Department of Watershed Management

The Department of Watershed Management is dedicated to providing the highest quality drinking water and waste water services to residential, business and wholesale customers. The Department’s mission includes delivering excellent customer service and ensuring professional stewardship of Atlanta’s drinking water, waste water and storm water systems. In addition, work is under way on the second or “first amended” consent decree.

This page provides performance data on key indicators related to core areas of the Department’s operations – Customer Service, Billing, Infrastructure Management and Compliance.

In August 2014, in preparation for the launch of the City's new 311 call center, the Department undertook an extensive review and update of the service level agreements (SLAs) and performance targets for all of the 50+ Service Request types that it handles. To ensure data quality and comparability across time, the starting point of the Department's Customer Service data on this page will be August 2014.

Section I - Customer Service

Total customer-initiated service requests and the percentage of those service requests that were resolved within the Department's target timeframes

All Customer Service Requests (Total Department)

This figure shows the total volume of all customer service requests that the Department of Watershed Management (DWM) receives on a monthly basis. [This covers every element of the Department’s operations – from billing queries to leaking hydrant complaints and reports of missing street plates.] It also shows DWM’s performance in fulfilling those requests on time each month.

Turning On New Account Service Requests

This figure measures the number of new customer account requests that DWM receives each month. It also measures the Department’s responsiveness in activating those accounts within 24 hours of the request being made.

Meter Investigation Service Requests

This figure measures the number of meter investigations carried out by DWM each month, and the Department’s performance in carrying out those investigations in a timely manner. Customers can request a meter investigation where they believe there is something wrong with their meter that is causing it to give false readings about the amount of water they are consuming. DWM’s target is to complete a meter investigation within 7 business days of the customer making the request.

Street Flooding Inspection Service Requests

This figure measures DWM’s responsiveness to customer service calls about water pooling in city streets. Because this pooling can be a symptom of several different problems, the first course of action is always for Watershed staff to inspect the site and determine the root cause of the problem. DWM has a goal of responding to all such customer calls and initiating an inspection within 4 hours.

Drinking Water Quality Complaint Service Requests

This figure reports the number of customer complaints received by DWM about the quality of its drinking water. The Department’s target is to resolve each complaint within 8 hours of it being reported.

Section II - Billing

Estimated Bills as a Percent of Bills Issued

The Department has made a big effort over recent years to move away from estimating monthly bills and instead provide accurate bills based on actual water consumption. This metric tracks the Department’s progress in moving all customers away from estimated bills.

Billing Complaints per 1000 Accounts

This figure shows the number of billing complaints the Department receives from customers each month.

Section III - Infrastructure

Water System Breaks and Sewage Spills

This figure tracks the condition of Atlanta’s water distribution system by measuring the number of water breaks per 100 miles of pipe and sewage spills per 100 miles of sewer. These metrics are good indicators of the health of the City's overall water system infrastructure.

Section IV - Compliance

Drinking Water and Waste Water Compliance Rates

These measures track DWM’s performance in complying with relevant drinking water and waste water quality regulations. Both measures show how many days out of the last year that the Department has been in compliance with federal, state and local regulations.