Image Credit: City of Merritt

By Michael Reeve

Water Meters

Merritt receives $3M from province for water meters

Jun 27, 2023 | 11:35 AM

MERRITT, B.C. — Provincial funding continues to arrive to support the City of Merritt. One day after more than $10 million was promised to rebuild the Middlesboro Bridge, the NDP government has committed $3 million for water meters.

With $3 million in provincial support, new water meters with an automatic meter-reading system will be provided for residential connections in Merritt, reducing water consumption and supporting the sustainability of local ecosystems.

“The City of Merritt is grateful to the Ministry of Municipal Affairs for their continued support in helping to improve the city’s services and to implement good water conservation practices,” said Michael Goetz, mayor of Merritt. “This funding is an important first step towards protecting our future water resources.”

Interestingly, the City of Merritt in 2021, passed a bylaw to remove the provision that required new homes built in the community to install water meters, however they did still need to be plumbed.

“The requirement for all new customers to install meters has existed since 1993, but Merritt does not utilize water metering for residential customers. As such, the cost of installing a meter is required for new homes, but does not result in any service being provided,” said Director of Corporate Services Greg Lowis in 2021.

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Also during the announcement in Kelowna, the government allocated $3 million to strengthen and reinforce the Turtle Lake dams. Overall, the investment in these two projects will reduce the risk of water quality deterioration in groundwater sources and Okanagan Lake.