Quinte West City Council approved a recommendation to maintain the status quo on billing practices for non-sewage water consumption at its meeting on Wednesday.
Residents in Quinte West are charged wastewater rates based on water meter consumption (per cubic metre), with this approach assuming that all metered water returns to the sanitary sewer system.
Council had received concerns from residents that this billing methodology overstates actual wastewater usage.
City staff were previously asked by council to examine the feasibility and viability of alternate billing approaches to address the issue.
Staff looked at four factors when coming up with alternatives.
- Feasibility – Can the city operationalize the change with existing systems and resources?
- Viability – Is the option financially sustainable over the long term, ensuring revenues align with wastewater system costs?
- Equity – Does the option fairly allocate costs to users without shifting disproportionate burden to others?
- Efficiency – Does the option balance administrative complexity with measurable benefit to residents?
Three options were considered. One would be to implement a credit/adjustment program which would allow for residents to submit a form requesting relief.
A second option was to have a city-approved Water Subtraction Meter for outdoor usage where the resident would pay for the cost of an additional metre to be installed for external water outlets.
The final option was to maintain the status quo with the current method consistent with other municipalities.
Ultimately, staff recommended that council maintain the status quo, saying that installing sewer meters or allowing self-reporting is neither feasible nor financially viable.
You can read the full report here.
