[M II A II R II K]

Smart meters save energy, water, and dollars


28 Jan 2010

by Todd Woody

Read More: http://www.grist.org/article/2010-01...r-and-dollars/

EBMUD is currently testing smart water meters in 30 households and plans to expand the pilot program to 4,000 homes and businesses later this year.

“It’ll give us better knowledge of where our water is going,” says Harris. “We also thought if we’re going to ask people to use water more efficiently, especially when we’re coming out of a drought and have imposed water restrictions, customers need to have an idea of what their current use is.”

EBMUD’s smart meters take readings every hour and participants in the pilot program will be able to go online to check their consumption and set up an email alert if their water use rises above a certain level. The agency also plans to offer a social networking feature to allow people to compare their water consumption with other households in the area. Nothing like a little peer pressure to get you to turn off the tap.

Given that many states expect to face water shortages in the coming years, one would think we’d be seeing a roll out of smart water meters akin to the national effort being made to smarten up the power grid.

The payoff could be enormous. Water agencies and consumers would be able to detect leaking pipes and toilets in real-time and fix the problem before the water literally goes down the drain.

Imagine a video screen in your shower that displays how many gallons that long hot shower is consuming. Smart water meters would also open the door to financial incentives to get people to use less water and penalize water hogs. (That said, politically powerful agribusiness remains by far the biggest water user.)