Kansas City Board of Public Utilities

The Kansas City Board of Public Utilities (BPU) is a privately owned, not-for-profit public utility servicing Wyandotte County that is headquartered in Kansas City, Kansas. Overall, BPU provides service to 127.5 square miles of Wyandotte County. Electric services are provided within the Kansas City, Kansas (KCK) area, and water is supplied to KCK, as well as portions of suburban Wyandotte, Leavenworth, and Johnson counties.
BPU is a publicly owned administrative agency of the Unified Government of Wyandotte County/Kansas City, Kansas (UG), and is self-governed by an elected six-member board of directors. As a municipal utility, BPU is a non-profit operation.
History.
In 1909, the citizens of Kansas City, Kansas, authorized the purchase of a privately owned water system to provide the community with better water service. The electric utility was placed in operation in late 1912. Today, BPU operates as a not-for-profit municipal utility and is an administrative arm of the Unified Government of Wyandotte County, Kansas City, Kansas. It is self-governed, with an elected six-member board of directors.
Energy Generation.
BPU electric plants and delivery systems serve nearly 65,000 customers over 127.5 square miles within the Kansas City, Kansas, area. Power generation facilities consist of three power stations, 29 substations and over 3,100 miles of electrical lines. The Nearman Creek Power Station has a capacity of 315 MW, the Quindaro Power Station can produce 316 MW, and the Kaw Power Station, which is currently inactive, was capable of producing 92 MW.
Energy Generation Facilities include:
BPU has been recognized as one of the country’s most reliable and safe electric utilities, one of only 82 of the more than 2,000 public utility companies in the nation to receive the Reliable Public Power Provider (RP3) award from the American Public Power Association (APPA).
Green Initiatives.
Over the last 15 years, BPU has been investing in alternative energy solutions such as wind, hydroelectric and natural gas. In 2014 BPU signed a 20-year power purchase agreement for approximately 50% of the wind energy produced at the Alexander Wind Farm in Alexander, Kansas. In April 2016, BPU announced a partnership with Google and Trade Wind Partners to purchase power from the Cimarron Bend Wind Project.
Water Services.
BPU operates the Nearman Water Treatment Plant in Kansas City, Kansas, serving over 51,000 residents with clean water. Nearman is, in part, notable for two of the nation’s largest horizontal collector wells, 1,000 miles of water pipes and three major pump stations. Going 135 feet deep, the horizontal collector is capable of bringing in 54-mgd (millions of gallons per day) of raw water from an underground aquifer.
Once in the horizontal collector, the raw water is then pumped up to the plant where it goes through a complex treatment process that includes six dual-media filtration basins and on-site water-quality testing for turbidity, pH balance, and temperature.
In late 2016, renovations to the facility included valve, hydrant, and customer leak detection programs, water treatment filter upgrades, distribution facility maintenance, water main replacement projects, and a four-million-gallon water reservoir. The upgrades were awarded the Platinum Award for Utility Excellence by the Association of Metropolitan Water Agencies (AMWA) for, “Exceeding the industry association’s Attributes of Effective Utility Management.”
emPOWER Education Program.
In 2013, the state of Kansas adopted new standards for science education in K-12 public schools that includes advancing Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) curriculum in every school program. As part of BPU’s Environmental Education and Advocacy initiatives and in conjunction with three Kansas public schools, the emPOWER Education Program was created.
The emPOWER program is described by BPU as a, “...program bringing classroom resources to our community’s public school teachers, such as lesson plans, activity supplies and offering BPU staff members as guest speakers." With contributions from teachers at Turner USD 202, KCK USD 500, and Piper USD 203 school districts, the emPOWER program meets Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) as well as the State of Kansas Common Core School District Standards.
Teachers can access lesson plans and career information for students on the emPOWER website. Categorized by school level (Elementary, Middle and High School), lesson plans cover topics spanning energy, water conservation, and environmental related issues.
Awards and Recognition.
In 2016, BPU was awarded a Gold Stevie Award by The American Business Awards organization for their website's ease-of-use. To better serve its utility customers, BPU updated its website to act as a virtual lobby, providing answers to important questions and key links to primary services. The updated site features a simpler 2-column layout, with more prominent links to outage maps, bill payment screens, and social media pages.
Also in 2016, BPU was awarded a Directors Award by the American Water Works Association for its water treatment operations. This award is granted to utilities that demonstrate an outstanding commitment to delivering superior quality drinking water to customers and dedicated to providing water at a quality level that exceeds regulatory requirements.
Outside of the operating awards received, BPU was also recognized in 2016 for the American Public Power Association (APPA) Community Service Award. This award is given to companies who have demonstrated “good neighbor” commitment to the community. BPU won the award for efforts in volunteering, donations, environmental advocacy, and civic leadership. Additionally, the APPA awarded BPU the Excellence in Public Power Communications Award, which recognizes public utilities who provide customers with quality communication materials. The customer newsletter, BPU Connection, won the award for its, “...easy-to-read format, colorful graphics, and content value.”