Public Policy: Irrigation Meters

The Greenville Water System adopted a policy on Irrigation Meters in September 2013 that will save home builders installing irrigation systems more than $1,320 per house and homeowners hundreds of dollars a year in sewer treatment fees.

The policy allows Home Builders to install a “Y” sitting at the end of a standard water main tap and install two meters on the tap. Both meters may be installed in a common box. The Home Builder will pay a tap fee of $100, two meter fees totaling $700, but just one capacity fee rather than two. If water service already exists and a second meter is being installed on an existing tap, the meter fee for the second meter is $500; the capacity fee is waived (the contractor has the option of excavating and back-filling the meter location in which case, the meter fee is discounted by $150.) Both meters must be installed on the same tap, however. Larger taps will have a different fee structure, but the capacity fee is still waived if both meters are on a common tap.

A condition of the policy is that the irrigation system must be governed by a weather-based controller tied to a rain sensor.

This policy change is a result of ongoing and regular discussions between the Home Builders Association of Greenville and the Greenville Water System officials. The Home Builders Association of Greenville regularly advocates on behalf of its members with other utilities, municipalities, counties, and school districts as one of the many benefits of membership in the HBA of Greenville.

Click here to download the Irrigation Meter Policy and Instructions.