Recently, I received our brand new water meter. I am fairly certain that water meters are more to do with the carbon footprint than to do with water consumption.

One of the reasons is because B.C. Hydro, which is actually the manufacturer of electrical power, has encouraged LaFarge Cement to reduce its usage. That is like a supplier saying to a company, "Don't buy so much of my product."

It would also explain why the water meter program is taking place all over the country (as far as I know anyway), especially with our lovely rivers so close at hand. So I think that kind of confirms my carbon footprint theory.

It's not like our lovely river can assist the U.S.'s drought in the midwest, not without another pipeline. And we all know the problems that will surface with that kind proposal.

I live in Brock. Actually speaking we are not that much higher than the river. What that means is to pump the water to my house doesn't cost that much power wise. The holding tank in our area that gives us water pressure is only about a 120 to 130 feet above the river. Aberdeen is much higher than us, so is Knutsford and upper Sahali and Juniper Ridge and Versatile.

This means that if we all pay the same water rate as those places, we at the lower level are actually covering part of the cost of their carbon footprint (water supply).

It is even more true when you realize that we could get away with a fairly weenie water pump and they would have to have the best available pump, which would also have to be replaced or repaired more often because of the workload. Just think of the distance.

I do not like paying for someone else's water or the pumping required getting it to their houses.

I think that should be looked into by an independent party, simply because I wouldn't like a lot of really weenie BS for excuses as to why I pay for their water usage.

Every so often a councillor or an author- ity of some sort says "nothing is free." Well fine, but don't dump it on us.

WILLIAM DAVIES

Kamloops