Water Organizations Urge Congress to Fund Water Infrastructure

The Water Environment Federation and 90 other organizations have sent a letter to Congress urging the funding of water infrastructure.

The Water Environment Federation (WEF) and 90 other organizations have sent a letter to Congress urging the funding of water infrastructure. The full letter can be read here.

According to WEF, the coalition of national, state, and local organizations asked Congress to include funding and financing for drinking water, wastewater, water reuse, and stormwater infrastructure in any infrastructure package considered during the 116th Congress.

“An infrastructure package represents an excellent opportunity to provide necessary resources to meet long-term economic, public health, and environmental goals,” the letter said.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates that America’s water and wastewater infrastructure requires nearly $750 billion worth of investment over the next 20 years just to maintain current levels of service. Independent estimates place this figure over $1 trillion.

Aging infrastructure replacement needs account for much of the investment gap. According to WEF, while federal contributions to transportation infrastructure have stayed consistent at approximately half of total capital spending, federal investment in water infrastructure has declined from 63% to 9% since 1977.

A recent survey of Americans opinions on the value of investing in our water resources said 78% of respondents believe it’s “extremely or very important” that the President and Congress develop a plan to rebuild America’s water infrastructure. The same survey found that 88% of respondents agreed that increased federal investment was needed to rebuild water infrastructure.

To read the letter to Congress in its entirety, go here: https://bit.ly/2slKHGm