Investments By 30 Utilities To Support 289,000 Jobs

As water infrastructure wears thin and municipal funding is strained by budget difficulties, a large set of utilities is planning to shell out cash for repairs.

"Thirty U.S. water and wastewater utilities plan to invest about $23 billion a year over the next decade in upgrades, generating an estimated $524 billion in revenue and supporting 289,000 jobs," according to Bloomberg, citing a new report.

Titled "National Economic & Labor Impacts of the Water Utility Sector," the report was published in September by the Water Environment Research Foundation (WERF) and the Water Research Foundation (WRF).

It examined "the capital and operating costs of public utilities that provide water, wastewater and stormwater services to 83 million people across the country that represent more than 25 percent of the U.S. population," according to Bloomberg.

Benjamin Grumbles, president of the U.S. Water Alliance and former EPA official, explained the significance of the findings.

“The report connects the dots between water, wastewater, stormwater, and jobs,” he said, per Bloomberg. “It lays out in detail the experiences of 30 utilities on the direct economic impacts and induced indirect economic impacts."

Rob Renner, WRF executive director, emphasized the importance of water infrastructure investments to the health of municipalities.

“Our utility subscribers play a significant role in their respective local communities’ economies and the national economy as a whole,” he said, per a release. “This study underscores the valuable economic and labor benefits of investments in water infrastructure.”

The report noted the challenges of "brain drain," the impending loss of expertise and knowledge that will hit the water sector when the baby boomers exit the workforce.

"Workforce replacement needs within the water sector over the next decade exceed the 23 percent nationwide replacement need of the total workforce (Bureau of Labor Statistics 2012). If this projection is realized, as many as 12,400 jobs will be vacated over the next decade at the utilities participating in this study, not including workers contracted to the utilities by outside firms, who represent an additional workforce replacement opportunity," the report said.