The City of Courtenay wants to have more of a say regarding water usage in the Comox Valley.

Courtenay receives six votes on matters pertaining to the regional district鈥檚 water committee, as does Comox and the three electoral areas combined.

The assignment of votes is determined by water usage in 2010. Courtenay accounted for upwards of 59 per cent of the usage, Comox was slightly less than 30 per cent, and the three areas combined for about 11 per cent of last year鈥檚 usage. Comox receives three votes while Areas A, B and C each receive one vote.

鈥淭hat鈥檚 where the disparity is,鈥� said Courtenay Coun. Larry Jangula, who was elected chair of the district鈥檚 water committee Tuesday. 鈥淚t has nothing to do with who the bully is or who the biggest player is, it鈥檚 supposed to be based on use. It鈥檚 about our taxpayers, it鈥檚 about our users.鈥�

Courtenay naturally uses more water because it is the only area that is growing, Jangula added.

鈥淐omox is trying to stay under 15,000 population, and the regional district areas are not growing very quickly, but look at the businesses we鈥檙e getting and look at the building we鈥檙e getting,鈥� Jangula said. 鈥淥bviously we鈥檙e going to be using more water because we鈥檙e getting more people. But the reality is that per capita, we鈥檝e actually dropped our water consumption 27 per cent, and they don鈥檛 ever want to acknowledge that.鈥�

Mayor Paul Ives of Comox said the voting system was established following a service review in the early-1990s when a government-hired arbitrator established a 12-vote system.

鈥淥ver the years I suppose it鈥檚 generally worked out, but I guess in the last year or two Courtenay has felt that somehow they should get another vote,鈥� said Ives, who chaired the water committee last year.

If Courtenay receives another vote, Ives feels Comox is entitled to one more as well.

鈥淲hen you cap the number of votes at 12, the only way they can get that other vote is to take it from us, and we鈥檙e not going to accept that,鈥� Ives said. 鈥淭he way the water committee was set up by letters patent, the maximum number of votes, in my view, is 12, and you can鈥檛 add votes. It鈥檚 stuck at 12.鈥�

He said part of the problem is small water service areas in the rural areas.

鈥淭hey鈥檙e consuming about 10 per cent of the water and they get about collectively 25 per cent of the vote,鈥� Ives said.

Board chair Edwin Grieve suggested a vote based on consumption is perhaps counter-intuitive to the idea of consuming less water.

reporter@comoxvalleyrecord.com