Photo: The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. Britannica, www.britannica.com/place/Mesa-Verde-National-Park.
Entex President & CEO, Wayne Flournoy, discusses the importance of water reuse in severe drought areas:
Reports that the Western US has entered a megadrought caught my attention. Some say it’s the worst in 1,200 years. How timely that political leaders in Washington are now debating an infrastructure initiative including water and wastewater. I couldn’t help but correlate this news with anthropologist’s conclusions that the last megadrought led to the extinction of Native American communities in the Four Corners region. Populations in these severe drought areas are now far higher than ever in history. Modern technology can help address these problems. We can and must do something about this.
Previous Entex News articles have touched on related issues, for example the eastward drift of the “drought line”. In that article we noted the drought line has moved 140 miles east since 1980 and is continuing its drift to the east. We’ve also discussed the social stresses caused by the growing demand for clean water. We noted that even relatively water rich Southeast states are fighting one another over access to water.
While the details of an infrastructure package are debated, I believe it’s safe to say there is broad political consensus that some type of infrastructure initiative would be beneficial. As I look at the current proposed package, it appears that a little over 2% ($56 billion) is directed toward water and wastewater, with a significant portion of that focused on pipeline work (admittedly needed) rather than treatment plant improvements.
Compare that with the latest EPA Clean Watersheds Needs Survey which identifies over $100 billion of needed new investments in wastewater treatment alone. Another $83 billion is needed for drinking water treatment. The needs are enormous. The effect on our daily lives is critical, as clean water is even more important than food. And our population isn’t shrinking. Clearly something must be done.
Here at Entex, we’re committed to providing clean water solutions. As our Vice President of Engineering, Jeff Danner recently wrote, this commitment goes beyond just a job. We provide a number of technologies that help both large and small communities and industries. We’re also contributing by providing technologies and systems for direct re-use of wastewater. We’ve also had discussions with water/wastewater utilities that are exploring using highly treated wastewater for re-injection into underground aquifers to replenish drinking water sources.
I’m making a pitch for growing a consensus to place more emphasis on water and wastewater as a renewable resource in our discussions of infrastructure needs. Unlike the Native Americans in the Four Corners in the late 800’s, we have the technology to deal with megadroughts. But do we have the foresight?