Use less-- and pay more. What's wrong with this picture?

Conservation is one of the mantras of  the 21^st century. And we are always hearing that by using less we will spend less:  Spend extra for a hybrid Prius and you’ll save on your gasoline bill. Replace incandescent light bulbs with much more expensive CFL bulbs and you’ll save enough on your electricity bill and bulb replacement to justify the difference.

But what if we use less and that causes us to pay more? This is quite possible when there are high fixed costs in providing a service. For example, in my town of Cambridge, Massachusetts, I was notified that water and sewer rates are increasing this year because, said the City Manager, “using less water contributes to an increased rate.”

The Associated Press reported today that apparently this is a national trend.  It confirmed that “Many water utilities are raising rates because water use is down.” The infrastructure of water and sewer systems are fixed costs and don’t vary with the amount of water flowing through it, so the operating costs as well as debt service incurred in building it are insensitive to our conservation efforts. The total cost must be recouped by charging more per unit of water.

So next time I feel the impulse to buy a low flow shower head or pay a premium for a low water use toilet, I’m going to keep in mind that by using less I may end up paying more per shower and per flush.