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Legislative Council - Fifty-Second Parliament, Second Session (52-2)
2012-05-01 Daily Xml
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Answers to Questions

HOUSING SA WATER POLICY

In reply to the Hon. J.A. DARLEY (29 June 2010) (First Session).

The Hon. I.K. HUNTER (Minister for Communities and Social Inclusion, Minister for Social Housing, Minister for Disabilities, Minister for Youth, Minister for Volunteers): I have been advised:

1. Housing SA applies the averaging method at sites with shared meters. Under the averaging method, Housing SA pays for 30 per cent of the water consumption with the remainder being divided equally amongst the dwellings connected to the meter. The 30 per cent landlord contribution is intended, amongst other things, to make allowance for differences in dwelling types and occupancy levels, the repair of minor leaks and the maintenance of common garden areas.

Housing SA established criteria for investigating properties that share a water meter where there is a mix of dwelling type and/or annual consumption above 160 kilolitres per dwelling after the application of the 30 per cent landlord contribution. The investigation seeks to determine any particular factors contributing to high consumption and the feasibility of installing additional meters, which may be impacted by building design and pipework.

2. Housing SA has not changed its criteria for investigating shared metered sites.

3. There is no policy to install individual meters to all Housing SA properties.

The physical design of some buildings and their associated plumbing make it impossible to install individual SA Water meters without substantial renovations. Each new SA Water meter costs $2,177 to connect and install and with around 18,000 properties on shared meters the cost of meters alone would be approximately $40 million. The plumbing and building work between each new meter and the dwelling, plus the recurrent supply charges ($234.60 per meter per year) would add a substantial amount to both the upfront and ongoing cost of this option.

Housing SA has also investigated the installation of individual flow meters rather than individual SA Water meters. Similar to SA Water meters, the design of some properties is not suitable for the installation of these devices. The installation cost of these meters on all properties is estimated between $6 million and $9 million with recurrent reading costs up to $700,000 per annum. These costs do not include the additional plumbing or renovation work required, for example, where a property currently has more than one water inlet.

4. Mrs Crockford's group was reviewed in March 2010 and it was agreed to install three additional meters. Following this change, Mrs Crockford's property does not have an individual meter and continues to share with one other property. This process is consistent with Housing SA's program to investigate all water complaints and install additional metering where appropriate and feasible. These additional meters most commonly create smaller groups connected to a single meter rather than providing an individual meter. Smaller groups mean that each tenant receives a higher allocation of water at the lowest tier charged by SA Water while still receiving the 30 per cent landlord contribution from Housing SA.

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