Benefits of Investing in Water Infrastructure

Investing in water infrastructure is a critical need right now, because our country’s aging water infrastructure is a real problem.  We are faced with dam breaches, weekly water main breaks, overrun storm water systems, and a plethora of other problems that have been put off for decades.  The infrastructure is also saddled with weak security protocols making water poisoning a real possibility, and even a single day of lost water service could generate a whopping $43.5 billion loss in sales.  Fixing the current state of affairs must be priority #1 for those responsible for such decisions.

The Case for Investing in Water Infrastructure

According to a recent report – Economic Benefits of Investing in Water Infrastructure, commissioned by the Value of Water Campaign – investing in water infrastructure would create 1.3 million jobs and generate $220 billion in economic activity.

How much investment, you ask?  In a perfect world, the U.S. would need to spend $82 billion each year over the next decade to shore things up.  Of course, this is not a perfect world so this level of spending would never happen, but the concerning thing is that, irrespective of the dollar amount, water infrastructure investment at the federal level is actually declining.

I hope for the sake of my kids and grandkids that the days of taking our water system for granted are coming to an end.  This country needs a wakeup call.  Investing in water infrastructure is not optional, yet some folks in positions of power do not seem to realize it.  I just hope the light bulb goes off before it’s too late.