Financing Sustainable Water Infrastructure

As the nation's water infrastructure ages and populations grow beyond the capacity of existing systems, we will need to deploy hundreds of billions of dollars to repair and expand drinking water, wastewater, and stormwater infrastructure. Simultaneously, our water infrastructure needs to be more flexible and resilient to increasingly unpredictable climate conditions that are forecast to become even more volatile in the future. As with our transportation and energy infrastructure, the nation's water infrastructure is at a critical juncture. An increasing array of options are emerging for transitioning toward more cost-effective, resilient, and environmentally sustainable solutions. However, investment in expensive, inflexible "siloed" water systems remains the norm. Regardless of the kind of systems we design, money for water infrastructure will be tight. We will need to identify new financing alternatives and spend those funds on the most effective use of our limited resources.

Through presentations, breakout session discussions and background materials, participants in the convening explored the fundamental underpinnings of the challenges we face. In order to identify lasting and more sustainable solutions, we first need to understand:

• The looming freshwater crisis
• The water industry and water sector, and how our infrastructure is managed
• What "sustainable" water infrastructure means
• Principles of financing water systems, including how funds are raised and deployed