Wyandotte Municipal Services
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Wyandotte Municipal Services | |
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| Type | Non-Profit, Consumer-Owned |
| Founded | 1889 in Wyandotte, Michigan, USA |
| Headquarters |  Wyandotte, Michigan, USA |
| Key people | Melanie L. McCoy General Manager |
| Industry | Electric, Water, Telecommunications |
| Products | Electric Service, Broadband Internet, VoIP, Water Services |
| Website | www.wyan.org |
Contents |
[edit] About
Wyandotte Municipal Services is a not-for-profit service provider located in Wyandotte, Michigan. The services that WMS provides are Electric, Cable Telecommunications, and Water supply to the City of Wyandotte. WMS was created by local residents more than 100 years ago, and is still going strong today.
The City of Wyandotte, Michigan is the only community to own and operate its own power plant, water treatment plant, and cable TV headend.
[edit] Electric Services
Back in December 1889, the Wyandotte Electric Light company initially provided street lighting and electric service for the city.[1] At this time, the company was a for-profit company. After a few years, residents had a vote to create a municipal electric utility.[2]
Currently, WMS is one of the 41 public power systems in Michigan. It is one of 2,000 public power systems in the United States. The electric system alone generates $22.2 million in revenues, and sold 282 million kilowatt-hours in the year 2001. Also, it is a member of the American Municipal Power-Ohio.[3]
Peak electric demands, which occur during the summer, span from 65,000 to 70,000 kilowatts (65 to 70 megawatts). The electric system has three sources of supply to provide reliable, and most economical service:
- A 70-megawatt municipal power plant
- A 28-megawatt interconnection with DTE Energy’s 40,000-volt transmission system
- A 98-megawatt interconnection with DTE Energy’s 120,000-volt transmission system
[edit] Wyandotte Municipal Power Plant
The Wyandotte municipal power plant has three boilers and four generators. Types of fuels that are consumed are coal, natural gas and tire-derived fuel (TDF). TDF is a lot more efficient than coal, has a higher Btu than coal, and is about half the price of coal and produces the mainly the same emissions. 95% of ash produced at the power plant becomes recycled materials like cement, and is used in steel production. 13,000 tons of TDF (which is the equivalent of 2.6 million tires) were used at the power plant in 2001.
[edit] Wyandotte Municipal Electric Distribution System
The electric distribution system is separate from that of the surrounding areas. WMS owns its own lines, which in turn, are connected to the municipal power plant. They consist of 12.5 miles of 69,000-volt transmission lines and 75.3 miles of 13,200-volt and 4,800-volt distribution lines. Also, without additional charge, WMS maintains street lighting in the community.
[edit] Cable Television Services
Starting in 1981, local residents created the Municipal telecommunications utility to provide cable TV. High-speed Internet service was not available up until 2001. A total of 9,972 cable TV customers, and 1,815 high-speed internet customers. The telecommunications system alone generates $4.4 million annually.[4]
The system consists of:
- 75 analog channels
- 53 digital video/audio channels
- Both analog and digital pay-per-view selections
- Five public, education and government access channels without additional charge
The system contributes five percent of gross revenue to the city’s general fund. The system is up-to-date. It was rebuilt from the headend to the consumer in 1998. Again, WMS also owns the lines and they are separate from surrounding communities. It consists of:
- 25-miles of fiber optic lines
- 72-miles of coaxial cable
The system has its benefits over the other communities, both in monthly service charges and in customer service.
[edit] Water Services
Local residents also created the Wyandotte municipal water utility for fire protection, and also a safe source of drinking water. The utility has 11,142 consumers, and $2.4 million alone in revenue. 1.86 billion gallons of water were used in 2001.
[edit] Wyandotte Municipal Water Treatment Plant
Wyandotte is the only downriver community that owns and operates a water treatment plant. The Wyandotte municipal water treatment plant can produce up to 15 million gallons of water per day.[5] The community's water source is the Detroit River, and the treatment process consists of:
- Screen or remove debris
- Add alum for coagulation of suspended particles
- Add chlorine for disinfection
- Add phosphate for stabilization
- Remove all suspended particles through filtration
- Add fluoride to prevent tooth decay
[edit] Wyandotte Municipal Water Distribution System
The municipal water system is again separate then that of surrounding areas. The system consists of:
- 110 miles of water mains ranging from 4 inches to 30 inches in diameter.
- 850 fire hydrants
- 500,000 gallon water tower located in the south end of town
- 4.5 million gallons of storage at ground level for peak demand and fire fighting.
[edit] External links
Wyan.org: Electric, Cable, Telecommunications
Wyandotte.net: Local Community Website
