Work to limit in-Bluffton leaks has resulted in cost savings

By Andy Chappell-Dick

At a regular meeting on Monday, November 27, the Bluffton Council was informed that buying water from Ottawa will be more expensive in 2024. No immediate decision was made on whether or when to pass on the increase to Bluffton customers.

About two decades ago, Bluffton began purchasing water from the neighboring city in response to the ballooning cost of maintaining a local supply.  According to Councilor Dave Steiner of the Utilities Committee, despite ongoing increases in the costs of producing safe drinking water, the rate that Bluffton charges its residents has increased only once over these years.

Steiner attributes the stable cost to two things.  First, rather than simply buying water by the gallon, Bluffton negotiated a fifty-year cost-sharing formula with Ottawa that tracks their actual infrastructure investment.  So Ottawa can't lean on Blufffton customers over their own residents. 

And second, Bluffton's Public Works Department has targeted aging pipes and worked diligently to update the village's underground network, an ongoing effort that is steadily lowering the proportion of water lost to leaks. With careful management and some clever technology, infrastructure investment has so far reaped cost savings.

At the Monday meeting, Council voted to accept the new rate from Ottawa.  The Utilities Committee will meet again soon to mull over their next move. Will costs increase for Bluffton ratepayers?  "I'm not saying there WILL be an increase," Steiner said.

Annual EPA-mandated reports consistently show that water delivered to Bluffton households exceeds the agency's quality requirements.

All Village meetings are open to the public.