North Carolina Proposal Would Punish Irrigation System Owners

Proposed water conservation rules for city water customers would impose a big new cost -- $1,000 on homeowners and businesses with irrigation systems -- and would strongly encourage people not to water their lawns every day.

Those steps are part of a broad set of recommendations aimed at cutting water use that a city task force has recommended to the Raleigh City Council. The task force was formed two years ago after a severe drought forced Raleigh and other Triangle communities to enact mandatory water restrictions.

The new rules would not go into effect unless approved by the council. The biggest and most controversial change would require owners of existing irrigation systems to install a separate water meter and rain sensor, which would shut off the system during rain.

City officials estimate the new systems would cost residents about $1,000 and includes the cost for the city to install a split on an existing water line, a meter charge, a permit fee and an estimated cost for a plumber to connect the irrigation system to the meter.

Homeowners and businesses would have five years to install the devices. New systems would be required to install the meter and sensor.

The goal is for the city to better account for the amount of city water used to irrigate lawns. Residents can voluntarily install the separate meters now. City officials say there are about 2,520 homes with the separate meters and 1,830 commercial properties with them.

Officials don't know how many irrigation systems exist, though they could number in the tens of thousands.

"In most of the new subdivisions that we're seeing going in, it's almost become a standard, like a two-car garage and a deck," said H. Dale Crisp, the city's public utilities director.

Lower bills forecast

Officials say the separate meter would translate into lower utility bills.

Sewer rates are based on water usage. People wouldn't have to pay sewer charges for the water they use to irrigate their lawns.

The average payback for someone who lives inside the city limits would be about 6.6 years. Customers who live outside the city limits would recoup the money in about 3.3 years because they pay higher rates.

But it appears a majority of council members may not agree to the requirement for existing systems.

Mayor Charles Meeker said he supports requiring new systems to have a separate meter and encouraging owners of existing systems to make the change.

"The retrofitting of a meter is fairly expensive and the benefit is very limited since it's only for informational purposes," Meeker said.

Council member Mike Regan said he thinks the city can count on residents to turn off their water when it's raining.

"To treat us like children, that they can't turn their water off when it rains, is foolish," he said.

With hurricanes flooding Western North Carolina and heavy rains in the Triangle, this might not be the best time to sell a water conservation plan. But supporters say the measures could save the city money and resources in the long run.

"It's not an immediate concern," City Council member Janet Cowell said. "But I think long term there could be huge financial savings."

Cowell said those savings could come from the ability to hold off on expansions to water and sewer plants and to lessen impacts to the environment. The city has plans to build a $63 million water treatment plant on Lake Benson, a project that has led officials to raise water rates.

Cowell said she hopes concerns about the water meter requirement don't hold up the rest of the package.

"I realize this is the most controversial piece," she said. "I'm hoping that whatever happens with that piece that we can move forward on the remainder."

Before council Tuesday

The recommendations, which the council will begin considering on Tuesday, also include requiring large water customers, who use more than 100,000 gallons a day, to develop a conservation program and an emergency water usage reduction plan. The city's public utilities department would review and approve the conservation programs.

Besides the new laws, the task force also recommends the council urge people to take steps to conserve water every day. The suggestions would be voluntary, not required.

"It's all voluntary from the customers' standpoint," Crisp said. "... If they choose not to do it, that's their desire."

Among the 21 voluntary recommendations were measures that would encourage:

- The watering of lawns only every other day, and only during designated late night and early morning time blocks. Properties with odd-numbered addresses would water lawns on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. Properties with even-numbered addresses would irrigate on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays. Residents could water their lawns with hand-held hoses any day or time of the week.

- Limiting the hours of operation of water-cooled air conditioners.

- The use of mulch in landscape beds to retain moisture.

- Limiting the amount of car washing and the filling of swimming pools and decorative pools or fountains.

- Encouraging homeowners to store drinking water in the refrigerator to avoid running it cool at the tap.

- Asking restaurants to serve water to customers only upon request.