FSAWWA SPEAKING OUT
Want Water Sustainability and Economic Growth? Invest in Infrastructure! Water Tells the Story Fred Bloetscher, P.E., Ph.D. Chair, FSAWWA
W
ater is the basis for the growth and development of civilization. Without water, society would not exist. Water engineers were arguably the first engineers, so they therefore rank as one of the oldest professions.
Early in our history, people located near water for food and transportation. As they discovered agriculture, water became more important. If you did not have water, there was no agriculture, and no ability to create a community. Once your group started to grow, water needed to be consistent because disruptions in water supply could be catastrophic. We figured out that water played a vital role in protecting public health back during the Roman Empire (if not before). Ancient Roman aqueducts are well known to us, and some are still used today. The concept was to bring clean water from the mountains to Rome and then wash away the debris (early sewers). It improved the health of the Romans and
Figure 1. Water-deficit areas across the U.S. (source: Reilly, et al. 2008)
18 July 2021 • Florida Water Resources Journal
allowed maybe a million people to live there, which was huge in the ancient world. Romans’ taxes paid for these systems. When the United States got started, we followed the same model as the ancient world—we first located on the coast for transportation access, started farming farther inland, build canals for irrigation (and then for transportation), discovered the Great Lakes, and built the industrial Midwest based on the lakes and their resources. America became an industrial power, and because of proximal water supplies, a great agricultural center developed as well. Local entities invested heavily in these water and sewer systems as a means to compete with other communities. As weather patterns have changed, however, the sustainability of water sources has changed in some jurisdictions. The water resources of the South are far more limited than the Northeast and Midwest, and more episodic. As a result, the ability to create the large industrial complexes of the Rust Belt was always a challenge. A lack of water and sewer in many small southern communities was a barrier to their growth and development until the Works Progress Administration program was created during the Great Depression and built the systems many still rely on. The water supply challenges have increase with time. Even in what should be water-rich Florida, with an average of 50 to 60 inches of annual rainfall, we have ongoing challenges in some parts for water supply, which is why potable reuse is being tested in many areas across the state. New sources and added capacity will, however, cost money. Water supplies in the West have always been scarce. As identified by the U.S. Geological Service (USGS) in 2008, the water supplies do not meet the current demands west of the Mississippi River (Figure 1). Surface waters are limited, so groundwater is tapped, but as Figure 2 shows, there is not enough rainfall or recharge to sustain current usage, which puts communities at risk. In the 13 years since that USGS report was published, climate impacts pose added
