To commemorate the week water utilities, environmental advocates and others across North America will celebrate drinking water through school events, public presentations and community festivals. They will also provide their communities with important tips for protecting our water supplies and conserving resources.
Below are the highlights from the article from Water Efficiency Magazine (July-August 2009).
Jimmy Carter, Senior Director of Field Services of American Leak Detection, was interviewed for the article linked above, and we had the chance to ask Jimmy about certain quotes from the article to provide more insight on the state of the infrastructure.
Jimmy Carter: “Due to our water system’s age coupled with supply and demand issues, our water infrastructure is in desperate need of repair. Typical systems lose as little as 4-5% while some systems reach as high as 40 to 60% of unaccountable water that could be due to leaks, theft or non-metered usage. Loss not only means waste, but also the expense of treatment and lost revenue.
Homeowners hate to see their water bills go up, but may not understand the bigger picture from the water district side. The cost for treating the water, upgrading infrastructure by replacing old lines, keeping the supply for new construction of new potable and non-potable systems, increasing production at their treatment plants, and dealing with issues such as the smelt belt in our California aqueduct systems are just some of the many issues water districts must face that would impact customers.
2007 Drinking Water Infrastructure Needs Survey and Assessment
The Environmental Protection Agency has conducted a study on the needs of improving our drinking water infrastructure. There is room for a lot of improvement in our infrastructure.
03/26/2009: Safe Drinking Water Needs Assessed.
The Drinking Water Infrastructure Needs Survey and Assessment, which is done every four years, reflects data collected in 2007 from states. According to the survey results, the nation’s water utilities will need to invest an estimated $334.8 billion over the next 20 years to deal with aging infrastructure.
