DEVELOP TOOLS FOR PROMOTING SUSTAINABLE AND INTEGRATED WATER INFRASTRUCTURE (Si-Wi) IN TEXAS
Grant
Overview
Affiliation
View All
Overview
abstract
Water infrastructure plays an important role in protecting public health and economic development. The slogan "Water is Life" is universally accepted. Water infrastructure for this research proposal includes both drinking water infrastructure and wastewater infrastructure. At present, our drinking water infrastructure removes water from the environment, treats it, and distributes it to households and other customers, and our wastewater infrastructure collects, treats, and returns water back into environment, most of the time after a single use. Despite the importance and funding given to water infrastructure in our nation, the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) infrastructure report card grade assigned to both water and wastewater infrastructure is D. (2013 Report Card for America's Infrastructure, ASCE). Water supply scarcity is another growing problem recognized in several states, including Texas. Global climate change along with increased demand on source water are the two major factors contributing to water shortage. The 2012 Water for Texas report indicates that the state population is expected to increase 82% between the years 2010 and 2060, but the water demand is projected to increase by only 22% (2012 Water for Texas, Texas Water Development Board). Infrastructure at risk and water supply that does not meet the demand are the two aspects that need careful evaluation to build a sustainable 21st century water infrastructure..........
