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VIEWPOINT
<br />Website Focuses on Water Infrastructure
<br />A century ago, the average American used only
<br />about 10 gallons of water a day to drink, cook, clean,
<br />and bathe. Today, Americans use 100 gallons a day
<br />per person on average. At ttre same time, the average
<br />ATerican household spends only $474 per year on
<br />water and wastewater charges, yet spends an average
<br />of $707 per year on carbonated soft drinks and other
<br />^oncarbonated refreshment beverages.
<br />Those factoids are taken from an EPA Office of
<br />Water web page devoted to building and maintaining
<br />Sustainable Water Infrastructure for the 21st Cen-
<br />tury. Included on the site is a wide variety of articles,
<br />guides and case studies aimed at improving the man-
<br />agement -and sustainabiliry - of water systems.
<br />Tyre site builds on four "pillars" needed to insure
<br />a sustainable infrastructure: better management;
<br />efficient water use; the watershed
<br />approach; and full cost pricing. While
<br />,, all are important, in my opinion full-
<br />cost pricing is key i^ this age of tight
<br />budgets and growing need.
<br />There's no question the water i~-
<br />frastrucnire in the US is aging. We've
<br />all heard about the huge infrastruc-
<br />ture funding gap expected over the
<br />next few years. W11ile there has been
<br />a push for the-past several years to
<br />increase federal funding for water, that's unlikely to
<br />happen any time soon.
<br />Ultimately most of the funding for water and
<br />wastewater systems must come from revenues geucr-
<br />ated by ttre fees charged by utilities. Fu11 cost pricing
<br />must take into account all costs, past and future,
<br />including building, operating and maintaining the
<br />required infi~astrucnirc.
<br />One key consideration is rliat price reflects value in
<br />people's minds. Too often, somedling that is cheap
<br />is considered to have no v~ilue. For water customers,
<br />that can lead to waste and harm conservation efforts.
<br />`...it is important for prices to reflect the increas-
<br />ing scarcity of water. Part of this value includes the
<br />increasing financial obligation needed to maintain our
<br />water and wastewater systems' infrastructure," the
<br />agency states on t11e site.
<br />The EPA website provides information on the role
<br />of prices in supporting water system infrastructure,
<br />including a discussion about the types of pricing
<br />structures commonly used today. Recent additions to
<br />the site include a guide entitled "Setting Small Drink-
<br />ing Water Systems Rates for a Sustainable Future."
<br />And the document "Case Studies of Sustainable
<br />Water and Wastewater Pricing."
<br />The Sustainable Water Infrastructure for the 21st
<br />Century web page can be found at http://www.epa.
<br />gov/water/infrastructure.
<br />February Column followup:
<br />My Viewpoint column in February on the "water
<br />war" targeting agriculture elicited more response
<br />from readers than any column I've written in my 1 I+
<br />years as editor of WaterWorld.
<br />Several people pointed out that water subsidies for
<br />farmers might keep food costs down, but they also
<br />help perpetuate wasteful water practices and discour-
<br />age conservation. The cheap water also has led to the
<br />production of "water thirsty" crops in a desert region
<br />- while at the same time driving farms in more suit-
<br />able regions of the country out of business.
<br />Water subsidies for farming in the arid west,
<br />particularly in California's Central Valley, is a thorny
<br />topic. I've done a fair amount of reading since that
<br />Viewpoint was published, but haven't arrived at any
<br />conclusions. On one hand I see the need for water
<br />conservation and more realistic farming practices. At
<br />the same time, I still feel that water subsidies have
<br />helped US farms remain competitive with foreign
<br />food producers.
<br />In a perfect world we would have enlightened
<br />water-use practices that yield maximum benefit with
<br />minimum waste -both o^ the farm and in the cities.
<br />Maybe one day we will actually get to that point.
<br />i
<br />James Laughlin, Editor
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