AWWA '07 - and I thought the power infrastructure was in bad shape

I just returned from American Water Works Association's humungous World Water conference, ironically flying back to the Bay area over the smoldering South Lake Tahoe fires.

I went to learn what I could about the use of AMI in the water market, and I got a nice little cram course on the water industry. Here are a few things I learned:

- an ungodly amount of water is lost in water distribution system due to leaks. We're talking 10, 20, 30% and more of all water goes into the ground before it reaches our home.

- most of the water distribution system in the ground today is original - that means many are more than a century old. While this old infrastructure is at risk, some say that it is the infrastructure built out during the post WWII expansion that is in bad shape today

- cost of energy for pumping can be a water utility's biggest expense

- most older residential water meters aren't precise enough to detect very low flow rates. So a lot of customers don't actually pay for the water losses due to slow leaks in their home

- while everyone is concerned about crumbling infrastructure, few utilities have the money to consider on replacement. Instead, they continue to expand to serve urban sprawl, and reactively fix the big broken lines. Even with increased rates, they have just enough money left to deal with clean water requirements.

- the aging workforce problem is an issue in the water industry as it is in the power industry. However, the problem is exacerbated by the perceived lack of glamor (and salaries) in the biz.

- like oil, sources of water are getting harder to find, and (kind of like tar sands), desalination is being considered as an economic alternative for mass production of fresh water.

So what's the future for water utility infrastructure? Well, I'm still trying to get my arms around it, but I am not encouraged. At minimum rates will continue to go up - and I think that's ok, at least for those of us who can afford it.