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<br />CDM <br /> <br />Section 7 <br />Evaluation and Selection of Conservation Measures and Programs <br /> <br />flows could be directly diverted from the NWRF outfall to this storage facility for later <br />irrigation use. <br /> <br />7.2.4 Metering and Billing <br /> <br />Metering of Source Water <br /> <br />Erie currently meters water treatment production and ditch water diversions, and <br />records calls for CBT and Windy Gap water. However, Erie could improve the <br />monitoring of source water stored in raw water reservoirs and conveyance system <br />flows. This data could provide valuable information regarding system water losses <br />and potential measures to mitigate those losses. <br /> <br />Meter Service Connections and Volume Billing <br /> <br />Since 1972, Erie has metered and billed customers based on the amount of water they <br />have used. As discussed in Section 2.4.2, residential water rates increase with <br />increasing water usage. This provides a financial disincentive in using large quantities <br />of water and has proven to be effective in increasing customers' awareness of water <br />consumption. High water bills serve as a means to help deter wasteful water use and <br />in some cases may be indicative of a leak. Erie plans to continue billing customers on <br />a monthly basis based on the volume of water used. <br /> <br />Replacement of Meters <br /> <br />Erie began to replace meters over 10 to 12 years old in 2005. Approximately <br />400 meters have been replaced annually. This improves metering reliability and helps <br />to ensure that customers are accurately billed for the volume of water consumed. This <br />also improves Erie's ability to evaluate system water losses by tightening the water <br />budget. System losses are usually estimated by using a water budget approach (the <br />difference between water treatment production at the water treatment plant and <br />metered usage by the end user is calculated). Replacing old meters can help improve <br />the accuracy of this estimation. <br /> <br />Analysis of Unmetered Water <br /> <br />As discussed in Section 3.1, Erie's unmetered water has historically consisted of water <br />used for fire fighting, street cleaning, sewer cleaning, system losses, and water line <br />flushing. This unmetered water accounts for approximately 15 percent of total annual <br />water use (see Figure 3-4). Similar to the replacement of meters, improving the <br />metering of unaccounted for water would help tighten Erie's water budget and <br />subsequently improve Erie's ability to estimate system water losses. Erie plans to <br />begin metering hydrant flushing during the summer of 2007. This will reduce the <br />amount of unaccounted for water and subsequently improve Erie's ability to estimate <br />distribution system water losses. <br /> <br />Improved Water Accounting <br /> <br />Erie's current billing system consists of two categories: residential and commercial. As <br />shown in Table 7-2, the commercial billing category includes commercial use, light <br /> <br />DRAFT <br /> <br />7-5 <br /> <br />\\DENSVR1\PROJECTS\9228 - ERIE\CONSERVATION PLAN\REPORT\DRAFT PRIOR TO PUBLIC REVIEW\CONNIE FORMATTED\SECTION 7.DOC <br />