A Review of Water Metering Practice in New Zealand and Overseas

A number of New Zealand councils have introduced universal water metering over the last 30 years; others have partial metering and some no metering at all. Different councils are currently considering the implementation of universal metering as part of their Long Term Plan. This paper reviews some of the current approaches to water metering in New Zealand and overseas. This is based on a literature review and discussions with individual councils.

There are a number of different reasons for implementing universal metering. These include reducing water use (generally discretionary use) by improving customers’ approach to water efficiency, providing a fair and equitable charging regime, identifying water losses and the development of an improved understanding of the overall network water balance. Prediction of the reduction in peak and average demand from volumetrically charging for water is inherently difficult. The demand for water varies significantly because of a range of external factors including weather related issues such as temperature and soil moisture deficit, together with wider economic drivers. 

Tariff structures are an important factor when developing a universal metering programme and an area which can cause significant public concern. Different types of tariff structures are available, ranging from a simple volumetric charge, to a combined tariff which has a fixed and variable component. This paper reviews the different types of tariff structures that have been implemented in New Zealand and reflects on how this potentially affects water use.