We Are A Reflection Of. Our Members. Water Connects Us All. The National
Association of Water Companies (NAWC) is the voice of the private water service
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Moving Water Forward
We Are A Reflection Of Our Members The National Association of Water Companies (NAWC) is the voice of the private water service industry—the organization exclusively representing this group of quality water service providers, innovation drivers, creative financiers and responsible partners. Founded in 1895 by a handful of small water companies, the NAWC today has members located throughout the nation and ranging in size from large companies owning, operating or partnering with hundreds of utilities in multiple states to individual utilities serving a few hundred customers.
Water Connects Us All The need for water is something all people share, yet water is often taken for granted. Its treatment and delivery is rarely top of mind in households, businesses and city halls. We are dedicated to leading the discussion about sustainable systems and infrastructure improvement, and sharing information about what our members are doing to shape the future of water management. Every day, we engage with others seeking powerful and practical solutions to water-related challenges. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) estimates that there could be an infrastructure funding gap as large as $224 billion by 2019. Solving our nation’s water woes will take more than the leadership of federal, state and local officials and dedicated public and private water professionals—we need citizens who appreciate the value of quality water service and understand the costs involved. We must all work together and address water issues now to create the foundation for a more reliable and sustainable future.
Eric W. Thornburg President and CEO, Connecticut Water President, NAWC, 2011
more than 10,000 professionals across the country.
2 Privately owned drinking water utilities employ
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Quality water service provides for the health and safety of our families and the economic prosperity of our communities. It truly does touch everything we care about. As the voice of the private water industry, NAWC works to tell this important story of the value of water.
We Are Water Professionals Dedicated To Quality Private water companies have been providing quality service for centuries. These companies were built by men and women who engineered solutions and earned the public’s trust by treating and delivering an essential resource year after year. This commitment has endured through generations and spread to all corners of the globe. Private water companies now safeguard public health, promote environmental stewardship and deliver sustainable solutions in more than 40 countries. Through the NAWC, our members collaborate, share best practices and leverage their strengths to benefit the communities they serve. Our members’ businesses include ownership of state-regulated drinking water and wastewater utilities and many forms of public-private partnerships. And while it’s easy to think that our members sell water as a commodity, what they actually provide are the services and infrastructure required for safe and reliable water treatment and delivery.
Supporting Community To sustain a resolute vision for the association, the NAWC is led by a president elected each year by peers on the board of directors. Water professionals employed by our members contribute by serving on committees that focus on critical issues such as customer relations, communications and finance. All water decisions are made locally, so our state and regional chapters tackle the issues affecting customers in their service areas and engage public utility commissions and local leaders to seek long-term solutions for regional water challenges. We are an association defined by our members, and by working together we can leverage our strengths. We welcome any company that cares about quality water to join us as an associate member.
Quick Facts
Nearly one in every four Americans receives service from a privately owned water or wastewater utility or a municipal utility operating
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under a public-private partnership.
43 % Forty-three percent of local elected officials in large U.S. cities believe water service companies are better at offering cuttingedge technology for management of water and wastewater systems. (KRC Research, April 2010)
A member’s environmental specialist spends the day with students at Brandywine Creek in Chester County, PA.
We Are Making A Difference For The Environment Water systems owned and operated by private water companies deliver 4.6 billion gallons of water to their customers every day, but our responsibility as an industry goes far beyond treatment, testing and delivery. It extends to the communities where our members’ professionals live and work, to steadfast shareholders who first invested in our members’ companies decades ago, and to the environment we must protect. Private water companies continue to be at the forefront of a more holistic approach to resource management that embraces watershed planning and greener cities, and fosters environmental and economic vitality.
Resourceful Partnerships Successfully responding to challenges requires more than big ideas and innovative technology. Accessible financial resources to fund projects and management capacity to see them through from inspiration to operation are critical. From a new water treatment plant in Seattle that saved millions of dollars through a publicprivate partnership, or a new process for treating raw water in Tampa Bay, private water companies are using their unique resources to make a difference. Conservation and the efficient use of water are important for sustainability, even if water sometimes seems abundant. Saving water is saving money, and by providing information about the true cost of water and wastewater services, people will be able to make more informed decisions about water infrastructure issues. We partner with the US EPA’s WaterSense® program to help Americans make smart choices such as selecting water-efficient products. As of 2010, WaterSense has helped customers save a cumulative 46 billion gallons of water and $343 million in water bills.
