A diagram explains how smart meters communicate with data collection equipment in the field and at the city. (Submitted by city of Lake Oswego)

The city of Lake Oswego’s nearly $5 million project to replace its labor-intensive water meters with more automated ones is nearly complete.

As of late April the city had installed more than 12,000 new meters, with just 343 more to complete.

The new meters, as staffers Joel Kuhnke and Jason Hoye explained during a City Council meeting Tuesday, May 6, allow for the local government and property owners to examine and assess water consumption levels automatically and in real time, rather than having to rely on a water meter collector who would record new readings monthly. The meters are also more sensitive to picking up irregular flows, they added.

This means that water leaks can be detected faster and potentially save water as well as customers’ money. Customers can monitor their water consumption online through the city’s utility billing portal and staff will also notify customers when they notice a potential leak.

“We can catch leaks quite a bit faster, which should really cut down on water loss,” Hoye said.

Councilor John Wendland explained the city needed new meters anyway as the old ones were reaching their expiration, which was a primary reason for spending the money on the new meters. Funds for the project did not come from increased rates but instead from the city’s water fund. The meters, the city said, have a battery life of approximately 20 years.

“In reality we needed to do this as a city anyway and we had the benefit of replacing those with automated systems,” Wendland said.

The city plans to promote both the online billing system and the option for customers to sign up for leak alerts.