the new power station began in May 2011.
During periods of high demand, the Lansing Board of Water and light purchases 146 megawatts of electricity from Detroit Edison
's Belle River Power Plant
located in East China Township, Michigan
, south of Port Huron
. The LBWL has two 138KV interconnections (Davis-Oneida line and the Davis-Enterprise line) with Consumers Energy
/METC
from its substation on Jolly Road just east of Pennsylvania Ave on Lansing's south side.
Public utility
A public utility is an organization that maintains the infrastructure for a public service . Public utilities are subject to forms of public control and regulation ranging from local community-based groups to state-wide government monopolies...
that provides electricity and water to the residents of the cities of Lansing
Lansing, Michigan
Lansing is the capital of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is located mostly in Ingham County, although small portions of the city extend into Eaton County. The 2010 Census places the city's population at 114,297, making it the fifth largest city in Michigan...
and East Lansing
East Lansing, Michigan
East Lansing is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. The city is located directly east of Lansing, Michigan, the state's capital. Most of the city is within Ingham County, though a small portion lies in Clinton County. The population was 48,579 at the time of the 2010 census, an increase from...
, Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
and the surrounding townships of Delta
Delta Charter Township, Michigan
Delta Charter Township, officially known as the Charter Township of Delta and commonly known as simply Delta Township, is a charter township of Eaton County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2010 census, it had a population of 32,408. Delta Township is currently the fourth largest...
, Delhi
Delhi Charter Township, Michigan
Delhi Charter Township is a charter township of Ingham County in the U.S. state of Michigan, located directly south of the state's capital city, Lansing. The population was 25,877 at the 2010 census an increase from 22,569 in 2000...
, Meridian
Meridian Charter Township, Michigan
Meridian Charter Township is a charter township of Ingham County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2010 census the township had a population of 39,688. Meridian Township is the local government unit that includes the unincorporated communities and census-designated places of Okemos and...
and DeWitt
DeWitt Charter Township, Michigan
As of the census of 2000, there were 12,143 people, 4,839 households, and 3,450 families residing in the township. The population density was 383.5 per square mile . There were 5,119 housing units at an average density of 161.7 per square mile...
. The Lansing Board of Water and Light also provides steam and chilled water services within the City of Lansing
Lansing, Michigan
Lansing is the capital of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is located mostly in Ingham County, although small portions of the city extend into Eaton County. The 2010 Census places the city's population at 114,297, making it the fifth largest city in Michigan...
.
History
The Lansing Board of Water and Light is a municipal utility, owned by the citizens of Lansing, Michigan. The utility's roots go back to 1885, when Lansing citizens approved a $100,000 bond issue to build a water system to provide for drinking water and fire protection. Electricity was added to its list of utility services in 1892, and steam heat in 1919.System Information
The Lansing Board of Water and light has an electric generating capacity of 510 megawatts. The LBWL's transmission line voltage is 138,000 volts. The LBWL's distribution voltages are 13,200 volts, 8,320 volts and 4,160 volts.The Lansing Board of Water and Light pumps an average of approximately 23 Million Gallons per Day (MGD) from two conditioning plants through approximately 775 miles (1,247.2 km) of water main. Maximum daily demand is on the order of 33 MGD, while the maximum hourly demand rate can be on the order of 42 MGD. Raw water is obtained exclusively by pumping from 124 wells located throughout the Lansing area. All system pressure is generated via pumping; the Lansing Board of Water and Light does not maintain any elevated water storage tanks.
