Old water meter replacement campaign launched: Solving metering challenges, benefiting millions of residents

• Pain points of people's livelihood: There are many problems with overdue old water meters, which add trouble to residents' water use
• Actions in many places: free replacement + efficient service to solve people's worries and warm people's hearts
• Long-term benefits: standardize measurement management and help the construction of water-saving cities

Pain points of people's livelihood: There are many problems with overdue old water meters, which add trouble to residents' water use
"The water meter at home has been used for almost 15 years, and the water bill has suddenly risen a lot in recent months. Ms. Wang, who lives in an old community in Chaoyang District, Beijing, expressed the troubles of many residents. The reporter visited and found that old water meters with a service life of more than 10 years generally have problems such as measurement deviations, dial rust, and pointer stuttering, which not only leads to residents' "confused accounts" of water bills, but also may cause water outages and leaks due to water meter failures, affecting normal life.

According to the relevant person in charge of the Shanghai water affairs department, according to the national measurement and verification regulations, the service life of residential water meters generally does not exceed 6 years, and the industrial water meters do not exceed 4 years. However, due to inadequate management and maintenance, a large number of water meters are overdue, with an overdue rate of up to 35%. The measurement error of these old water meters is usually between 8% and 15%, which not only harms the interests of residents, but also causes hidden waste of water resources.

Actions in many places: free replacement + efficient service to solve people's worries and warm people's hearts
In response to the livelihood problems caused by old water meters, all localities have actively deployed replacement work and launched a number of convenience measures. In Guangzhou, the water group launched the "old water meter renewal plan", which replaces the old water meters built in the city's communities before 2000 for free. Up to now, Guangzhou has completed the replacement of 80,000 old water meters, and it is expected to achieve full coverage of the target area by the end of the year.

Wuhan adopts the method of "piecemeal promotion and off-peak construction" to avoid affecting residents' water use due to the replacement work. "We will post a notice in the community 3 days in advance to clarify the construction time and precautions, try to choose the trough period of residents' water use, and control the replacement time of each household within 20 minutes." Wuhan Water Group staff said that in order to facilitate elderly residents, offline service points have also been set up to provide on-site consultation, appointment registration and other services, and have completed water meter replacement for 52,000 residents.

In addition, Chengdu, Hangzhou and other places have also combined the replacement of old water meters with the promotion of smart water meters, and installed smart water meters for residents free of charge while replacing old mechanical water meters, so as to achieve "one replacement, double upgrade". Residents not only do not need to worry about the aging of water meters, but also can check water consumption in real time through mobile phones, pay bills online, and enjoy the convenient services brought by smart water.

Long-term benefits: standardize measurement management and help the construction of water-saving cities
The centralized replacement of old water meters not only solves the immediate troubles of residents, but also has long-term significance for urban water management and the construction of a water-saving society. The relevant person in charge of the Beijing Municipal Water Affairs Bureau pointed out that by replacing qualified water meters, water bill disputes caused by inaccurate measurement can be effectively reduced, water metering management can be standardized, and at the same time, residents' water consumption data can be accurately grasped, providing a basis for formulating scientific water resource allocation plans.

From the perspective of water conservation, accurate measurement can enhance residents' awareness of water conservation. "In the past, the water meter was not accurate, and I felt that the amount of water used was about the same, but after changing to a new water meter, I would unconsciously pay attention to saving water when I looked at the real-time change in water consumption." Mr. Li, a resident of Hangzhou, has a representative feeling. The data shows that in areas where the replacement of old water meters has been completed, the per capita water consumption of residents has decreased by an average of 8%-10%, and the water saving effect is remarkable.

With the continuous advancement of the replacement of old water meters in various places, more and more residents will say goodbye to "confused water meters" and use "safe water" and "understand water". This action has also laid a solid foundation for the quality and upgrading of urban water management, and injected new impetus into the construction of water-saving cities and the sustainable use of water resources. As experts from the China Urban Water Supply and Drainage Association said: "The replacement of old water meters is not only a facility update, but also an upgrade of people's livelihood services, which is of great significance to improving the happiness of residents' lives and promoting the high-quality development of the city." ”