Opinions mixed on metering

A district councillor says water metering may be the fairest way of controlling water usage in Timaru - but so far public opinion on the issue is divided.

Water metering for urban areas in the district - Timaru, Temuka, Fairlie, and Geraldine- has been proposed in the Timaru District Council’s draft financial strategy.

The idea will go out for public consultation in February as part of the long term plan.

Councillor Nigel Bowen said he personally did not think the community would like the idea, but it was about having the discussion about a ‘‘precious resource’’.

‘‘In all reality I don’t think the discussion is for the short term, I think it’s for the long term,’’ Bowen said.

‘‘People will get a chance to have their voice.’’

According to a water meter poll on Stuff on Tuesday afternoon 37 per cent of people were in favour of water metering, and 67 per cent were in favour of retaining the current system.

There were more than 500 votes cast in total.

Mayor Damon Odey said the council had no timeframe for when it would bring in water metering, for instance it had not been earmarked for one year, five years, or ten years.

‘‘It’s something we need to signal in the future. It definitely doesn’t initiate higher costs for the average user.

‘‘But we have better control over that precious resource. We haven’t done a good analysis on that.’’

Bowen said it could be the case that it would be fairer for people living alone to be charged less because they were using the water less.

‘‘It’s about future-proofing water for the district.’’

Other communities had run out of water this year, and water metering would have helped them out if they had it, he said.

‘‘We have cussion.’’

Fellow councillor Kerry Stevens, based in Geraldine, said it was a ‘‘discussion worth having’’. Timaru woman Sarah Graham said she did not know if she agreed with water metering or not.

‘‘It depends on if some people use heaps or if they don’t.’’

It would be worth a trial, Graham said.

Timaru man Steve Godsiff said he did not have a problem with water metering ‘‘at all’’.

‘‘Everybody’s in the same boat then, aren’t they.’’

However two other residents, who did not want to be named said they were opposed. One said he would ‘‘obviously prefer not’’ to have water metering in the town.

Another said she supported harsher rules around water restrictions - including finesand that people should be able to dob their neighbours in if they saw them breaking the rules.

The council’s 2015-2025 Long Term Plan labels water supply expenditure a ‘‘large focus’’ of the plan, including $17.7m allocated for water reticulation and service renewals across the district - and $24m to replace the Pareora water supply pipeline for the Timaru water supply. to have the dis-