Pros and cons for Sunbury residents conserving water & sewage
SUNBURY – More and more Sunbury residents have been conserving on water usage lately…but should they? We discussed this with Sunbury Municipal Authority General Manager Dan Ramer.
Ramer says overall water usage in the city has gone down to six and a half million gallons of water, which is less than last year. Though it ultimately may keep personal bills lower, conservation ironically may not help residents in the long run in keeping rates low, “When you talk about rates, that will mean there will be a likely rate increase because we have a lot of fixed costs with our budgets.”
Water and sewer rates went up in January of this year, and are could rise again in 2018. Residents currently pay $4.50 per 1000 gallons of water. Water rates are going up, because the authority is receiving less revenue from their conserving customers. He says resident are using less (in order to save money), and the devices they buy for their homes all also conserve water.
He said, “Conservation can also be through the devices that are out there these days. You go to Lowe’s and you buy a new shower head or a new toilet, there’ll all water conserving devices these days…a lot more than there used to be in the past.”
He also notes that there are fewer people hosing off sidewalks or other outdoor uses. Bottom line, less water use, while the authorities’ costs continue to rise, equals high water rates. You can hear more of Ramer’s comments on WKOK Sunrise next Monday.
