NPA councillor wants city to back up claims about water meters
A new Vancouver city councillor is challenging council to provide statistics to back up its assertion that water meters will save money for Vancouver residents and show they are not just a tax grab.
Mayor Gregor Robertson’s council passed a motion last month to require all new homes to meter their water usage and no longer pay a flat rate for water as existing single- and dual-family dwellings do.
The city’s website calls it “the first step in achieving a fully metered system over the long term.”
Home builders will be charged an additional $500 to install the meters plus water consumption, said Coun. Andrea Reimer.
The website said there will be a fee to cover costs of “billing and meter maintenance and replacement” but Reimer said that amount isn’t known yet.
She said meters will be phased in gradually and council is still waiting for a staff report before moving to the second stage, which would allow homeowners to voluntarily install meters, and the final stage, after assessing how many volunteer, to mandatory metering.
The meters will ensure that residents pay only for the water they use and city staff are projecting residents can cut their usage by up to 20 per cent through conservation and identifying and stopping water leaks.
Reimer said other cities where residents have volunteered for water meters show “significant” reductions in their water bill, as much as 80 per cent for homes for one-person households.
The Richmond city website lists projections showing a one-person household can save up to $750 a year on their water bill.
“As a person who lives alone, I’m paying a fair amount of money for water that I’m not using,” said Reimer, noting she’s subsidizing the “small percentage” of homes using large amounts of water.
Single-family dwellings in Vancouver are charged a flat rate of $467 a year for water. A 20-per-cent reduction would save them $93.
But NPA Coun. George Affleck questioned whether homeowners will be able to reduce water consumption enough to recoup what they pay for installation and maintenance.
Affleck said he has filed a motion requiring the city to back up those projections with more detailed statistics to allow residents to determine if the water meters will save them money or if the water meters will grow the city bureaucracy that will cost more taxes to operate.
“I asked these questions when council passed the motion [to install meters for new homes] and the information was kind of vague. They said because it’s good for you,” said Affleck.