Water Utility
The Lansing Board of Water and Light obtains all raw water from a series of 124 wells located throughout the city of Lansing, making it one of the few public utilities for large cities that provides water exclusively from wells. The city sits atop, and draws its water from, the Saginaw Aquifer, a natural underground reservoir 4 cubic miles (16.7 km³), and 550 square miles (1,424.5 km²) in size. The raw water is pumped directly to two conditioning plants; the John Dye plant located in downtown Lansing, and the Wise Road plant located on the southwest side of the city. At these plants, water hardness is reduced by adding lime and soda ash to the water, which reacts with dissolved calcium and magnesium to form calcium carbonate and magnesium hydroxide floc. The floc then settles out of the water in large settling basins, and any residual floc is removed via sand and gravel filtering. This process reduces the hardness of the water from approximately 411 parts per million (ppm) to about 85 ppm. The finished water is then chlorinated and fluorinated, and sent to storage prior to distribution.At the John Dye conditioning plant, two pumping stations located on the north and south sides of the plant draw finished water from three ground level storage facilities and pump to the distribution system. The Dye pump station, located on the south side of the conditioning plant, pumps water to the north towards Dewitt Township, Bath Township, and Watertown Township, to the west to Delta Township, and to the local distribution system. The Cedar Street pump station provides supplemental pumping capacity during periods of high demand. The Wise Road conditioning plants similarly pumps water directly into the distribution system, and generally feeds portions of Windsor Township, Delhi Township, and Alaiedon Township. Using a series of normally closed valves and booster stations, a pressure boundary exists roughly along I-96.
The Lansing Board of Water and Light retail customers consist of residential, commercial and industrial customers within the service areas, totalling approximately 56,000 customers. Approximately 48,000 of these customers are residential, 7,000 commercial, while the remaining customers consist of industrial customers. In addition, the Lansing Board of Water and Light sells water on a wholesale basis the local distribution systems in Delta Township and Meridian Township.
Electric Utility
Grand River (Michigan)
The Grand River is the longest river in the U.S. state of Michigan. It runs through the cities of Jackson, Eaton Rapids, Lansing, Grand Rapids, and Grand Haven.-Description:...
adjacent to General Motors' Grand River Assembly Plant
Lansing Grand River
Lansing Grand River Assembly is a modern automobile factory in Lansing, Michigan. Opened in 2001 by General Motors, the plant produces vehicles on the company's Sigma platform. It is the main plant for Cadillac...
, and the now-demolished Lansing Car Assembly Plant
Lansing Car Assembly
Lansing Car Assembly was a General Motors automobile factory in Lansing, Michigan. It contained two elements, a 1901 automobile plant in downtown Lansing, and the 1920 Durant Motors factory on Lansing's Far Westside....
. Begun in 1922 and completed the following year, the power station has undergone numerous expansions and additions since, with the addition of the three chimneys in 1981. The station has a generating capacity of 351MW, produced by burning coal from Wyoming's Powder River Basin
Powder River Basin
The Powder River Basin is a geologic region in southeast Montana and northeast Wyoming, about east to west and north to south, known for its coal deposits. The region supplies about 40 percent of coal in the United States. It is both a topographic drainage and geologic structural basin...
. This plant has three 615 feet (187.5 m) smokestacks, the tallest self supporting structures in south central Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
. These stacks are visible from fifteen miles (24 km) on a clear day. The stacks are known locally by the names of Wynken, Blynken, and Nod
Wynken, Blynken, and Nod
"Wynken, Blynken, and Nod" is a popular poem for children written by American writer and poet Eugene Field and published on March 9, 1889. The original title was Dutch Lullaby....
, after the fishermen in a poem of the same name by Eugene Field
Eugene Field
Eugene Field, Sr. was an American writer, best known for his children's poetry and humorous essays.-Biography:...
. It was announced in May 2008 that the plant is scheduled for a phased decommissioning that is scheduled to begin in 2017 and end in 2025.
The LBWL's secondary generating plant is the Claud R. Erickson Station, named after general manager of the utility from 1966 to 1972. The plant located in Delta Township
Delta Charter Township, Michigan
Delta Charter Township, officially known as the Charter Township of Delta and commonly known as simply Delta Township, is a charter township of Eaton County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2010 census, it had a population of 32,408. Delta Township is currently the fourth largest...
on Canal Road just south of Mt. Hope Road. This plant, built in 1973, is coal-fired
Fossil fuel power plant
A fossil-fuel power station is a power station that burns fossil fuels such as coal, natural gas or petroleum to produce electricity. Central station fossil-fuel power plants are designed on a large scale for continuous operation...
and has a single generating unit with a capacity of 159 megawatts and is connected to the power grid by three 138,000 volt lines.
