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Head of navigation on the C&O Canal, Cumberland, MD 2009
©EOP
Urban water supply was the subject of yesterday's post. After it was written I found that nearby is a major (sub)urban water supply problem. An urban water system requires almost constant repair and replacement, for just as a stream erodes the rock over which it passes, flowing water in pipes causes them to erode. If the erosion is great enough, then a pipe can break, and a catastrophic spill can follow. The Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission (WSSC) which provides water and sewer services to the Maryland counties adjacent to Washington, DC had a catastrophic spill in 1998. That spill caused several injuries and substantial economic dislocation in Montgomery County along with dangers to public health and safety. Among other damage, a major commuter street was washed out and had to be replaced at considerable expense and inconvenience to commuters and nearby residents.
Yesterday the WSSC had another problem. After tests showed severe erosion, in order to avoid the rupture of a huge trunk water main, the agency was forced to shut off that line and thereby cut water supplies to nearly 2 million users. In turn water users were asked to drastically reduce their water use over the holiday weekend until repairs can be made to the pipe, but as of this morning the voluntary cut backs were not large enough to prevent a potentially disastrous drop in water pressure. With the 4th of July weekend and week following promising to be very hot and dry, lack of adequate water could prove a major problem to those whose water supply is reduced and uncertain.
While I am unaware of the sources of the problems in Maryland, the parlous state of the urban water supply systems in a number of cities due to inadequate investment in new facilities and lack of maintenance of existing water lines is well known. Tens of thousands of kilometers of water lines, from ones leading from the street into offices, shops and dwellings to major lines bring water from distant sources, need replacement in the near future. A large fraction of those lines are owned and operated by municipal and quasi-governmental agencies like the WSSC. The "no taxes" mantra along with the unwillingness of the public to pay higher rates has meant the utilities have been starved for investment and maintenance funds. Perhaps a major event will waken the public to the need for more money. One must hope that event is not a conflagration involving thousands of houses or a public health crisis!
