Conservation may be answer to possible water woes
Posted on Sunday, June 29, 2008
BENTONVILLE — In the wake of high fuel prices and low consumer confidence, the price of everything is going up. In Bentonville, that price will include water in the coming months. In mid-June, the Bentonville City Council approved the hire of HDR Engineering to conduct a comprehensive water-and sewer-rate study for the city. It’s been three years since the city’s last raise in water rates — and that was only to raise the rates of wholesale costs to Bella Vista.
“ We’re getting to the point where we’re trying to do (a rate study ) every couple to three years, ” Public Works Director Mike Bender said. “ It’s been more than three years; the cost of everything has changed. It’s time to do an update. ”
If a water-rate increase is avoided for too long, it may cause a dramatic increase down the line. “ If you do a 5 percent increase every five years, it’s better than doing a 30 percent increase. It makes more sense to do it in small chunks at a time, ” Bender said.
The rate study will provide a detailed comparison between the city’s water and sewer revenues and its expenses to determine if the city is losing funds by providing customers with the service.
“ We’ve got to make sure it’s not costing us too much, … (that ) we’re not losing money and (that we’re ) charging the right amount, ” Bender said.
The cost of municipal water rates are increasing everywhere. Accord- ing to a 2007 report from the Washington, D. C.-based Earth Policy Institute, U. S. municipal water rates have increased by an average of 27 percent, 32 percent in England, 45 percent in Australia, 50 percent in South Africa and 58 percent in Canada.
Bender said a rate-increase recommendation from HDR may not be the outcome of the study. But regardless, there are a number of ways to reduce water usage and conserve water.
“ Everyone knows that 97 percent of all water is salty, and only 3 percent is fresh, ” said Serina Wilkins, education coordinator for the Benton County Solid Waste District. Of that 3 remaining percent, 80 percent of that is frozen at the North and South poles. “ The remaining. 6 percent represents nonfrozen fresh water. This amount can be found in lakes, rivers and streams, but some of it is also unavailable because it is in the atmosphere as clouds, underground, polluted or trapped in soil. So only. 003 percent is available for drinking, and that amount is shared among all the world’s population. We do have enough water now, but we have to conserve it, ” Wilkins said.
Customers can take a number of measures to conserve water, including the following:
• Check faucets for leaks. One leaky faucet can leak 100 gallons of water a day.
• Start an automatic dishwasher only when full.
• Keep a bottle of drinking water in the refrigerator. Running tap water to cool it off is wasteful.
• Check toilets for leaks by placing food coloring in the tank. If color begins to appear in the toilet bowl without flushing, there’s a leak.
• Stop using a toilet as an ashtray or a wastebasket. Seven gallons of water are wasted every time a cigarette butt is flushed.
Shorter showers, turning off a faucet while brushing teeth, and water-saving shower heads or flow restrictors, which can be found at local hardware stores, can also be used to save water. People can also keep a bucket in their shower to collect water, which can be used to water plants and flush toilets.
One major conservation effort being promoted among county groups is the use of rain barrels. Rain barrels — typically constructed from food-grade barrels, mosquito nets and spigots, can catch up to 55 gallons of water from the runoff of a roof. That water can be used to irrigate gardens and lawns — and can save consumers money, said Trish Ouei, storm-water educator with the University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service.
“ I think people will be pleasantly surprised once they begin conserving water, ” Wilkins said. “ People pay for what they use, and if they use less water, they will pay less. ”
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