Imagine a day without water ...
The cost of water has been in the news in the Austin area over the past couple of weeks. Earlier this year, the lack of water due to an unprecedented drought captured the headlines. Then the Memorial Day weekend floods took center stage, and while they brought terrible destruction, they gave us a respite from the drought.
It now appears the respite may be brief, as the most recent U.S. Department of Agriculture drought monitor map shows that the watershed for the Highland Lakes has returned to between moderate and severe drought levels. With the return of drought conditions, it is important to note that the true value of water is determined by the cost of not having a safe, reliable supply of water.
The Value of Water Coalition is a partnership of public and private water agencies, business and community leaders, and national organizations united in communicating the importance of water to the economic, environmental and social well-being of America. The Water Environment Association of Texas (weat.org) is a member association of the Water Environment Federation (wef.org), which is a participant in the Value of Water Coalition.
Many people take water and wastewater service for granted. Clean, safe, reliable and affordable water comes out of the tap and flows down the drain without a second thought. But the massive infrastructure (much of it underground) that brings water to homes and businesses, takes it away, and treats it — is aging.
The Imagine a Day Without Water event was envisioned by the coalition to help raise the awareness of the importance of protecting our most precious resource, water. From Oct. 6 through 8, organizations, elected officials, corporations and environmental advocates from across the country are joining together to educate people about how water is essential, about the challenges facing water and wastewater systems, and the need for investment.
Water is the thread that weaves together our daily lives. It keeps our communities healthy, our cities running and our economies growing. Could you go a day without water? Imagine it: no water to drink or make coffee. No water to shower, brush your teeth, flush the toilet, cook, or do laundry. Firefighters couldn’t put out fires and farmers couldn’t water their crops. The high quality of life we enjoy in America would not be possible without clean water and the infrastructure that delivers it. What are we willing to pay for this essential service? The average monthly water and wastewater bill for a typical residence in Austin is $95.
How does this compare to other utility services that we receive? The average monthly cellphone bill for the typical family is $74, the average monthly cable TV bill is $76 and the average monthly Internet bill is $47. Could you go a day without your cellphone, a day without cable TV or a day without the Internet? It wasn’t that long ago that none of us had these luxuries. Are these combined communications services three times as valuable as your water and wastewater services? Why do we line up to increase our cellphone bill when the latest phone is released, but contest necessary increases in our water and wastewater bills?
One of the crowning achievements of the 20th century was the building of reliable water and wastewater systems. Since then, public and private utilities across the country have been putting people to work to construct, operate and maintain the water and wastewater infrastructure that Americans rely on daily. After working around the clock for more than 100 years, this infrastructure is aging and in need of renewal. In addition to this need, changes in our climate will require that utilities invest in the development of new and sustainable supplies of water.
Improvements to our water infrastructure are credited by many as the largest contributing factor to our increased life expectancy. Unfortunately, safe drinking water is not universally available. Globally, 750 million people do not have access to safe water and 840,000 people die each year from waterborne diseases. We have benefited from the water infrastructure investments made by those that have gone before us. We owe it to our children and grandchildren to make the investments necessary to safeguard our water for the future and to protect our environment for generations to come. Water is worth it! Can you imagine a future without safe water? If you can’t, try going just a day without water.