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Water conservation needed

Re: Another option eyed by city in attempts to expand water supply, Aug. 7.

To the Editor,


Re: Another option eyed by city in attempts to expand water supply, Aug. 7.


I’m a little surprised at the choices suggested in the article, which says the city is looking at either tapping into Harmac’s water supply or building a new dam, at a cost of $60 million.


I have to wonder why water conservation never enters into the discussion.


Within the City of Nanaimo, there are about 19,000 single-family homes. Nanaimo also is home for a business, Idus Controls, which has developed a system that can cut water usage by up to 30 percent in a typical home.


The math is pretty simple. If such a system could be retrofitted into each home for, say, $1,500, the total cost would be less than half the expense of building a new dam with most of the money pumped into the economy.


If Harmac has water to spare, it should be freed up for the fish.


Norm Wagenaar


Nanaimo