Failing Infrastructure Endangers Drinking Water Systems Across US

Megalith

Megalith

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This article suggests that our continued supply of clean, cheap drinking water is at stake. Aside from high maintenance costs, there is also the issue of failing systems going unnoticed until problems arise.

After decades of keeping water rates low and deferring maintenance, scores of drinking water systems built around the time of World War II and earlier are in need of replacement. The costs to rebuild will be staggering. The costs of inaction are already piling up. The challenge is deepened by drought conditions in some regions and government mandates to remove more contaminants.
 
According to the documentary "Cowspiracy" agriculture uses way more water than the average consumer. I say if true, just charge them more.
 
Once we were great, a nation for the people. We can see this is no longer the case, for a variety of reasons. The fact that infrastructure is not being addressed says only that taxpayer dollars are going into other pockets NOT benefiting the citizen. The future for the citizen looks miserable. Guess I should have sold out to "greed uber alles,"
 
In California, agriculture uses 80% of the state's water potable water, so I would say they should see a rate increase. That said, the average household bears a lot of responsibility. This isn't a new problem, but it is one that voters put off and politicians were scared to put forward. Cities like San Francisco and New York have clay and wooden pipes for huge segments of their plumbing. However calls to draw up even a plan to replace them, were shouted down in favor of break-fix solutions. Because the problem is invisible, people assume it will just keep on working. No one wants to be the guy or gal that raises taxes to pay for core infrastructure, but it must be done.

I also love the anti-EPA nuts who scream about the EPA regulations interfering with business and the cost of crap at Walmart, then scream about the cost of fixing the mess that an poorly funded and supported EPA couldn't address. Part of the problem is people are too stupid to understand their own stupidity. They can't understand something, so they latch on to the idea that most closely fits their hopes or ideas. Corporations are sociopaths that understand this and create dialogue that guides dumb people into supporting them. Unfortunately, corporations are also short sighted and operate on the assumption that problems they create today are another board's issue, even if those future problems might destroy the company.
 
scojer said:
According to the documentary "Cowspiracy" agriculture uses way more water than the average consumer. I say if true, just charge them more.
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In a lot of places, agriculture uses reclaimed water.
 
Over the last two decades we've probably spent more money rebuilding places we've destroyed than we have rebuilding our own domestic infrastructure.

60 billion spent rebuilding Iraq, 100 billion spent rebuilding Afghanistan. /let alone the money spent destroying them and occupying them.
 
Megalith said:
This article suggests that our continued supply of clean, cheap drinking water is at stake. Aside from high maintenance costs, there is also the issue of failing systems going unnoticed until problems arise.

After decades of keeping water rates low and deferring maintenance, scores of drinking water systems built around the time of World War II and earlier are in need of replacement. The costs to rebuild will be staggering. The costs of inaction are already piling up. The challenge is deepened by drought conditions in some regions and government mandates to remove more contaminants.
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Don't know where they live but my water rate isn't low.
This...like most other issues of late, is a failure to use tax and rate payer's dollars wisely.
It's also about failure to project and plan for utility use increases in a timely manner while crying 'the sky is falling' at the last minute.
How about sourcing and building holding areas for water with the already collected tax dollars.
That'd be a good start.
 
cyclone3d said:
In a lot of places, agriculture uses reclaimed water.
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There is a lot of potential here. In California about 20% of commercial water use is recycled water, some of this is fab plants and manufacturing that uses a lot of water, but there are also companies that recycle water for their campus lawns and such. Agriculture uses somewhere between 5-10% recycled water. At least one farm operates almost completely on recycled waters, but so hopefully it will catch on as the cost of recycled water comes into line with non-recycled.
 
mwallek said:
Once we were great, a nation for the people. We can see this is no longer the case, for a variety of reasons. The fact that infrastructure is not being addressed says only that taxpayer dollars are going into other pockets NOT benefiting the citizen. The future for the citizen looks miserable. Guess I should have sold out to "greed uber alles,"
Click to expand...

Some would say we are a far better wartime nation than a peacetime nation.
 
Lets see now, it's all agricultures fault for using too much water.

The Central Valley of CA, unemployment is about 40% because the environmental wackos cut off water to the farmers. Save the smelt! So they dig wells and now the ground in sinking, 14 inches in some places. Save the smelt!

I use a lot less water than a few years ago, my yards are brown yet my water bill is about $175 bucks a month.

Speaking of Brown, the village idiot wants to spend billions on a train to nowhere. In the Bay Area we are surrounded by salt water. You would think that the Moron Gubernor would build a few desalination plants instead of a dumbass train. I mean they spent billions to built a POS bridge out of junk steel from China. Now they want the taxpayer to fund 25 million dollars to fix one of the screw ups. You know what the fix was for cracks in the beams, sandblast them, cover the cracks with duct tape and paint it. Now what about the salt water that has leaked into the base of the towers and the brittle span bolts. They already tore down the old bridge which was perfectly good. It withstood a 7.5 which I am not sure the new one will. If it does fail during rush hours a lot of people are going for a swim.

Anyway, for those of you that says screw the farmers, they use more water than any body. Keep it up, soon you will be paying 10 bucks a gallon of milk.
 
whiz187 said:
Lets see now, it's all agricultures fault for using too much water.

The Central Valley of CA, unemployment is about 40% because the environmental wackos cut off water to the farmers. Save the smelt! So they dig wells and now the ground in sinking, 14 inches in some places. Save the smelt!

I use a lot less water than a few years ago, my yards are brown yet my water bill is about $175 bucks a month.

Speaking of Brown, the village idiot wants to spend billions on a train to nowhere. In the Bay Area we are surrounded by salt water. You would think that the Moron Gubernor would build a few desalination plants instead of a dumbass train. I mean they spent billions to built a POS bridge out of junk steel from China. Now they want the taxpayer to fund 25 million dollars to fix one of the screw ups. You know what the fix was for cracks in the beams, sandblast them, cover the cracks with duct tape and paint it. Now what about the salt water that has leaked into the base of the towers and the brittle span bolts. They already tore down the old bridge which was perfectly good. It withstood a 7.5 which I am not sure the new one will. If it does fail during rush hours a lot of people are going for a swim.

Anyway, for those of you that says screw the farmers, they use more water than any body. Keep it up, soon you will be paying 10 bucks a gallon of milk.
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This

Liberals don't think of the consequences of their ideas.
 
Despotes said:
This

Liberals don't think of the consequences of their ideas.
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Meanwhile, we have conservatives advocating running vehicles without emissions systems in the other thread, as if massive emissions into the atmosphere have no consequences.
 
cyclone3d said:
In a lot of places, agriculture uses reclaimed water.
Click to expand...

Probably true. But also in the article, the run off from farms is getting into the water supply for cities. Force a way for farmers to catch their own water and reuse it before it runs off into natural water supplies.
 
TechLarry said:
Some would say we are a far better wartime nation than a peacetime nation.
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Someone is gonna need to pay for that extra 500 billion they put on the cost of the F-35's already 1 trillion dollar costing freedom plane; and when I say someone I mean other nations that need ... freedom protection:cool:
 
whiz187 said:
Anyway, for those of you that says screw the farmers, they use more water than any body. Keep it up, soon you will be paying 10 bucks a gallon of milk.
Click to expand...

Or we could all just stop consuming so much milk and do away with a shit ton of health problems and associated health care costs.... *shrug*
 
Here's an idea, stop cutting taxes on the top 1% that are already at their lowest point ever, stop the corporate welfare, stop the unnecessary military programs that our generals say we don't need and won't work as well as what we currently have that is far cheaper (F-35 vs A-10), and invest in our infrastructure like we use to do, and any half sensible country does today. Create millions of well paying jobs that'll further boost the economy just like a raise to the minimum wage always does as well, and watch these infrastructure/health problems become nonexistent like they use to be, while also getting people off welfare.
 
For people where it is illegal to capture your own water-just say your illegal rain collecting is fire use water and you can legally.
 
cyclone3d said:
In a lot of places, agriculture uses reclaimed water.
Click to expand...

In most places AG uses everyday in ground water supply that normal people use. Worst part is, the government used the working mans money to to help farmers cause water problems for rural people. Michigan finally stepped in and made a law that if farmers irrigation causes loss of water to peoples wells, then the farmer is responsible for having a new well drilled.
 
Lith1um said:
Over the last two decades we've probably spent more money rebuilding places we've destroyed than we have rebuilding our own domestic infrastructure.

60 billion spent rebuilding Iraq, 100 billion spent rebuilding Afghanistan. /let alone the money spent destroying them and occupying them.
Click to expand...

Truth, we blow so much money on other countries while our country falls apart.
We have idiots in our government, both sides are to blame.
 
WhiskeyTangoFoxtrot said:
Or we could all just stop consuming so much milk and do away with a shit ton of health problems and associated health care costs.... *shrug*
Click to expand...

Actually, it is because of how milk is processed and then sold at the stores.

RAW milk is way, way, way, way, way, way, way, way better for you than pasteurized milk. It is a lot easier to digest and is also a lot healthier for you.

All this processing of raw foods into something else that it was not meant to be causes a huge amount of health issues.

And RAW milk is pretty much outlawed for selling in most places. Luckily we are in a co-op, a buying club, and also buy stuff like eggs, RAW milk, and now beef from local people that do not destroy their products with hormones, etc.

Oh, and the beef we now get is about 10x better than any store bought beef. The eggs are the way better as well.

Words cannot describe.
 
cyclone3d said:
Actually, it is because of how milk is processed and then sold at the stores.

RAW milk is way, way, way, way, way, way, way, way better for you than pasteurized milk. It is a lot easier to digest and is also a lot healthier for you.

All this processing of raw foods into something else that it was not meant to be causes a huge amount of health issues.

And RAW milk is pretty much outlawed for selling in most places. Luckily we are in a co-op, a buying club, and also buy stuff like eggs, RAW milk, and now beef from local people that do not destroy their products with hormones, etc.

Oh, and the beef we now get is about 10x better than any store bought beef. The eggs are the way better as well.

Words cannot describe.
Click to expand...

"Raw milk listeria outbreak" is a fun Google search.
 
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