Water and sewerage charges

Fixed water charges are the annual cost of providing water services to a property, including the cost of maintaining and upgrading assets. Fixed water charges are not calculated by the amount of water supplied.

Fixed water charges for full service customers are based on the size of a property’s metered water connection. This means that fixed water charges increase as the size of the connection goes up.

Sewerage charges help pay to maintain and operate the sewerage pipes, pump stations and treatment plants which take away and treat sewage from a customer’s property. The charge also contributes towards improving the infrastructure, which is ageing and significantly non-compliant, so TasWater can provide a more efficient, reliable and environmentally sound service. There is no usage pricing component to sewerage charges as there is with water.

Fixed sewerage charges are calculated using an Equivalent Tenement (ET) methodology. TasWater’s ET methodology is based on the WSAA Sewerage Code and the NSW Water Directorate Section 64 Determinations of Equivalent Tenements. A more detailed explanation of the ET methodology, can be found here.

Sometimes our water reticulation infrastructure does not deliver the level of service we want to give to our customers.

Customers affected by water pressure and/or flow related issues caused by the local water reticulation infrastructure receive a ‘limited’ water supply service.

To recognise that the local water reticulation infrastructure is not performing as we would like it to, we apply a 10 per cent discount to the fixed water target charge for limited customers.

Many customers, particularly commercial and industrial customers, have a water service connected to their property for an automatic fire sprinkler system or private fixed fire hydrant. This may be combined with the standard domestic/general potable water service or in addition to it.

Fire service charges are levied when TasWater has to build extra capacity into its network to meet peak supply requirements. Except for dedicated fire services, these should not be directly metered connections and are not often used.

When a separate dedicated fire service is installed, only automatic fire sprinkler systems and private fixed fire hydrants can be connected to the dedicated fire service. Fire hose reels are to be connected to the domestic/general potable water service.

Fire service charges are 25 per cent of the relevant fixed water target charge to recognise that the service is not often used.

Variable water charges are for water supply costs, including electricity, pumping costs and the cost of chemicals used to treat water. These charges can change over time.
Variable water charges apply to each kilolitre of water supplied to a property, which is measured by the property’s water meter This means that your total variable water charge will change, depending on how much water you use.

Customers who receive water from a supply that has a permanent public health alert in place, such as a Boil Water Alert or Do Not Consume Notice, or has been declared by TasWater to be limited water quality, are classed as having limited water quality and will have a lower variable water charge applied. For these customers, the variable water charge is reduced by 20 per cent. This discount reflects the lower cost of the reduced treatment process needed for limited water quality.

Customers are charged service charges (water and/or sewerage) if their property is located within a TasWater serviced land area whether the property is connected or unconnected to our infrastructure.  This includes both vacant and built on land that is not connected to our infrastructure.

More information can be found here.

Water service charges for unconnected properties within serviced land are as follows:

Customers are charged service charges (water and/or sewerage) if their property is located within a TasWater serviced land area whether the property is connected or unconnected to our infrastructure.  This includes both vacant and built on land that is not connected to our infrastructure.

More information can be found here.

Sewerage service charges for unconnected properties within serviced land are as follows: