Published: October 30, 2009 06:05 pm      

Jeffersonville City Council to hear pitch for water-saving pilot program

Toilet technology is the topic of discussion at 7:30 p.m. meeting Monday at City Hall

The Jeffersonville City Council will consider a proposal Monday that could lead to the city becoming a national pilot program that uses a Georgia inventor’s device to help residents save money on their sewer bills.

Councilman Keith Fetz, representing the Sustainable Jeffersonville Committee, has asked Bob Stein of Cumming, Ga.-based Mitch’s Environmental Toilet Flush System to appear at the City Council meeting at 7:30 p.m. Monday, according to a news release from the city.

Stein will discuss the possibility of the city partnering with the company to make the devices available to Jeffersonville residents on a voluntary basis. Monday’s meeting is at City Hall, 500 Quartermaster Court.

According to the company’s Web site, the system — which replaces a toilet’s traditional flapper valve — uses less water per flush and can save a home more than 14,000 gallons of water annually when toilets are flushed an average of 20 times per day.

“We want to be the first municipality to do a pilot program with its residents,” said Fetz, who installed the system in his home about a month ago.

Monday’s meeting also will include a discussion between council members and representatives of the Indianapolis accounting firm H.J. Umbaugh & Associates regarding sewer rate increases brought on by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s enforcement of the Clean Water Act.

Currently, the average household bill in Jeffersonville is about $24 per month. That likely will increase to about $45 per month within the next few months, in order to help pay for approximately $120 million in sewer improvements Jeffersonville must make in order to decrease or eliminate combined sewer overflows.

Because sewer bills are based on water usage, water-saving devices can help a sewer customer offset the likely rate increase.

— Staff reports