We need to value and conserve water, says the University of Victoria’s POLIS Water Sustainability Project
Conservation-Oriented Water Pricing
“Water pricing is a hot issue in communities across the country. Yet it remains an almost totally untapped option for helping ensure our water service infrastructure — the pipes, pumps and reservoirs — is well maintained and up to date,” write Oliver Brandes, Kirk Stinchcombe and Steven Renzettiis in an op-ed article published by the Vancouver Sun newspaper.
“Effective conservation-oriented water pricing can also help reconcile growing communities with the health of local watersheds and engage individuals and businesses to change their behaviour and begin reducing their water footprints,” states Oliver Brandes.
“Moving to effective water pricing will take time and probably a bit of courage on the part of municipal leaders. But we need to remember that it makes sound sense from both business and environmental points of view,” emphasizes Kirk Stinchcombe.About the Authors
Oliver M. Brandes is leader of the POLIS Water Sustainability Project at the University of Victoria; Kirk Stinchcombe is director of Econnics, a Victoria-based consulting firm that specializes in water use efficiency; and Steven Renzettiis is an economics professor at Brock University in St. Catharines, Ontario.
Posted May 2010