Water meters getting hard look by municipalities

Some P.E.I. municipal councils are looking to increase water conservation efforts in their communities by ensuring every home and business has a meter.

Charlottetown and Cornwall officials say they're a step closer.

Coun. Edward Rice, chair of Charlottetown's water and sewage committee,is pushing for more metering and tougher water restrictions.

"We'll be going to universal metering and to say otherwise would be less than truthful. It's a necessity. The other options, we've used them up," said Rice.

Other communities are also taking an extended look at metering.

Stratford is asking the public what it thinks.

Meanwhile, Cornwall announced all new commercial and multi-unit residential buildings will be metered as of April.

What this will mean for metered rates is yet unclear.

Cornwall's Freeman Whitty has already installed a meter in his century-old home, although it wasn't something he was initially keen to do.

But Whitty and his wife don't use a lot of water, so they thought they would be better off spending more than $100 for a meter and paying for what they use instead of the city's flat rate.

"It's reduced our cost to maybe $31 a month from $43 or $44. So we're looking at $145 to 150 a year, which I can use for something else," said Whitty.

Knowing the meter is always running has helped Whitty and his wife keep costs down, he said.

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