Water and Sewer Damage Awareness Week highlights infrastructure challenges
(UI) — Water and Sewer Damage Awareness Week (WSDAW) is set to return from October 21-25, 2024. Ground Penetrating Radar Systems, LLC (GPRS) will lead the initiative, offering free safety presentations nationwide to municipalities, facilities, and property management firms.
The goal is to raise awareness and provide strategies for managing and maintaining water, sewer, and stormwater infrastructure.
Throughout the week, GPRS safety professionals will deliver presentations and share safety information on the GPRS and WSDAW LinkedIn pages. Jason Schaff, GPRS Chief Strategy Officer and SiteMap Product Executive, emphasized the event's importance in addressing the growing issues facing the U.S. water and wastewater systems.
Schaff highlighted some alarming statistics: six billion gallons of water are lost daily in the U.S. due to failing subsurface infrastructure, costing approximately $2 billion annually in non-revenue water. Additionally, the country sees around 70,000 sanitary sewer overflows each year, and the average sewer pipe is now 45 years old and operating at 81% capacity. According to the 2021 American Society of Civil Engineers Report Card, the nation's infrastructure received a C- rating.
“Infrastructure in the U.S. is in poor shape - water and wastewater systems are no exception,” Schaff said. “WSDAW offers education on practical ways to prevent the further degradation of these critical underground assets! WSDAW is the marrying of a solution with a problem.”
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