The other day the water bill came to the big house on the property. We split it 3 ways, with the main house paying for two thirds (home and basement suite) and us paying the remaining third for the laneway house. The bill gave us three amounts:
$XX low season rate
$XX water metered A
$XX meter charge 25mm
and while none of us are sure what those numbers mean, we ARE sure that we are paying our fair share because both houses are metered. All NEW houses (and those with substantial renos) are metered in Vancouver. The rest pay a flat rate. The City of Vancouver talks about putting meters on all homes, as this recent story says. Of course this story from 2013 says the same thing. AND this one from 2011. The cost of putting meters in all the homes would be very expensive. But until government is prepared to go that route they will not convince people to conserve as we should. Counting all the new homes, the businesses and institutions, only 50% of water consumption in Vancouver is metered. And that will cost us more in the long run.
Because think about it….if we are all paying a flat rate, what incentive do I have to conserve? Not wasting water is not going to bring me any monetary advantage. And there’s always that feeling that it’s not going to have any effect on the big picture — especially when we’re sure that our neighbours are not doing their bit. Having a meter reminds us all that higher usage means higher payments.
Vancouver has plans to be the Greenest City in the world by 2020. Maybe that means green colour, as in well-watered lawns. The plan does not include water meters on all residences and businesses. Instead, they are hoping a stern talking to and short-term incentives will lead to conservation
incentives and programs Low-flow toilets, rain sensors for sprinkler systems, and water meters are some of the many technologies that can improve water efficiency in homes and businesses. This strategy includes actions such as incentive and retrofit programs to install these tools in new and existing buildings.
Even though water consumption is down over the past 10 years, this story in Friday’s Vancouver Sun shows — 40% in West Vancouver which has universal metering, 16% in Vancouver;
Vancouver uses more water per capita than communities such as Surrey and Maple Ridge
In Richmond, BC, the plan is for ALL homes to have meters by 2018. Vernon, BC also has water meters on all their homes. Most major cities around the world have universal water metering.
Right now the Vancouver area is in the middle of an unusually dry summer. We didn’t have those customary heavy rains in June to replenish our reservoirs. Plus the unusually dry winter meant that there was no snow pack on the local mountains to fill the reservoirs in the first place. Water restrictions are currently in place (no watering your lawn! No power washing!) but many experts feel that it’s too little and too late to avoid a serious water shortage by the end of the season.
In the long run it doesn’t matter so much about the amount of precipitation we get (Tofino, one of the wettest places on earth, suffers from periodic water shortages) as it does the amount we can store. Currently we have adequate storage for the city if we maintain average precipitation and everyone conserves as best we can. The city is expecting to grow significantly over the next 20 years. Metering water is one way we have to monitor and control the amount we use as our community grows.
The Lady Who Lives Down the Lane 