Cumberland County Water Utility Amalgamation
On February 23, 2023, the Nova Scotia Utility and Review Board (NSUARB) approved the amalgamation of municipally owned water utilities in Parrsboro, Pugwash and Springhill into a single utility to be known as the Cumberland County Water Utility.
With this change, there is now a single schedule of Rates for Water and Water Services applicable to all customers of the utility. This initiative, when fully implemented, will also see almost all customers of the utility being billed based on a base charge plus a charge for metered usage. Customers in Parrsboro and Pugwash currently have meters installed on their premises and a project to install meters on the premises of Springhill customers has been approved by the NSUARB. Until meters are operational in Springhill, customers there will continue to be billed a flat quarterly amount. To review the approved rates effective April 1, 2023, see Schedule “A” of the order on finance. To see Schedule "D" of the order, go to finance.
Rates
In accordance with the new rates approved by the NSUARB, in 23/24 most metered residential customers will pay a quarterly base charge of $64.42 and a consumption charge of $1.64 per cubic metre (1 cubic metre = 1000 litres). Using an example of an average usage of 40,000 litres per quarter, this would amount to approximately $130.02 ( $64.42 + ( $1.64 x 40) = $130.02 ). Amounts will differ based on actual consumption.
Until water meters are installed in Springhill, customers there (and any other unmetered residential customers) will be charged a flat quarterly rate of $167.95 per quarter in 23/24. The process of installing meters will begin soon. It is anticipated that the installation will be completed by Spring 2024 and customers will then transition to the new metered rate structure. For billing purposes, Cumberland County Water Utility anticipates this will be April 1, 2024.