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The Commission acknowledges that from time to time, either through the initial construction or post-construction period, there may be an unusual impact on a given area or community. This may be in the form of community inconvenience during construction and/or lasting impact on an area resulting from the addition of a new facility or expansion of an existing facility. In the past, in order to get permits or the necessary approvals to build facilities in or through park land, major non-water- and non-sewer-related park improvements have been included and funded by water and sewer ratepayers. In nonpark areas, the counties have included non-water- and non-sewer-related features desired by a community as part of approved CIP projects. In today’s financial environment, accountability, spending affordability and overall belt-tightening are necessary. Consistent with recommendations made in the Report of the Working Group on WSSC Spending Controls, mitigative measures must be carefully evaluated and costs closely scrutinized.

This is not to say that mitigative measures within host communities are not appropriate. In fact, on a regular basis, the Commission makes allowances during right-of-way acquisition, or as part of the design, and frequently adds community amenities to facilities to compensate communities for disruption during construction as well as for long-term disturbance. Basic Commission policy in siting and building water and sewer pipelines and facilities requires that areas impacted be left in as close a state as possible to that which existed before the system improvement was made. This is much easier to do in pipeline projects than is possible for facility projects. (GM 94-01)