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A review by msgtdameron
The Ripple Effect: The Fate of Fresh Water in the Twenty-First Century by Alex Prud'homme
5.0
Two big take aways. One: the U.S. must start to charge for water at the actual rate that the water costs to get from source, to tap, to sewage treatment, to next user. Yes unless you are the first person to use water from a spring it most likely has been used before and has gone through a sewage treatment plant. Now this cost must apply after infrastructure has been replaced. The cost of replacement infrastructure should be born by the state. What ever that state is. In the case of a city the city should sell bonds or get federal loans to replace current water intake, purification, distribution, and sewage treatment. Old water infrastructure is the second take away. Infrastructure has to be replaced nation wide. The U.S. is loosing a trillion gallons a day to leaks. This much lose is just NOT sustainable.
On cost, according to the book most people use 13 to 16 gallons per day. Double that and give each person in a household 25 gallons per day at the current rate for your municipality. After that the rate should be triple per gallon. Case in point, in 2010 the year of publication water in the LA basin cost $37.00. Here in Abilene TX it cost me $67.00 and today cost's me $87.00. My water source, Ft Phantom Hill Lake, is 15 minutes from my house. The source for the LA Basin is either Lake Meade or Northern Cal water shed. It actually costs much more to move water from either source to LA. than people in LA pay. Actual cost after twice the minimum for life must happen. By doing so people will conserve and save this precious resource.
On infrastructure. Leaks are killing us. Although no nation wide leak lose is given; I believe, from the information provided, that a trillion Gal/day is a reasonable number. That's 365 triilion gal a year of fresh potable water. Saving this much water by replacing our water infrastructure is just common sense, cheaper, and more environmentally friendly than building dams. Water engineers need to embrace conservation and green technologies as part of the solution for our nations future water problems and needs.
Overall a must read for those concerned with our kids future and their ability to get a drink of cool crisp water.
On cost, according to the book most people use 13 to 16 gallons per day. Double that and give each person in a household 25 gallons per day at the current rate for your municipality. After that the rate should be triple per gallon. Case in point, in 2010 the year of publication water in the LA basin cost $37.00. Here in Abilene TX it cost me $67.00 and today cost's me $87.00. My water source, Ft Phantom Hill Lake, is 15 minutes from my house. The source for the LA Basin is either Lake Meade or Northern Cal water shed. It actually costs much more to move water from either source to LA. than people in LA pay. Actual cost after twice the minimum for life must happen. By doing so people will conserve and save this precious resource.
On infrastructure. Leaks are killing us. Although no nation wide leak lose is given; I believe, from the information provided, that a trillion Gal/day is a reasonable number. That's 365 triilion gal a year of fresh potable water. Saving this much water by replacing our water infrastructure is just common sense, cheaper, and more environmentally friendly than building dams. Water engineers need to embrace conservation and green technologies as part of the solution for our nations future water problems and needs.
Overall a must read for those concerned with our kids future and their ability to get a drink of cool crisp water.