The United States is facing an unsustainable demand for water and lacks the security posture to defend the nation’s water systems from emerging threats, according to a new report.
The National Infrastructure Advisory Council voted unanimously on Monday to approve a new report that describes current U.S. water infrastructure as “unsustainable” and warns that the nation is not prepared to cope with a “rapidly evolving water crisis.”
There are more than 150,000 public water systems in the U.S., and an estimated 80% are publicly owned and operated by municipalities. Water and wastewater systems have faced increased cyber threats in recent years, in addition to new security challenges posed by climate change, growing demand for fixed water supplies nationwide and a critical lack of funding.
The report attributes inadequate conditions across the water and wastewater industries to “decades of chronic underfunding and underinvestment” in the U.S. and makes several recommendations to increase water supply sustainability, from aquifer recharges to developing highly integrated water management systems.
Route Fifty
By Chris Riotta
AUG 29, 2023