The utility's power plant inventory once included the 25 megawatt Ottawa Street Station
Ottawa Street Power Station
Ottawa Street Power Station is a former municipal electric and steam utility generating station for the Lansing Board of Water and Light in Lansing, Michigan, located on the Grand River in the city's central business district currently being redeveloped as corporate headquarters for the Accident...
on the Grand River
Grand River (Michigan)
The Grand River is the longest river in the U.S. state of Michigan. It runs through the cities of Jackson, Eaton Rapids, Lansing, Grand Rapids, and Grand Haven.-Description:...
in downtown Lansing. This steam and electrical plant operated from its completion in 1940 until 1992, when it was decommissioned as a power station, with steam and electrical production transferred to the Eckert Station. The station was put back into partial usage as a water chiller plant for the utility in 2001 to cool downtown buildings. In late 2007, LBWL sold the most vacant station to Accident Fund Insurance Company
Accident Fund
Accident Fund Insurance Company of America is a workers' compensation insurance company headquartered in Lansing, Michigan licensed to offer their services in 49 states plus the District of Columbia. The company is an operating unit of Accident Fund Holdings, the 10th largest writer of workers...
, national insurance company, that was renovated into their headquarters. At the end of December of that year, in preparation for the renovation, the iconic smokestack portion of the building was taken down.
In July 2010, the Board of Water & Light announced plans to construct a $182 million natural gas-powered electric and steam generation plant along Washington Avenue in Lansing
Lansing, Michigan
Lansing is the capital of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is located mostly in Ingham County, although small portions of the city extend into Eaton County. The 2010 Census places the city's population at 114,297, making it the fifth largest city in Michigan...
's REO Town
REO Town
REO Town is a district in Lansing, Michigan, located south of downtown. Considered the birthplace of the automobile in the United States, REO Town is named after Ransom Eli Olds, an automobile pioneer, for whom both the Oldsmobile and REO brands were named.Lansing, Michigan, wikipedia.com,...
district. The eight-story, 160000 feet (48,768 m) facility is expected to create 180 jobs upon its opening in January 2013. Construction of the new power station began in May 2011.
During periods of high demand, the Lansing Board of Water and light purchases 146 megawatts of electricity from Detroit Edison
Detroit Edison
The Detroit Edison Company, founded in 1903, is an investor-owned electric utility which serves most of Southeast Michigan. Its parent company, DTE Energy , provides energy services to a variety of clients beyond Detroit Edison's service area.- History :...
's Belle River Power Plant
Belle River Power Plant
Belle River Power Plant is a major coal- and natural gas-fired power plant owned by Detroit Edison, a subsidiary of DTE Energy. It is located in St. Clair County, Michigan, on the peninsula formed by the St. Clair and Belle rivers. The plant was built across M-29 from the St. Clair Power Plant in...
located in East China Township, Michigan
East China Township, Michigan
East China Charter Township is a charter township of St. Clair County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 3,630 at the 2000 census. East China Township is home to the St. Clair and Belle River Power Plants...
, south of Port Huron
Port Huron, Michigan
Port Huron is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the county seat of St. Clair County. The population was 30,184 at the 2010 census. The city is adjacent to Port Huron Township but is administratively autonomous. It is joined by the Blue Water Bridge over the St. Clair River to Sarnia,...
. The LBWL has two 138KV interconnections (Davis-Oneida line and the Davis-Enterprise line) with Consumers Energy
Consumers Energy
Consumers Energy is a public utility that provides natural gas and electricity to more than 6 million of Michigan's 10 million residents. It serves customers in all 68 of the state’s Lower Peninsula counties. It is a division of CMS Energy. Its headquarters is in Jackson.-History:The company was...
/METC
ITC Transmission
ITC Transmission , also known as International Transmission Company, is an electric transmission company based in Novi, Michigan, a Detroit suburb...
from its substation on Jolly Road just east of Pennsylvania Ave on Lansing's south side.