Old wooden pipes and failing water mains highlight the infrastructural water challenges facing many communities.
"Its wooden planks are lashed together with a coil of metal as if each section of pipe were a long, narrow barrel. And while the small stretch beneath the ground here may seem more Swiss Family Robinson than 21st century, it is not unique to Chelan.
Water officials say they believe that a handful of wooden water mains are still in use in South Dakota, Alaska and Pennsylvania, among other places. The old wood pipes offer a vivid reminder of the age and fragility of the nation's drinking water systems, many of which rely heavily on old pipes that often remain out of sight and mind - until they burst.
And they are bursting with alarming frequency in many areas these days, particularly in systems coping with septuagenarian, octogenarian, and even century-old pipes. There are an estimated 240,000 water main breaks each year in the United States, according to the Environmental Protection Agency's Aging Water Infrastructure Research Program, and some water experts fear that the problem is getting worse."
FULL STORY: Aging of Water Mains Is Becoming Hard to Ignore
The Sorry State of U.S. Water Infrastructure
Water bills are going up because pipes put in shortly after World War II are in need of repair and replacement all over the country, and federal funding for water is shrinking.
Conservation Efforts Straining Water Infrastructure
Water conservation efforts that limited when Los Angeles County residents could water their lawns may have caused a spate of water main bursts last summer and fall.
The High Costs of America's Aging Water Infrastructure
As part of its extensive coverage of water issues in the U.S., The New York Times looks at the aging water systems that plague American cities and what it would cost to fix them.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
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Atlanta Bus System Redesign Will Nearly Triple Access
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Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
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Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
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