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Please join fellow community members to support the new proposed water conservation pricing structure developed by the Marin Municipal Water District (MMWD).
MMWD's proposed conservation pricing will help to reduce overuse and misuse of water. The district's old inflexible pricing structure, which priced each Tier based on its source, ignored the fact that a gallon of water, regardless of its source, is worth more in the dry summer than in the wet winter. Consequently, for years, MMWD has provided inadequate incentives for customers to conserve in summer, when water use doubles.
The proposed conservation pricing continues to match MMWD's total billings to its total expenses, but Tier pricing would be based on multiples of Tier 1, so that Tier 2 would be twice the cost of Tier 1, Tier 3 four times the cost, and Tier 4 six times the cost of Tier 1. This steeply tiered pricing structure should send a strong message to conserve water during the summer when it is most precious.
The proposed conservation structure also sets new year-round Tier breaks at 30, 50, and 80 ccf. This Tier structure focuses rate increases on the top 10% of users in Tiers 3 and 4. These top 10% of users consume 30% of MMWD's summer water, with bills ranging from several hundred to over a thousand dollars. The 90% of MMWD customer in Tiers 1 and 2 who have either native landscaping or average outdoor watering needs would see only a 6-8% rate increase.
MMWD has increased rates only once in 8 years, by about 3%. However, the change to conservation pricing is not about the amount of revenue that MMWD needs, but rather about how that revenue is collected. Nor is the change in the rate structure about Desalination vs. the a pipeline to the Russian River, because staff has concluded that the difference in costs between the two sources is only about √% per year. Regardless of MMWD's revenue needs or whether it decides on Desalination vs. the a pipeline to the Russian River, the proposed conservation rate structure is good news.
In addition, 75% of the water Marin consumes comes from the county's reservoirs which mostly feed into salmon bearing streams. The remaining 25% is from the Russian River and Eel Rivers (which is diverted into the Russian). Salmon populations are either extinct or a tiny fraction of historic numbers in both these systems. Conservation can reduce the demand on these water supplies and impact on these populations.
You can view the MMWD staff report here**http://www.marinwater.org/BOD030917/Staff_Report.html.
There has been a vocal contingent expressing opposition to MMWD's proposal. Therefore we must make a strong showing in person or through letters in support of MMWD"S proposal.