Marathon Water Co-op
2013 Grants awarded
$25,000 for a generator as power backup to pump water into the tower in the event Marathon loses power for an extended period of time. In November 2013 Marathon lost power for three days along with the whole Big Bend area due to a massive ice storm that broke power lines. Marathon was the only town that had water with no interruption through the outage.
Description
The Water Co-op was created in 1968 as a member owned co-op. It operates under a 5 member board that is elected by the members who meet 4-6 times a year depending on what projects are on the schedule.
2015 saw a two foot increase in our water level which is welcome news. Starting in 2009 our water level dropped 9 feet in the following three years and then leveled off for the next couple of years. While we had lots of rain in 2015, aquifers do not recharge that quickly. Some major water users in town reduced their usage a couple of years ago and it is the Co-op's opinion that this is what created the rise. Thank you to whomever those users were.
The Co-op accomplished a major sewer overhaul on critical lines in Marathon, completed in 2020.
