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In the coming months, the City of Garretson, S.D. will be will be implementing exciting upgrades to its utility meter reading infrastructure. The city will be the first in the country to deploy a combined water and natural gas advanced metering analytics (AMA) solution from Badger Meter.

Last month, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released the results of the first comprehensive survey looking at the health of thousands of stream and river miles across the country, finding that more than half – 55 percent – are in poor condition for aquatic life.

The U.S. Water Alliance has announced the 2013 winners of the coveted U.S. Water Prize. The winners are: Onondaga County, N.Y., for its program to “Save the Rain” and embrace green infrastructure solutions to wet weather problems; The Freshwater Trust for its collaborative market-based solutions to restore and protect rivers and streams; and, MillerCoors for their innovative and comprehensive strategies to protect and conserve water throughout its life cycle.

The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) has released its 2013 Report Card for America?s Infrastructure, a comprehensive assessment of the nation’s infrastructure across 16 sectors. Updated once every four years, this year’s Report Card found that America’s cumulative GPA for infrastructure rose slightly to a D+ from a D in 2009.

Back in November 2012, the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works drafted a bill to reauthorize the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA). The new bill, to continue the WRDA program, came on the heels of Hurricane Sandy which resulted in the deaths of more than 120 people, destroyed entire neighborhoods on the East Coast and cost billions of dollars in damage to property and businesses. A reminder – the WRDA program serves to authorize select projects and programs of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Water and energy are inextricably linked, a concept referred to more and more commonly as the water-energy nexus. In short, it describes the interrelationship of water used in the generation of energy, and energy consumed in the use of water. Most forms of electricity generation require the use of water at some stage.

According to the National Research Council of Canada, asbestos cement-lined water mains degrade when subjected to long-term exposure to sulfates and byproducts of biofilms that form on mains’ interior walls.

Globally, non-revenue water amounts to an average of 34 percent of processed water. In other words, 34 percent of the water that a utility has treated and pumped is not billed. The World Bank estimates that non-revenue water costs utilities $14 billion, annually, worldwide. In the United States, reports have shown that the non-revenue water totals between 10 and 30 percent, with more than 240,000 main breaks each year.

Two years ago, Anchorage Water and Wastewater Utility (AWWU) began to upgrade water service capacity for a residential area with five homes built approximately 50 years ago. Over the years, three of the homes were converted to multi-family rentals and therefore, demand on the small water main serving them increased greatly. This led to frequent water pressure problems.

The Opening General Session for the Energy and Water Conference, May 6-9, 2013, will feature several big name speakers including Dr. Holmes Hummel of the U.S. Department of Energy, Bob Balzar, Tennessee Valley Authority vice president and Dr. Cynthia Truelove, Stanford University?s Water-Energy Research InitiativeRead More