HOW much water does your household use?
That’s a question that will become easier to answer as residents get their hands on real-time water consumption data
During the November ordinary council meeting, Armidale Regional Council voted to proceed with the installation of smart water meters.
The full rollout and installation of ultrasonic digital water metering devices as a single project to convert the whole network in a 12-month period spread over two financial years (2024-25 and 2025-26) was unanimously passed by council, with Cr Dorothy Robinson telling the chamber the proposal was a win-win.
The total cost of the rollout is $4.4 million spread across the two financial years.
“This is an excellent proposal, it will save money, it will save water, it’s an absolute win-win outcome,” said Cr Robinson.
“It will allow us to check off one of the first major projects in our brilliant region strategy.”
In August 2024, Cr Paul Gaddes said smart water meter technology is pivotal for tracking and measuring water leakages.
“The meters will give us the ability to record data and understand and analyse the data that will ultimately make our processes more efficient.”
He said those advantages will help council understand if something out of the ordinary occurs – like a main leaking – and identifying where it’s happening.
Leaks can be anything from a leaking tap, toilet or sink to full-blown burst pipes.
“One of this council’s main talking points is water security,” he said. “What we have is the joining together of water security down to a brilliant region strategy that has some real-world actionable initiatives such as smart meters.
“In bringing those two things together, if there are significant leakages, it compromises water security.”
Tamworth Regional Council rolled out smart water meters throughout 2023, allowing the city to track usage and readings in real-time.
The rollout resulted in almost immediate effects to save water, with three big detections showing more than 19,000 litres of water leaks in a day.
Under the new technology, the council said if water continually runs, officers can tell something is wrong at the location.
“We are excited about the future possibilities that Smart Water Meters bring to our community,” said Mayor Coupland. “Our goal is to make Armidale a leader in water conservation and sustainability”
This article was first published by the Armidale Express