U.S. Communities Could Face Water Crises

Communities across the United States face the growing threat of clean water problems as federal funding for infrastructure falls far short of needs, according to a report released today by Food & Water Watch.

The report, "Clear Waters: Why America Needs a Clean Water Trust Fund," warns that federal appropriations for local water systems around the country have fallen from about $2 billion in 1991 to a little over $1 billion this year. While federal funding has dropped, clean water maintenance and related costs continue to rise, forcing states and municipalities to take up the slack or make tough spending decisions. That means that the federal share of Clean Water Act spending across the U.S. has actually dropped from 78 percent in 1978 to 3 percent today.

Such ongoing shortfalls could lead to clean water crises in many communities nationwide, warned Wenonah Hauter, executive director of Food & Water Watch.

"Each year we fall more than $20 billion short of what is needed to maintain our public water and sewer systems," Hauter said. "As recent tragedies have shown, U.S. infrastructure has seen decades of neglect. Our water systems, invisible under our homes and businesses, are facing a similar problem - one that may lead to a public health crisis."

First enacted in 1972 as the Federal Water Pollution Control Amendments, the U.S. Clean Water Act is the nation's key law on water pollution. It establishes environmental pollution standards, enforcement methods and a Clean Water State Revolving Fund (SRF) that provides federal dollars for state and local water-quality improvement projects. However, federal contributions to the SRF have declined in recent years because the amount is determined by a Congressional appropriations process that is often contentious.

As water systems across the country grow older, they are increasingly in need of more spending, not less, SRF managers told Food & Water Watch.

"As infrastructure ages and the population grows, the demand for financial assistance increases," said Brian Howard, SRF coordinator with the state of Washington's Water Quality Program. "For example, for [fiscal year] 2008, we offered $70.6 million and funds requested for high-priority water quality projects exceeded $141.7 million."

Food & Water Watch says the federal government could better address the nation's water needs with a dedicated, clean water trust fund to help pay for critical water projects in U.S. communities.

"(Local governments are shouldering more than 95 percent of the cost of their clean water obligations," said Ken Kirk, executive director of the National Association of Clean Water Agencies. "Without a federal re commitment to clean water that includes a long-term, sustainable financing mechanism, the gains we have made will be wiped out by 2016."

Food & Water Watch, "States Need Congress to Avert New Clean Water Crisis." URL: (http://www.foodandwaterwatch.org/press/releases/clear_waters_cwa_funding_crisis_article10022007)