Water Meters - Four Years On

This is the long version of the Society's progress through our water meter project, started back in 2007, written to provide some historical perspective and a reminder of how much work such a project involves. One starting point: the Water Society is owned by it's members which includes property owners in the Subdivision. Homeowners must become members before they can connect to the water system. There are some members who have not built homes on their lots yet, but the vast majority of Society members live in their homes in the subdivision. There is an elected Board that manages the water system and a number of members volunteer to help maintain and operate the system on a day-to-day basis.

The Basic Chronology:

Summer of 2007 - at the Annual General Meeting of Society members, it was voted by a large majority to proceed with water meters and to investigate possible grants to help with the costs.

Summer of 2008 - during this summer, most meters were installed. Some went inside homes, some went in underground boxes near the street shut-off valves. In all cases, the work was done to accommodate homeowners. Some did not want the meters inside their homes and they were accommodated. In a couple of instances, inside locations would have been difficult to use. In one or two cases, there were yard standpipes between the street and the house so we didn't interfere with those either. By fall, most connections were on water meters. During this time, information was sent to all members addressing, once again, the reasons for meters, how the billing would work and so on. Federal Grant money was obtained that paid for many of the costs of the project.

Calendar year 2009 - during this year, meters were read quarterly and "sample statements" were sent to all residents indicating what their water use was and what it would cost assuming the rate structure was approved by the members. During this year, all connections were billed using the flat rate system, using a rate that had been in effect since 2003.

AGM 2009 - at the annual AGM, the proposed rate structure was presented to the members and it was approved by a nearly unaminous vote. The approved rate structure was used in our application to the Water Comptroller in Victoria and was allowed. Also during this time, the meters helped to identify a few water leaks that had been previously unknown.

Calendar year 2010 - the new rate structure took effect at the beginning of 2010. The rate structure included a daily connection rate and three levels based on quarterly consumption.

Calendar year 2011 - one outside meter was moved inside to a resident's basement, a new house was constructed which involved substantial discussion about metering, again, and the Society approved, at it's AGM, the first real rate incrrease since 2003.

Why We Meter:

The decision to install water meters was based on several considerations:

1) To help reduce water use - this is not because we worry about the amount of water in Kootenay Lake, but how much water we can store in our reservoir, our pumping capacity and the cost and work associated with supplying our water. Our system is run by a relatively small number of volunteers who do all the work, subsidizing, by their labours, everyone who contributes nothing.

2) Water is a commodity - we pay for other commodities based on how much we use. There is no reason why water should be treated any differently.

3) Fairness - everyone who uses smaller amounts of water is subsidizing the relative few who use lots more water, as long as we remain on a flat rate system.

Opposition to Meters:

Obviously, not everyone saw the need for meters from the outset, and a small but vocal minority has seized on every opportunity and every argument, no matter how farfetched, to oppose the project. The arguments, basically, have been as follows:

1) There is lots of water in Kootenay Lake. True, but that's the problem. It's in the Lake, 400 feet below where it's used, and it costs money to operate the infrastructure to pump, filter and treat this water. Everyone should be payng their fair share of these costs, based on how much water they are using.

2) Meters were forced on us. Not true. This was the most democratic, fair and open process imaginable (see above). PRWUS is a privately owned system and members voted to abopt water meters. There was no pressure on us from the outside and we had no discussions with anyone from outside about the project.

3) The meters aren't certified. Again, not true. They aren't CSA certified, but, as parts of the water distribution system, they don't need to be, unlike plumbing fixtures which DO need to be CSA approved. The meters are ANSI/NSF 61 certified and AWWA C700 certified. If you want to know what these are, just ask.

4) Just run the pumps 24/7/365 if you need more water. Surely, this can't be a serious suggestion. Perhaps it makes sense if you're not involved in volunteering to help run the system (cleaning filters, maintaining the system), or contributing your fair share of the operational costs (hydro, chlorine, filters), or dealing with the replacement costs in a system that is over 30 years old and would wear out even faster if used in this way.

