DTWNews

The average American’s household’s leaks can account for more than 10,000 gallons of water wasted every year. To put this in perspective, this is the same amount of water needed to wash 270 loads of a laundry.

Wasted water is a problem that has been plaguing our nation for a while now. Luckily, the city of Detroit has come up with a plan that can hopefully stop water from being wasted all over the city.

This plan is a type of incentive program in which the city will reward homeowners who don’t use a lot of water and incur lower monthly water bills. The idea behind this strategy is simple — the less water used, the less the homeowners have to pay.

There would be a few tiers to this program, but the preliminary rate would be capped at 1,500 gallons of water a month. This is the minimum amount required by the United Nations for basic hygienic standards for a family of three. Any home that goes above this amount will have to pay a higher rate.

The rollout of this proposal comes on the heels of a water shut-off plan that happened all over the city of Detroit. The city ordered the water to be shut off because there was a water shortage, and while there were positive motivations behind the cuts, it sparked an outrage from human rights advocates across the city. A large legal battle ensued, and for the past year, there has yet to be a permanent solution.

Overall, this water subsidy plan could lower the water bills of about 90% of Detroit homeowners. Only 5% are expected to see an increase, and the remaining 5% would stay the same.

These block rates will be especially helpful for lower-income residents who are just at the brink of having their water shut off. This means they owe $150 or more in overdue payments, so hopefully, a cut in their water bill will help ensure their financial security.

According to the Detroit Water and Sewage Departments, this plan will hopefully be put into effect come 2018.