Conservationists Find Draft Water Rate Plan for Rockland Encouraging

Conservation, the top priority of local water stewards, is the linchpin of a draft order issued Tuesday by the Public Service Commission concerning the Rockland County rate hike request by Suez Water.

The PSC decided not to accept a three-year joint proposal that would have hiked local water bills by a total of more than $5 million annually. Instead, the Commission announced a plan that lowered the hike to about $ million and which a spokesman later said contained “unprecedented modifications” when it came to an existing joint proposal.

The PSC’s modified order is detailed and will take time to scrutinize, but Rockland County Legislator Harriet Cornell, who is also chair of the County Task Force on Water Resources Management and chair of the Legislature’s Environmental Committee, said in a statement that it appeared to offer strong incentives for meaningful conservation.

“I have repeatedly argued that Rockland County cannot get a good grip on its water future with a robust plan for conservation,” Cornell said. “This must encompass many layers – improved utility infrastructure to curb leaks, the installation of efficient water fixtures in homes and businesses, and so much more.

“I want to thank Public Service Commission Chair Audrey Zibelman and those on the PSC who were willing to listen to the concerns of the public and to try to implement purposeful conservation solutions,” Cornell said.

The modified plan needs to be accepted by the company by Friday in order for the plan to be in effect by Feb. 1, 2017.
“We have not yet received the order," said Suez officials in a written statement. "We understand it may be approximately 100 pages in length. This is a very complex and lengthy ruling that deserves very careful consideration. We will analyze the order thoroughly before we respond to the PSC and to our customers.”

The PSC’s modified plan cuts $8.2 million off the total $38 million Suez sought in reimbursement costs for its failed Haverstraw desalination plant – the project that sparked the grassroots movement for better local input about Rockland’s water supply.

The PSC also reduced the company’s rate of return on the plant’s costs, thereby reducing costs to ratepayers by $960,000, according to the draft order.

On the conservation front, the longtime summer-winter-water-rate-program would become a thing of the past, replaced by a new conservation-oriented rate design.

The plan also calls for stronger leak management, for advanced metering infrastructure to be put in place, and for increased public outreach and education. The overall goal is to reduce water supply demand by more than 3 million gallons a day – twice the reduction called for in Suez’s unmodified plan, according to the PSC.

In addition, the PSC’s modified plan would require a rebate program for low-income customers to be put in place, and require Suez to study the feasibility of a cost-effective direct installation program.

Margie Turrin, chair of the Water Task Force’s Conservation Committee, hailed the PSC’s efforts.

“It is a win for Rockland ratepayers that the PSC chose to modify the Joint Proposal in order to strengthen the conservation measures, and the company's commitment to those measures, both central to managing Rockland's water and the success of the new rate plan proposal,” Turrin said. “The Conservation Committee for Rockland's Water Task Force hopes to work alongside Suez in making water conservation part of everyday practice and conversation in our county.”

Overall, the modified plan would allow the company annual revenue increases of $4.87 million for each of the next three years. The revenue is for typical business operating expenses and for part of about $29.2 million in reimbursement for the Haverstraw plant; the complete reimbursement would be paid out over a 15-year period.

Under the plan, a single-family home using 9 ccfs of water per month would see their annual bill increase by 0.8 percent in 2017 ($6.12 per year), 7.7 percent in 2018 ($57.60 per year) and 7.3 percent in 2019 ($58.44 per year). One ccf (hundred cubic feet) is equivalent to 748 gallons.

The PSC says the rates were set up to encourage conservation.

“Water conservation is the least costly way to ensure good water service and an adequate supply,” Cornell said. “We’ll need to review the details of this plan to be sure Rockland residents are being treated fairly.”

Suez must approve the modified plan for it to go into effect. If the company does not, a one-year plan would be put in place, with a monthly rate increase of $3.64, or an annual bill hike of $43.68. The company would then need to launch a new rate case if it wants an additional increase.

Image via shutterstock