5) Water meters are just a money grab. Not true. For FY 2010, the total revenue is almost exactly the same as it was before meters. True, some people pay more, but others pay less, just like anything else. It should be pointed out that our Society, like most small water systems in BC, does not have enough money put aside to deal with a major breakdown or catastrophe. Almost no water systems are charging enough for their water now. Systems recently taken over by the Regional District are paying 2 to 3 times as much as we are. We are constantly being encouraged by Victoria to make sure we are charging enough $$ to pay for future repairs to the system.

6) We don't like meters. Fair enough. I'd rather not have my electricty metered. Honest, I'd be careful about my use of power. Right.

At one point during the meter project, one resident filed a complaint with the Provincial Ombudsman. The complaint was rejected once the Ombudsman learned about the process the Society had followed (see above). At another point, a local plumber refused to work with the meters because he claimed they were not CSA approved. This has been settled. We also have - in writing - the Regional District's Building Department's position on water meters and our right, as the water utility, to choose our equipment and install it as we see fit. Appeals have been made to the Water Comptroller in Victoria opposing meters in certain residences. The Comptroller suggested that we could put the meters outside and charge the owners for the additional cost. We didn't go that far, although we could have.

In summary, it's been a long, sometimes tiring journey, but we can't imagine turning back. Meters for water are coming, even to this part of BC. Water quality regulations mean that supplying water to the public can't be done the way it was 50 years ago. Most people who look at this issue sensibly and rationally, will arrive at the same conclusion as we did.

Other Water Systems

A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to visit and examine a small water system in a neighbourhood near ours. This system services approximately the same number of homes as ours and it attracted my attention because they had recently spent quite a sum of money improving the infrastructure that was in place there.

Basically, their project involved extending the intakes of their pumps well out into the lake and to a depth of around 100 ft (a requirement of Interior Health) as well as building a new control system, building and treatment process.

The main piping used was schedule 80 PVC and the treatment uses UV only with a turbidity meter. The cost of the improvements was in the neighbourhood of $150,000.

What this system still does not have is a decent reservoir for storage. I didn't see what was in place, but I was told that there were two small tanks with a combined capacity of around 10,000 gallons. Because of the single treatment process (UV), they had to install a turbidity meter and when the lake water does become too cloudy, they must issue a boil water advisory. The only way to avoid this would be to install a filtration system as well.

This system is community owned and it is my intention to visit a system recently taken over and renovated by the Regional District. More information to follow.

Water Meters - The Final Word?

The past month or so has been partly taken up with a "discussion" about putting a water meter inside a new house being built in the Subdivision. In the past few days, we've received information that appears to decide the whole issue.

Our Regional District does have a view on meters. Essentially their view is that each water utility makes its own by-laws (regarding other matters as well as meters). Meters are slowly being adopted in some communities but there is opposition despite their obvious value. It could be noted that our Society overwhelmingly voted to adopt water meters at the 2007 AGM. We received a grant that covered most of the cost of the project, we used the meters for a whole year before bringing in a new rate structure in 2010 and we reported this to all members as the project unfolded.

Our information is that water meters are not considered to be plumbing fixtures and do not have to be CSA approved. They are, instead, part of the water distribution system which PRWUS owns and operates.

The meters we use ARE certified to the following standards: ANSI/NSF 61 (which specifies the level of lead allowed in the copper alloy meter body) and AWWA C-700 (which specifies the accuracy of the meters). Our Trident T-10 meters (manufactured by Neptune) have a no-lead copper alloy body and are displacement-type meters common in residential applications. Measurement Canada recommended in 2004 that the AWWA standard be adopted for all meters.

The meters themselves are highly unlikely to leak, despite any rumours that there have been leaks. We are not aware of ANY leaks related to any of our installations. The meters have a one-piece alloy body with a base held on by robust bolts and two seals. The only chance of leaks might be from connections to the plumbing system, as there might be with any other pipe joint. We have had one case of a meter making a squeaking noise. This was traced to a small circular magnet rubbing on the inside of the housing, an issue that was easy to fix.

The result of all this kafuffle is that we now have a statement from the Regional District that we can make our own decisions regarding water meters and that they are not a concern to the building inspectors. It is unfortunate that a small, vocal minority continues to oppose meters, but we feel our experience has been positive and has been shown to be the only fair way to allocate the cost of the water being delivered.

This may not be "the final word" but it does seem to move the whole discussion forward in a favourable direction.