Catch 22

The metro area I live in experienced somewhat of a severe water drought over the last couple of years. Some of the measures taken by local and state officials included water restrictions (i.e. only being able to water your lawn on certain days), incentives for companies and households to install low flow toilets, legal battles with two neighboring states over water from a shared lake, etc. During the most severe times there was no shortage of information and tips on how each person could help to preserve water.

Apparently the message got through to many of the citizens. Even now I'm very cognizant about leaving water on while brushing my teeth, waiting until I have a full load of clothes to run the washing machine and other little tidbits to do my part with conserving water. Sounds good right, well here is the catch 22. All of this water conservation has no doubt dipped into the revenue stream of the water companies (ran by municipalities). So guess what, they are raising rates to make up for the loss of revenue due to consumption! Are you kidding me? Maybe we should inundate them with information on how they can better manage their money, how to spend less than they make and how to budget accordingly.