The Need

“We have really enjoyed working with the team at the Water Finance Exchange. Not only were they able to provide us with pre-development funds to support the consolidation of five small utilities, they helped us successfully navigate regulatory challenges associated with project approval.”
Eric Emmerich, Treasurer, United Regional Water Cooperative, Inc.

Across the U.S., there is a one trillion dollar funding gap in water infrastructure to keep up with anticipated population growth. Federal infrastructure funds, state funding and philanthropy present a catalyzing opportunity for many small, rural, and underserved communities to address needed water and wastewater infrastructure in a meaningful way. However, many underserved and low-income communities will miss out on this opportunity unless they are better equipped and supported to pursue funding.

The Challenge

Three overarching challenges limit the water infrastructure pipeline in the U.S. water sector, particularly for small, rural, and underserved communities:

Communities lack the technical and financial administrative capacity to pursue sustainable solutions and funding opportunities
Deferred maintenance and lack of investment has created public health and environmental risks
Access to support is fragmented and communities struggle to achieve collaboration and regional approaches

The Opportunity

Supporting Small, Rural,
and Underserved Communities

Utilities that serve less than 100,000 residents people make up around 75% of domestic water utilities. Many of these communities are left behind by current water infrastructure funding and lack the capacity to access new resources.

Regional Collaboration

WFX actively promotes regional strategies and serves as an expert resource, advocate, and partner with communities that are seeking collaborative approaches for community infrastructure.

Bridging Public & Private
Funding with Philanthropy

Philanthropy can help bring new capital into the sector by building a pipeline of fundable deals and helping to manage risk, as well as catalyze community access to new federal and state infrastructure funding resources.