The people around Duke Energy’s Buck Steam Station that were forced to take city water due to the coal ash disaster now have a new mountain to climb — high water bills.

The water utility has set a minimum charge of around $71 for a minimum of 5,000 gallons of water per month. That is only for water — not water, sewer (we have our own septic tanks) and garbage pickup.

It also means that if people use just 1 gallon or 4,999 gallons the bill is still $71. In talking to my friends who live in the city, their bill for water, sewer and garbage pickup is much less than $71.

Duke Energy did deliver funds to homeowners to pay for water for a number of years, but they never sent a dime to people who rent in the area. They are stuck with the brunt of that $71 bill on their backs.

Looking at that $71 payment, it’s more than my phone bill. It’s higher than my cable bill. Some months, it is higher than my power bill.

The right thing to do, in my opinion, is to charge for water by the gallon. After all, we buy gas by cubic feet, gasoline by the gallon, electricity by the kilowatt and milk by the gallon. Milk producers were even nice enough to break it down into half gallons, quarts and pints. School children don’t have to buy it by the gallon in the lunch line. They get it by the half-pint.

People should be able to buy what they need, not what the county thinks we might need. Also, it might promote water conservation, as there are many who might think, “Hey, we have 5,000 gallons. Let’s use it all.”

Getting back to the $71. In my opinion, it sounds like the county is trying to recoup the initial cost of running water lines by using unfair and underhanded methods. I hope they haven’t stooped that low.

— Michael Small

Salisbury