SAN FRANCISCO—San Francisco’s Public Utilities Commission has approved water and sewer rate hikes that will take place over the next 4 years. The San Francisco Chronicle was first to report on the city’s plans, as the commission released them earlier this week.

With the new plan, the city’s combined bill for water and sewer services will increase every year through 2022 by an average of 8.4 percent. The commission claims that the percentage climb will amount to 10 additional dollars per month for a single-family residential home.

The added cost will go towards a series of infrastructure upgrades to the city’s sewer system along with the Hetch Hetchy network. The Hetch Hetchy network is responsible for distributing drinking water to 2.7 million residents in both San Francisco and the surrounding Bay Area. The pre-existing rates will continue to go towards funding the Public Utilities Commission’s regular operations.

Eric Sandler, the commission’s chief financial officer and assistant general manager, told the San Francisco Chronicle:

“The interesting thing about our infrastructure is that you don’t see it. You don’t notice it until it doesn’t work. It’s fundamental for protecting public health and safety. Not making investments now makes the investments more costly in the future.”