SITKA — Two companies are looking to secure new bulk water contracts in a million-dollar deal with Sitka officials to export water from a city lake.
Alaska Bulk Water Inc. and Arctic Blue Waters gained early approval Monday from Gary Paxton Industrial Park’s board of directors. Board members voted to recommend the Sitka Assembly approve the groups’ contracts, The Sitka Sentinel reported.
Arctic Blue Waters, headed by Fred Paley, is requesting the majority of the billions of gallons of water available from Blue Lake and will pay most of the $1.1 million for the water rights. The deal is similar to Alaska Bulk Water’s previous contract with the city, which was for $1 million.
Alaska Bulk had held water rights to the lake for nearly 10 years until earlier this year. It lost its contract with the city in February when it failed to meet performance requirements and pay the $1 million needed to renew the contract.
“ABWI was funded through one of its wealthy board members up until last fall when this person did not fulfill the obligation of $1 million that ABWI had offered the City and Borough of Sitka for a renewal of its contract. This board member resigned,” explained Terry Trapp, who runs the company, in the recent proposal.
The two companies filed separate proposals and describe their relationship as “operating at arm’s length and not as a joint entity.”
Terms of the three contracts that will head to the Assembly for approval include a requirement that the companies ship 50 million gallons of water in the first three years. The 20-year deal also requires the water to be sold untreated.
