WATER
WATER INDUSTRY
WHY THE WATER INDUSTRY NEEDS PARTNERING NOW THE U.S. WATER SUPPLY HAS BEGUN TO DOMINATE THE NEWS RECENTLY. IN JANUARY 2014, CALIFORNIA GOVERNOR JERRY BROWN DECLARED THE ONGOING CALIFORNIA DROUGHT A STATE EMERGENCY. IN NOVEMBER 2014, HE ASKED CALIFORNIA VOTERS TO SUPPORT A $7.5 BILLION BOND IN SUPPORT OF LOCAL WATER INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS, WHICH THEY SUPPORTED. LATER, IN APRIL 2015, HE ASKED MUNICIPALITIES TO RE-DOUBLE THEIR EFFORTS AND REDUCE WATER CONSUMPTION BY 25%1.
But California’s drought is just the tip of the iceberg. The American Water Works Association (AWWA), estimates that there are nearly 240,000 drinking water main breaks per year and the cost to replace the nation’s crumbling drinking water infrastructure will be more than $1 trillion over the next 25 years.2 Furthermore, the rate of floods and extreme weather incidents that threaten our water systems is on the rise.3
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Local municipalities will be expected to deliver projects that are much more technically complex, and will require working with more permitting agencies and new funding sources—Collaborative Partnering is the best tool that we are aware of for cultivating the collaborative culture needed to achieve success.
Partnering Magazine May/June 2015
www.partneringinstitute.org