Raglan's water metering programme soon to begin

Waikato District Council is on track to introduce water metering into Raglan, with the contract for physical works going out for tender this week.  The contract is expected to be awarded in early January 2011.  

Installing water meters in Raglan is the first stage in Council’s $2.1 million district-wide water metering programme, which encourages water conservation and attempts to defer capital expenditure over the next two decades. 

Waikato District Council, Water and Facilities General Manager, Richard Bax said initially the Raglan project will involve installing a manifold and backflow preventer to all connections but no actual meter.  

“The first step is to get Raglan properties ready for the introduction of water metering by replacing all existing tobies (valves, taps) with manifolds and meter boxes, but no actual meter will be installed. 

“Properties which share a water connection will be separated, as each rateable property needs to have a separate connection to ensure when metering is introduced you are only charged for water used at your own property”, he said.   

It is anticipated the programmed works will take up to 12 weeks to complete and will be finished before the end of May 2011.  

Residents will experience a short inconvenience of water being turned off for a couple of hours while pipes are altered outside their property.  Council will provide more details to individual residents closer to the programme’s start date. 

Over half the connections in the Waikato district are already metered. Water meters are used in Te Kauwhata, Tuakau, Pokeno, Meremere, Taupiri, Gordonton, Matangi, Tauwhare and Te Akau South, while all new water connections are metered.  

Over the next five years Council will also introduce water metering into Ngaruawahia and Huntly.