US Drinking Water Systems Under Growing Strain From Coast To Coast - Drought, Floods, Debris Flows

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When Hurricane Helene tore through the mountains of western North Carolina in 2024, it caused nearly $3.7 billion worth of damage to the region’s water systems, according to a state needs assessment. In Asheville, some 3,000 feet of pipes were washed away, severing the city’s distribution system and cutting off water access to more than 100,000 people. At the same time, landslides washed huge amounts of sediment into local reservoirs, making the water too muddy to pass through a filtration system. Even with crews working around the clock, it took 53 days to restore drinkable tap water to the entire city.

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The utility is applying for a grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, he added. Yet federal funding for water infrastructure has declined dramatically over the past fifty years. According to the American Society of Civil Engineers, the U.S. government used to supply well over half of all capital investment in the water sector; today, that figure is below 10 percent.

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Amid a decades-long megadrought that has diminished aquifers and caused a catastrophic decline in river flows, residents of Southern California have seen rate increases of up to 17 percent over the past two years. Washington state’s King County, which includes Seattle, is considering a 12.75 percent sewage rate hike to deal with more severe rainstorms that are increasingly causing untreated waste to spill into local water bodies.

Several communities in the beleaguered Colorado River basin — where a record-low snowpack is exacerbating a long-brewing water crisis — have also imposed drought surcharges to encourage residents to conserve. For example, Denver announced last month that heavier water users must now pay an extra $1.10 to $2.20 for every 1,000 gallons they consume.

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https://wapo.st/48ZFUPT

https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2026/05/13/climate-change-is-threatening-americans-water-sending-bills-soaring/

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