“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.
Three overarching challenges limit the water infrastructure pipeline in the U.S. water sector, particularly for small, rural, and underserved communities:
year old wooden water pipes still serve some U.S. cities as their main source of water
water mains break per
day in the U.S.
gallons of drinking water per day are wasted due to broken infrastructure