Affordable Water Could Be A Crisis In The US

By Rodney Rafols , Jan 13, 2017 05:30 AM EST

Water is a precious resource. Many people and other living things could not go on for so long without water. As communities grow larger though, affordable water becomes even more valuable. Affordable water could be a crisis in the US soon.

Along with growing communities, water rates in the US are rising as well. It has been projected that if water rates continue to go up, many US households would soon be unable to afford water. Water rates could triple within the next few years, as a study has found out.

Elizabeth Mack is a scholar from the University of Michigan. Various factors are said to contribute to rising water rates. One of those factors is the aging infrastructures used to deliver water. Another factor that is noted is climate change. Mack has noted that water affordability in many US cities is becoming critical.

There is a recommended criteria on how much budget each US household should allocate for water. As stated by the Environmental Protection Agency, budget for water consumption should be no more than 4.5 percent of each household's income. However, that would mean as much as 13.8 million households won't be able to afford water. This is hard especially for low income families.

Infrastructure to deliver water has been aging, according to MSU Today. Much of those infrastructure have been around since World War II. Replacing them would cost as much as $1 trillion within the next 25 years.

Climate change is also a factor. Many of the facilities would have to be adapted to the changing climate. Such adaptations could cost an additional $36 billion by 2050, as Science Daily reports. These factors cited would drive water rates up considerably.

Solving the crisis would involve the coordination between government, agencies and the consumers themselves. It would be a crisis that would have great consequences. Affordable water could be a crisis in the US soon if this is not addressed. Also studied is that more kids are using low calorie sweeteners.

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