January 3, 2024 |
Photo – Wastewater Treatment Facility in Jackson, WY – Courtesy wyowarn.org
The town of Medicine Bow is considering joining a state-wide mutual aid agreement to share water system equipment.
During the November 13th Medicine Bow town council meeting, Public Works Director Brian Lashley brought up the possibility of having the town join WYOWARN, the Wyoming Water and Wastewater Agency Response Network. Lashley said WYOWARN is a mutual aid agreement where other municipalities will provide labor and equipment to the town in the event of an emergency. The public works director said the service is free and wondered why the town wasn’t already a WYOWARN member.
WYOWARN describes itself as “a network of Wyoming water and wastewater utilities that cooperatively prepare for the next natural or man-made disaster by bridging political and jurisdictional boundaries through training, protocols and mutual aid agreements so that the utilities can respond to events beyond their control by sharing personnel, tools and equipment.”
According to the WYOWARN website, over 50 towns, cities, and agencies across Wyoming are members of the mutual aid agreement, including the majority of Carbon County’s municipalities.
Maintenance Operator Frank Fisher said a previous public works director refused to join WYOWARN out of fear that Medicine Bow, being a very small town, would be exploited. However, Fisher explained how the mutual aid agreement benefits member municipalities.
At the time, now former mayor Bradley Buum said he was concerned by how small Medicine Bow is compared to other members, such as Jackson and Cheyenne.
WYOWARN allows towns to share parts and equipment. The town council expressed concern about loaning a large, expensive piece of equipment, such as a tractor, to another part of the state. With such a small workforce, the town’s public works department may not be able to stand having an employee out on loan for a week or more.
Questions were also asked about who would cover the cost of repairs if a piece of equipment was damaged while being used in another town. The council chose to have Town Attorney Cameron Smith review the agreement to ensure it would benefit the town before making a decision.
Fast forward to the December 11th Medicine Bow town council meeting. WYOWARN Regional Co-Chair Michelle Christopher was on hand to explain to the council how the mutual aid agreement works.
Christopher had an answer to the council’s question about loaned equipment repair. The WYOWARN co-chair said unless the town loans out faulty equipment, the borrowing municipality is responsible for any repairs.
Christopher said she used WYOWARN when she was public works director for the town of Baggs. Christopher said through the mutual aid agreement, she was able to quickly have a replacement part ready to be delivered.
Christopher said through WYOWARN, Medicine Bow will have access to parts and equipment from across the state.
Town Attorney Smith said he reviewed the mutual aid agreement and saw no legal issues. However, the town attorney advised the town to open talks with WYOWARN instead of simply signing the presented contract.
Mayor Bradley Buum abruptly resigned before the December 11th town council meeting. Per Wyoming law, only the mayor may enter into legally binding agreements. As such, Justin George, who was serving as mayor pro tem at the time, was unable to sign the agreement. However, Mayor Pro Tem George indicated that the town was open to the idea of entering into the WYOWARN mutual agreement in the future.
