With the flow, low

The Raleigh City Council has now agreed to a tiered-rate water-pricing structure, in which those who used more than the normal amount of water for an individual, family or business would pay more. It's meant to encourage conservation. So that's good. What's unfortunate is that the city won't be able to switch over to that system until the spring of 2009, because the necessary billing software isn't in place.

The city could put in a new utility billing system in three to six months, but for this drought, discretionary use of water has pretty much been eliminated, and the city has dealt with conservation through regulation. A tiered system is designed for year-round conservation, not emergency measures. In addition, the city is putting in improvements in all it's financial billing systems, of which a change in utility bills would be a part. And water meters are being updated.

Council members also are having inspectors check offices, hotels, fitness centers and apartment complexes to see if they've followed voluntary suggestions that low-flow faucets and showerheads be installed. If there is lax participation in that program, the council will consider making those steps mandatory. Occupied apartments will not be inspected.

Recent rain has improved the water supply, but the drought is still on. So the council should continue to raise awareness for folks to use low-flow gear and take other conservation steps. There's no telling what the rainfall situation will be as the weather warms up, and the city has to convince its water users to get serious.