Re: CRD mediation plan will fail (Guest Comment, June 21)
I want to thank Mike Hicks for all he has done and is doing to bring piped water to Otter Point.
I agree with Hicks that in Canada water is a God-given right – without water on your property, you are forced to live as I do.
When my husband and I bought our two-hectare Otter Point home in 1995, water was provided by a well. Every August the well would run dry and we would need to supplement the well with one or two deliveries of potable water.
In 2001 the well began to go dry earlier and by 2004 the well was no longer producing.
My source of water now is the South Island Water Company. We installed a second reservoir and with two of us on the property (as well as a vacation home added in 2011) we need a water delivery about every 19 days. The delivery price of a load of water is $180. This year we will spend nearly $3,500 for water.
This water is for household use only. We cannot afford to use it outside for gardens, window washing, etc.
Like most seniors we must keep a tight control on expenses – there is little extra for increasingly high water bills.
When we started to order water, the cost was $60 per load. In just over 10 years the cost per load has tripled, and there is no guarantee that the cost won’t continue to rise.
Help!
Betty Tully
Otter Point
