Water meters are on the way

North Bay Mayor Victor Fedeli
News Release

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North Bay is the only Ontario city its size not to have metered water, and that’s about to change. The City of North Bay is embarking on a program to install water meters in every residence, over the summer of 2009.

As part of the Building Canada Fund, the City of North Bay, the Federal government, and the Provincial government will each contribute $2.3 million towards this upgrade.

“We are very pleased with the joint partnership between all levels of government to invest in North Bay’s water distribution system”, said Mayor Victor Fedeli. “This is something that has a tremendous benefit to our citizens, both today and for the future”, added the Mayor.

The City of North Bay currently has one of the highest per capita consumption of water in Canada, in excess of 600 litres per person per day. Although summer peak day demands have been reduced following the 2002 implementation of the odd/even watering restrictions, average day per capita demands continue to rise by an average of 4.1% per year. Even if the prediction of exceeding the existing permit to take water does not materialize, the current level of consumption does not afford the City the ability to attract new industries requiring a large water capacity.

Universal water metering will enable the City to:

Provide an equitable user-pay system based on actual consumption;

Reduce water wastage and promote water efficiency;
Provide valuable data to manage system operation including water losses;

Defer the need for large capital expansions;
Provide additional capacity to promote growth opportunities for new residents or businesses;

Reduce environmental impact and promote source water protection.

Specifically, North Bay expects to realize 10 to 20% lower water usage, which means savings on Hydro costs in the order of $100,000/year. It also means that the life of the soon-to-be-opened Water Treatment Plant will be extended. Chemical costs will also decrease, providing additional savings to the local taxpayers.

The City will be able to partner with North Bay Hydro in their Smart Meter initiative. This means all customers as well as the City will have continuous and timely information on water and electricity use. This allows people to actually understand and control how much electricity and water they want to use and when they use it.

Finally, the water that people will drink will be safer, as installation of meters will uncover any lead services that are still in use in the people’s houses. Backflow monitoring will also uncover any water quality problems that might be out there in the system.

“During these challenging economic times, the governments of Canada and Ontario are working together to build the infrastructure communities need for a strong and bright future,” said Monique Smith, MPP for Nipissing.

“This is another terrific example of what can be achieved when all three levels of government work together towards a common goal,” says MP Anthony Rota. “The people of North Bay will benefit greatly from newly installed water meters, and as the Federal representative for Nipissing-Timiskaming, I am pleased that the government of Canada is doing its part to make this upgrade a reality.”

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