This comment letter provides feedback and recommendations on the draft report “Options for Implementation of a Statewide Low-Income Water Rate Assistance Program.”
Like millions of people in the western United States this week, I woke up to deep red, sunless skies, layers of ash coating the streets, gardens, and cars, and the smell of burning forests, lives, homes, and dreams. Not to be too hyperbolic, but on top of the political chaos, the economic collapse, and the worst pandemic in modern times, it seemed more than a little apocalyptic.
Every human being needs safe and affordable water, but in the United States, tens of millions of people still lack it. As the COVID-19 pandemic revealed, poor water infrastructure and the failure to provide universal access to safe water and sanitation threaten public health. Meanwhile, water shortages, poor management, and antiquated water systems threaten the nation’s food supply, ecosystems, and economy.
To combat the spread of the COVID-19 virus and rebuild our economies during and after the pandemic, collective action on water is essential. Such action can help not only to contain the virus, but also to realize the human right to water and accelerate the “blue” economy, whereby economic well-being and water resilience mutually reinforce one another.
Setting site water targets is a business imperative to reduce water risk and improve water security. Every water catchment has a unique set of water challenges.
The world’s water resources are under increasing pressure from rising water consumption, pollution, and climate variability. The variety of water challenges companies face, from water governance issues to extreme events like drought, manifest in the river basins where the companies operate. Therefore, setting meaningful targets requires companies to take the local context of their operations into consideration.
