A consultancy group is recommending the city raise its rates on trucked water fees in the next few years. Trucked water service delivers water to homes that are in areas without access to the citySA国际影视传媒檚 piped water system.
InterGroup Consultants was hired by the city to conduct a review of YellowknifeSA国际影视传媒檚 water and sewer utility rate structure in 2021. In its final report, which came out in April 2025, it states that trucked water users in Yellowknife are underpaying, while piped users are overpaying.
As a solution, it recommends the average person's trucked water and sewer fees to go up by about 10 per cent annually for the next three years. By 2027, the bill would be almost $700 more per year than it is now, according to InterGroup's proposal.
The group calls that a phased approach and argues it would soften the blow on usersSA国际影视传媒� bills.
Kevin Hodgins, a Yellowknife resident and engineer who relies on trucked water, argues that the rise in fees is unfair to single-family tucked water users.
In an open letter he sent to the mayor and city council, Hodgins wrote that water supply costs is a basic public service and its costs should be borne equally.
In a separate email he sent to the municipality, Hodgins also criticized InterGroup's report for not considering the fairness of its recommendation.
"They do not discuss the unfairness and disadvantages of those consumers who have to rely on inferior trucked delivery where water is limited," Hodgins wrote.
A letter being circulated shows that the average trucked water customer pays around $156.35. If the increase goes into effect, the letter states that the monthly bill would rise to $214.10 per month.
"Trucked water users consume less water than piped users, in part due to wider adoption of water conservation measures by households that need to be more conscious of consumption because of limited trucked delivery," reads the letter in part. "Despite reduced service and usage, trucked water users pay more for the water they use. In addition to the increased cost from the City, trucked users pay for storage tanks, pump systems (and) electricity costs to keep their water and sewage warm in winter, and increased insurance premiums due to the lack of fire hydrant protection."
The report does acknowledge that residents on trucked water services face higher personal costs, such as installing water storage tanks, but states these costs are outside the scope of the cost-of-service review.
SA国际影视传媒淧resumably, these issues are accounted for within the local real estate market and the decisions homeowners make when purchasing a property,SA国际影视传媒� the review reads.
According to the city, its water and sewer fund, which supports all water and sewage infrastructure, is projected to face close to a $2 million deficit this year, with the fund potentially falling to a negative balance of $1.6 million by 2027. The city attributes this to rising infrastructure costs not keeping pace with the cost of installing water and sewer infrastructure. Its current model fee is also more than 25 years old.
"In a nutshell, the Water and Sewer Fund should be contributing more towards the Capital Fund for Water and Sewer projects," the city's agenda on the recommendation reads.
Council is set to vote on this during a later meeting, but during a governance and priorities committee meeting on June 24 at city hall, some councillors already voiced some strong opinions about the proposed hike.
Coun. Steve Payne said he's not in support of it.
"I feel like there may be a second-class citizen thing going on here, which I'm not really comfortable with," he said about the potential increase on trucked water users. "I'm definitely not in support of seeing one group of people in town pay a lot more than what they're used to paying. I'm definitely not in favour of that at all."
Coun. Ryan Fequet said access to water is a basic human right.
"Residents should not have different rates based on where in the city they choose to live, nor past decisions that the city or developers made," he said. "They should, however, pay based on consumption, so those using more water should pay more fees."
Coun. Garrett Cochrane noted the city's near $2 million deficit in the water and sewage fund, which will have to be fixed no matter what.
"There's going to be an increase somewhere along the line. We can't avoid that," he said.
Coun. Rob Warburton, who also referenced the deficit, said he has a hard time cranking people's rates as high as what the group proposes as well.
