Homeowners interested in measuring their water consumption can now start applying for the city's revived voluntary water meter program.
The program is available to single-family residence owners willing to bear the cost of installing a meter paid for by the city.
One hundred meters are on offer this year to homeowners currently on a fixed-rate payment schedule.
"Water meters allow for more accurate tracking of water consumption, and for more precise knowledge on leakage within the system," said public works director Gina Layte Liston, in a press release.
"For the customer, it allows onsite monitoring to ensure more accurate billing based on actual consumption instead of an average."
To qualify for the program, each water meter must be installed and inspected by a city plumbing inspector in 2016.
The homeowner incurs the full cost of that installation, all pipe fittings and adapters and any construction required to repair damage created through the installation of the meter.
According to a fact sheet compiled by the city about the new program, there's no going back once the meter is installed.
Included in the terms of contract residents will have to sign if they participate is the provision that they are "aware that after I have a meter installed, (they) cannot have it removed from (their) home, nor can (they) request to return to the flat rate program."
Participation in the program removes the ratepayer's eligibility for the city's pre-authorized payment plan and compels them to complete questionnaires distributed by the city to collect data on water use.
Homes without meters will pay $42.86 per month for water this year.
Metered homes are charged a quarterly capacity fee of $56.05 plus a consumption charge ($0.04 per imperial gallon in 2016).
The average resident uses 524 litres of water per day, which is higher than the provincial average (350 litres per day) and the national average (270 litres).
This indicates that there is "clearly a need toward more conservative water use," said the city fact sheet.
"The rationale behind the water meter program is education. It allows residents to be able to more accurately track their water use, and to become more conservative as a result."
