Nestled in the scenic Blue Ridge Mountains, the city of Clayton, Ga. is a small town with a big non-revenue water problem. The International Water Association defines non-revenue water as water that has been produced and is “lost” before it reaches the customer. According to the American Water Works Association, such losses cost public water systems approximately $2.8 billion in yearly revenue. 

Clayton was plagued with exceptionally high non-revenue water rates in the 50 percent range. The city attributed the problem to leaks in its water system (parts of which have been in place since the 1920s) that are exasperated by high pressure levels needed to pump water to more than 3,200 service connections throughout Clayton’s mountainous terrain located 2,200 ft. above sea level. And, manual collection of meter readings across Clayton’s expansive service area was prone to human error and took as long as three weeks, making it virtually impossible to isolate leaks. Read More