Millions of Americans take water service for granted every day. Turn on the tap, and clean water flows out. Flush the toilet, and dirty water goes away. With reliable water service, people don’t have to think twice about the infrastructure that brings water to their homes, and then safely returns water to the environment — but everyone should be concerned with the fragility of those systems.
On Imagine a Day Without Water — which is being held Oct. 23 — utilities, municipalities and associations across the nation are asking the public to take a moment to think about what would happen if they couldn’t turn on the tap and get clean drinking water, or if they flushed the toilet and wastewater didn’t go anywhere.
What would that day be like? What would firefighters do? Could hospitals be sanitary without clean tap water, or without wastewater service? Would restaurants and hotels be able to serve guests? Would famers be able to water their crops or care for their livestock? Would manufacturing plants that require vast amounts of clean water, such as breweries or paper mills, shut down?
We take for granted that we don’t have to ask those questions every day, but America’s water infrastructure is aging and failing. Stories of communities with neglected infrastructure and compromised drinking water bubble up regularly.
Record rainfalls in the Midwest this spring flooded the Mississippi River with pollution, and this summer toxic algae bloomed in the Great Lakes — a critical source of drinking water for millions of Americans.
In other parts of the country, drought and wildfires threaten critical water supplies for communities and farmers. There are even communities, especially in many rural places across the country, that have never had access to infrastructure in the first place. Americans can’t take their water infrastructure for granted.
That’s why the Value of Water Campaign is organizing this annual national day of advocacy aimed at educating the public about the critical importance of access to reliable, clean water and the need for water infrastructure investments to maintain and rebuild these vital systems.
Hundreds of organizations across the county are engaging with the public for Imagine a Day Without Water by using social media platforms; hosting community events like open houses and festivals; getting water issues on local news channels; working with local public officials to issue proclamations supporting its message; and developing contests and curriculum in the classroom.
Over the past five years, Imagine a Day Without Water has provided a platform for educating the public and advocating for leaders to prioritize investing in water today, so in the future no American will have to imagine a day without water.
The Value of Water Campaign released the short video below, which is free to share with the public. For more information about joining this year’s initiative, or to plan on joining next year, visit imagineadaywithoutwater.org.
