EDITORIAL: Coeur d'Alene should raise water rates

The city of Coeur d'Alene will soon be pumping out lots of water to meet summer demand. We're talking in the range of 40 million gallons per day. That is, by any standard, a lot of water. 

Fortunately, the city can meet that demand with its 11 wells.  

Unfortunately, a lot of that water will be wasted.  

Take a look around on any of the coming hot days of July and August. You'll see sprinklers spraying water in the middle of the day, much of which will simply evaporate. You'll see sprinklers watering sidewalks and even streets because they are not properly adjusted. You'll see people using hoses to wash walkways when a broom would do the trick. 

It should not be that way, but it is, because we have plenty of water for now. Few people are worried a water shortage will ever be an issue. And it may not. 

Coeur d'Alene and other entities are blessed to have the Rathdrum Prairie Aquifer, our sole source of water. And in Coeur d'Alene, water is cheap. The average monthly water will runs about $20 a month for a single-family home. In other North Idaho and eastern Washington cities, it's much higher.  

When you visit a place like Seattle, you'll notice most lawns have one thing in common: They are brown. Water is just too expensive to use on grass. 

In some ways, that’s a good thing. Water is and should be treated as a precious resource. It is too valuable to use unwisely.  

That is one reason we support a proposal to raise city water rates and capitalization fees to fund an estimated $84 million in capital improvements. Such increases are necessary. 

Meeting future demand will require capital improvements to the water system, as well as new well sites. Usage-based charges will help fund these needs. 

Considering this city's growth, higher water rates and fees are unavoidable. To decline to raise them now could jeopardize its ability to supply all that water we've come to love using during the summer. It could impede growth, lead to water pressure issues, mean less maintenance for meters, hydrants and lines, and, God forbid, result in water restrictions similar to what our neighbors to the west experience. 

To those who do their best to conserve water with such practices as watering lawns early mornings, we thank you. To those who could do better on water conservation, please do. 

The Coeur d'Alene City Council will meet Monday in a workshop to gather more details regarding why a water rate increase is being proposed, why it is necessary, and what it will achieve. We hope they come away convinced of the same thing we are: An increase in water rates is both necessary and beneficial.