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The Maryland Curiosity Bureau

The complex ills of water bills

Loch Raven Reservoir in Baltimore County is owned by Baltimore City. It holds 23 billion gallons of fresh drinking water. (photo credit: Luke Spicknall/WYPR)
Loch Raven Reservoir in Baltimore County is owned by Baltimore City. It holds 23 billion gallons of fresh drinking water. (photo credit: Luke Spicknall/WYPR)

It sounds like a word-problem with a simple solution: “A city resident and a county resident get their water from the same source. They both use the same amount of water. How will their bills compare?” The answer, it turns out, is tangled up in a century-old municipal labyrinth with more twists and turns than the meandering Gunpowder River.

In this episode, we hear from:

Matthew Garbark, Deputy Director of the Baltimore City Department of Public Works

Rianna Eckel, affordable drinking water advocate with Food and Water Watch

Aaron creates and produces original radio programs and podcasts for WYPR. His current project is The Maryland Curiosity Bureau. Aaron's neighborhood documentary series, Out of the Blocks, earned the 2018 national Edward R Murrow Award. His past work includes the long-running weekly cultural program, The Signal, and the Smithsonian Folkways Recordings series, Tapestry of the Times. Aaron's stories have aired nationally on NPR's Morning Edition and All Things Considered.