What Is the Sewer Charge on a Water Bill?
Gain clarity on the sewer charge appearing on your water bill. Understand its purpose, how it's determined, and the vital services it supports.
Water utility bills often include a sewer charge, a fee levied by local municipalities or utility providers for managing wastewater from homes and businesses. This charge ensures the safe handling of used water.
Defining the Sewer Charge
A sewer charge, also known as a wastewater charge, covers the cost of collecting, treating, and safely disposing of water from drains and toilets. These fees appear as a line item on your water bill. The volume of water consumed by a household generally indicates the amount of wastewater it generates.
Almost all clean water supplied to a property, whether for bathing, washing dishes, or flushing toilets, eventually becomes wastewater. This wastewater then enters the public sewer system. Utility companies charge for this service because treating wastewater requires infrastructure and processes to remove contaminants before the water can be returned to the environment.
How Sewer Charges Are Determined
Utility providers use several methods to calculate sewer charges, and the specific approach can vary by location. One common method is metered usage, where the charge is directly based on the actual volume of water consumed. This assumes that the amount of water used is a reliable proxy for the amount of wastewater produced.
Some areas may implement a fixed or flat fee, meaning a set amount is charged regardless of the volume of water used. Another common structure involves tiered rates, where the cost per unit of water, and thus the sewer charge, increases as consumption rises beyond certain thresholds. This encourages water conservation.
A widely adopted method, particularly for residential customers, is winter averaging. This approach bases sewer charges on a customer’s average water usage during specific non-irrigation months. This avoids charging for outdoor water use, such as lawn watering or car washing, which does not enter the sanitary sewer system. Additionally, some utilities calculate the sewer charge as a direct percentage of the total water bill or include a base charge.
What Your Sewer Bill Covers
The funds collected from sewer charges maintain and operate wastewater management infrastructure. A portion covers wastewater collection, involving the upkeep of networks of underground sewer pipes, lift stations, and pumping facilities that transport wastewater to treatment plants.
These charges also finance the wastewater treatment process, a multi-stage operation that purifies the water. This treatment removes pollutants before the water is safely discharged back into natural waterways. Operational costs, including staffing, energy consumption, and administrative expenses, are also supported by these fees.
Sewer bill revenue is reinvested into infrastructure maintenance and upgrades. This includes ongoing repair, replacement, and expansion of sewer lines and treatment plants to ensure reliable service, accommodate growth, and prevent environmental contamination. Meeting environmental compliance standards set by federal and state regulations for water quality is also a cost covered by these charges, protecting public health and ecosystems.