RE: Moscow's water policy

["Bill Strand" <strand@pacsim.com>]

Pam,

A couple of questions regarding your post. You suggested a tiered system for
sewage. I would not have thought that the sewage flow presently metered from
each residence? If not, that is a huge cost for implementation and totally
impractical. And gray water systems are not inexpensive to implement (either
for existing homes or new construction).

However, I do believe strongly in a "real time pricing" system for any
utility (electricity, water, etc...). Industrial users have been following
this model for many years and have been successful at moderating consumption
accordingly. How do we expect our City to remain fiscally solvent when they
have variable costs for obtaining the utilities and fixed costs for selling
them to us?

Efficient irrigation is a tremendously effective means of controlling water
consumption. I worked with my father in the original cottonwood plantations
in Boardman Oregon. As he designed the irrigation system, the pump capacity
requirements would change by 80% dependent upon the method and timing of
irrigation. Even in residential irrigation, water efficiency can be easily
improved by 20 - 30%. It would take a lot of people switching to xeriscaping
to match that.

Bill Strand