The map below shows the countries where tap water is safe to drink—with the US among the 50 countries with safe tap water (Big Think). The water in the US is used for many purposes including energy, agriculture, public consumption, industry, and mining (CFR). Still, the water situation in the US remains highly complex, and the US is due for an overhaul of its water infrastructure, which is estimated to cost $744 Billion over 20 years (CFR); but, as of now, the American water system is composed of 2.2 million miles of pipe, 39 Billion Gallons of water moved per day, with 6 billion gallons of wasted water every day (ASCE, CFR).
In addition to the growing need for new water infrastructure, water shortage has been a concern throughout the US. The Colorado River—which contributes 10% of America’s potable water—has seen water levels fall to historic lows (Pew Trusts). This downfall in water levels could threaten access to water for millions of Americans. In fact, since the early 1900s to the present, the Colorado River has seen a 30% reduction in the flow of water (Schmidt et al.), while the population of the US has increased by over 225% since 1918 (Worldometer). The population surge and reduced water levels mean that the stress placed on the Colorado River is high—and expected to continue to rise.
Although the Colorado River situation may seem daunting, steps are being taken to improve water usage. For example, in California’s Orange County, a majority of the wastewater is recycled through a 5-step process that involves the removal of physical impurities, the disinfection of water, the filtration of organic compounds using reverse-osmosis, and remineralization (OCWD). As a side note, I will discuss a similar water recycling system that Singapore employs, and in the future, I will make a post on what makes Singapore the epitome of urban planning.
In the next article of Urban Draft, we will delve into food and its role in Urban planning.
Finally, as always, feel free to leave a comment or some constructive criticism—feedback will help improve my future posts!
Bibliography
“The Colorado River Water Crisis: Its Origin and the Future.” WIRE’s Water, 17 June 2023, wires.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/wat2.1672.
“Drinking Water.” ASCE’s 2021 Infrastructure Report Card |, ASCE, 7 July 2023, infrastructurereportcard.org/cat-item/drinking-water-infrastructure/#:~:text=Drinking%20water%20systems%20currently%20lose,in%202019%20due%20to%20leaks.
Freepik. Recycling Water free icon. Flaticon, https://www.flaticon.com/free-icon/recycling-water_1891024?term=water&page=1&position=40&origin=search&related_id=1891024. Accessed 26 June 2024.
Freepik. United States free icon. Flaticon, https://www.flaticon.com/free-icon/united-states_197484?term=america+flag&page=1&position=2&origin=search&related_id=197484. Accessed 26 June 2024.
“How Development of America’s Water Infrastructure Has Lurched through History.” The Pew Charitable Trusts, The Pew Charitable Trusts, 3 Mar. 2019, www.pewtrusts.org/en/trend/archive/spring-2019/how-development-of-americas-water-infrastructure-has-lurched-through-history.
Jacobs, Frank. “You Can Drink the Tap Water in These 50 Countries - Maybe.” Big Think, 24 Oct. 2023, bigthink.com/strange-maps/drink-tap-water-50-countries/.
James, James J. “Of Lives and Life Years: 1918 Influenza Versus Covid-19.” Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness, U.S. National Library of Medicine, Dec. 2021, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8460422/#:~:text=For%20life%20expectancy%2C%20the%20corresponding,1918%20and%20330%20million%20today.
Just 50 countries are members of the clean tap water club. You Can Drink the Tap Water in These 50 Countries — Maybe, BigThink, https://bigthink.com/strange-maps/drink-tap-water-50-countries/. Accessed 26 June 2024.
McBride, James, and Noah Berman. “How U.S. Water Infrastructure Works.” Council on Foreign Relations, Council on Foreign Relations, 2 May 2024, www.cfr.org/backgrounder/how-us-water-infrastructure-works#:~:text=U.S.%20drinking%20water%20is%20among,to%20clean%20and%20affordable%20water.
“United States Population (Live).” Worldometer, www.worldometers.info/world-population/us-population/. Accessed 26 June 2024.
“Water Reuse: OCWD.” Orange County Water District, 20 June 2024, www.ocwd.com/what-we-do/water-reuse/.
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