Michael Deane Executive Director, NAWC
water due to leaky pipes every year. (ITT Corporation)
6 The U.S. alone loses nearly 1.7 trillion gallons of
Protecting our planet’s scarce resources is not a trend for us, it’s at the core of who we are as water service providers. Water is the original green business.
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We Are Helping To Improve America’s Infrastructure Our members maintain more than 100,000 miles of water distribution pipeline. Every day, those pipes provide water to people, businesses and communities. ITT’s 2010 Value of Water survey states that close to 30 percent of voters are worried that our country’s water pipes and systems are crumbling—and for good reason. Many pipes were installed a century ago. Over time, increasing population and economic growth means more water consumption, putting a strain on pipes that are already reaching the end of their lifespan. There is a water main break somewhere in the U.S. every two minutes on average, yet utilities still have difficulty raising the funds to repair or replace aging pipes.
A Flow of Benefits The U.S. Conference of Mayors reports that residents and customers of public and private utilities provide 98 percent of the money invested in local water infrastructure each year. Local investment sustains community development, helps protect the environment and improves system performance. Another reason to support local investment in water infrastructure is job creation. According to a study by the U.S. Conference of Mayors and the Associated General Contractors of America, one billion dollars invested in water infrastructure can support 28,500 jobs. We work closely with legislators at every level of government on public health, environmental, finance and tax issues, and support public policies and asset management practices that increase public and private investment in water infrastructure. As founders of the Water Is Your Business program, the NAWC also provides business and community leaders with the resources they need to get more involved. Visit WaterIsYourBusiness.org for more information.
Quick Facts
Although seventy percent of the world’s surface is covered by water only
one percent of the
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total water resources on earth can readily serve as a source of drinking water. (U.S. Geological Survey)
America has 2.8
million miles of water
distribution and wastewater pipes. (US EPA)
Sam Corda of the Cambridge Water Department in Massachusetts, shows Water Is Your Business program participants the city’s water purification facility.
We Are A Resource For People Who Care About Quality Water A typical American household uses 260 gallons of water every day, making our nation’s water footprint among the largest of any country in the world. Although Americans consume a lot of water, few people realize just what is required to treat and deliver water every day or how wastewater is cleaned so that it can be safely reused or returned to the environment. We are helping to close this information gap by serving as a credible resource for anyone seeking information about the water issues facing our nation. We publish papers and studies that demonstrate how technology and our members’ innovative solutions are helping solve complex water challenges. We make it easy for municipal leaders and the concerned citizens they represent, as well as educators, reporters, legislators, regulators and other water industry experts, to access the information they need to make informed choices.
Moving Water Forward We are pleased to host an annual water summit that brings together the latest ideas about water sustainability and systems management, and we provide congressional leaders with an annual report of what our largest members are doing in their home states to improve water service. It is just one more way that we are moving water forward. Our nation is blessed with rivers, lakes and rich groundwater supplies, and it is easy to take our natural resources for granted. Other countries may not be as fortunate, and some developing nations are suffering from lack of access to safe and affordable drinking water and sanitation. That is why we support Water For People, an organization dedicated to the development of sustainable drinking water and sanitation facilities in developing countries.
There is no blackand-white answer to managing a natural resource as uniquely available and as essential to human life as clean water. The private sector has tools available to alter old patterns of use, but we must acknowledge the true value of water in our lives and economy. Robert Glennon
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We invite you to contact us to learn more about the private water industry and our members as they work to shape the future of water management.
Professor of Law at the University of Arizona Author of Unquenchable: America’s Water Crisis and What To Do About It
Call 202.833.8383 or visit www.nawc.org today.
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2001 L Street, NW, Suite 850 • Washington, DC 20036 • t 202.833.8383 • f 202.331.7442 • www.nawc.org
