Most area cities are paying more for water and wastewater treatment, and that means residents will likely see higher water bills.
North Richland Hills recently announced that its residents will see an average increase of $2.21 per month to cover the higher rates charged by the Trinity River Authority and Fort Worth, the city's suppliers. North Richland Hills passed along the higher charges to residents.Westlake increased its rates starting Jan. 1, citing a 10 percent increase in costs. Fort Worth residents also saw their rates go up. Euless raised its rates Oct. 1 for users of more than 2,000 gallons per month.And the Colleyville City Council decided to pass along higher costs from the Trinity River Authority to residents, starting with the February bills payable in March. The average homeowner, who uses 15,000 gallons of water a month and returns 10,000 gallons of wastewater, will pay an additional $1.75 per month.The increases will likely be the first of a series through at least 2015, officials said.By then, the Trinity River Authority is projecting that the price for water will be 26 cents per 1,000 gallons higher than today and the cost of sending back wastewater will be 62 cents per 1,000 gallons higher.The authority has said that it is facing higher costs in obtaining raw water and meeting state and federal regulations and that it needs updated facilities to treat and transport water and wastewater. The area's population growth is increasing those needs, officials said.All member cities of the authority will pay a combined $2.2 million more for water and sewer services this year than last year, said Michelle Clark, Trinity River Authority spokeswoman. "A little over $1 million of that cost increase is for raw water," she said. "About $1.3 million is for debt service."Clark said the authority was aware of cities' financial positions, so it made a number of budget cuts."We cut $230,000 out of controllable costs," she said. The overall authority budget for 2011 is almost $199.3 million.Fort Worth also cited the higher costs of raw water and costs for capital projects as reasons for its higher rates.For some Colleyville residents who use little water, the rate increase will be the first since 1989.Since then, residents have paid a minimum bill of $12 for water and $8.60 for sewer service that included the first 2,000 gallons each of usage, said Terry Leake, assistant city manager.Customers who used more than that paid more. The city had been charging an additional $3.48 for every 1,000 gallons more of water and $2.27 for every 1,000 extra gallons of wastewater.As the rates the city was charged went up, the city absorbed the increases for the minimum bill.But officials say Colleyville can no longer afford to do that.By 2015, the authority's higher rates would not leave the city with enough money to repair or replace its waterlines and equipment.Another factor, Leake said, is ensuring that the city takes in enough money to satisfy debt obligations.To avoid a large increase on residents who use less water, the council agreed to raise the minimum bill by just the authority's increased amount, setting the new minimum at $12.10 for water and $8.80 for sewer.Also, any of the future authority increases will be applied to the minimum bill.To keep prices from going even higher, Colleyville Mayor David Kelly urged residents to not waste water."Water will become a scarce resource," he said. "We need to have water conservation, water management to keep those increases down."Have more to add? News tip? Tell us
