One of the keys to accelerating progress on water access and sanitation in the U.S. may be simple: share solutions openly and tackle common challenges together. That’s exactly what’s happening this week at the Vessel Collective convening in Washington, D.C., where representatives from more than 130 organizations are exchanging ideas,…
A national plan is now on the table to bring running water and sanitation to every home in the United States. The Vessel Collective’s new roadmap sets a clear goal: universal access by 2040. It starts with the more than 2 million Americans who still lack basic service—and focuses on…
Just south of Winnipeg, the Red River Floodway quietly determines the fate of a city. Built after the catastrophic 1950 Red River Flood—which forced 100,000 people from their homes and destroyed 10,000 more—this system is one of the most ambitious flood control projects in North America. Stretching 30 miles long,…
Not another water report. An action plan. Kabir Thatte of the Vessel Collective says a new national roadmap to close the U.S. water access gap is designed to move beyond policy ideas and into measurable results. He describes the plan as an implementation framework—with built-in accountability—focused on tracking whether fewer…
More than 2 million people in the United States live without running water or a working toilet—and the true number could be far higher. It’s a crisis hidden in plain sight, affecting communities from tribal lands and rural Appalachia to border colonias and even neighborhoods just beyond city infrastructure. In…
A $6 million international investment is turning a Great Lakes utility into a proving ground for next-generation water treatment. At the Cleveland Water Alliance, new technology is now producing high-concentration hypochlorite on site—replacing the need to ship chlorine long distances by rail. The system, developed by a company spun out…
Nanobubbles—microscopic pockets of gas invisible to the human eye—are emerging as a powerful tool to improve water treatment and management. In this episode of How Water Works, Travis Loop visits Moleaer Inc. in Los Angeles to break down how nanobubbles work and why they’re gaining traction across industries. Thousands of…
Enforcement that lives on paper doesn’t fix what’s happening on the ground. Alan Roberson of the Water & Health Advisory Council describes a system where violations often trigger letters—not solutions. Utilities fall out of compliance, work with states, and if problems persist, enforcement becomes a notice that can be filed…
$20 million for PFAS. $20 million for lead. And up to $50 million already needed for aging pipes. That’s the reality facing many U.S. water systems today. Chad Seidel of the Water Health Advisory Council describes a growing financial squeeze: new regulatory requirements are stacking on top of long-standing infrastructure…
The most powerful thing water leaders can bring to work might be the one thing they’ve been taught to leave behind. At Catalyst 2025, Britton Smith — artist, facilitator, and frontman of Britton and the Sting — led a session that challenged professionals to confront the “mask” they wear at…
Solutions to some of the world’s biggest water challenges are taking shape through collaboration at the local level. At a World Water Day gathering at the Reservoir Center in Washington, D.C., leaders from across industry, advocacy, and government highlighted how convening the right people—across sectors and perspectives—is accelerating progress on…
The very report designed to build trust in tap water may be doing the opposite. Kathryn Sorensen of the Water Health Advisory Council points to a growing body of research showing that EPA-mandated Consumer Confidence Reports—sent annually to millions of Americans—can actually lower confidence in drinking water safety. The issue…
Winnipeg sits in one of the most unforgiving flood landscapes in North America—formed in the basin of ancient glacial Lake Agassiz, where the land is so flat that water doesn’t drain, it spreads. That reality turns spring into a test. Rain and snowmelt move slowly across the landscape, pooling and…
We’re spending billions chasing microscopic contaminants… while the biggest threats to public health may be far more basic. Janet Anderson of the Water Health Advisory Council lays out a critical shift in how we think about drinking water risk: not all risks are equal—and treating them that way can lead…
A group of top water experts is challenging one of the core assumptions behind U.S. drinking water policy—that chasing ever-smaller traces of contaminants is the best way to protect public health—and instead calling for a fundamental shift toward fixing pipes, strengthening systems, and prioritizing the risks that actually matter most.…
Innovation in water isn’t just about the next breakthrough technology—it’s about changing the system around it. Newsha Ajami of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory says the Aspen National Water Strategy challenges a common assumption: that innovation means new gadgets or tools. In reality, some of the biggest opportunities lie in policy,…
My spring break trip included an unexpected tour of a disaster zone. I was in the North Carolina mountains and it was stunning to see it like this a year and a half after Hurricane Helene. A hurricane hits Florida… and still ends up dumping up to 20 inches of…
For utilities replacing lead pipes, the work starts with knowing exactly what’s in the ground. In this segment, Yolanda McCollom of Ridgewood Water explains how a smaller system is tackling that challenge by building something essential: a single, reliable source of truth. Ridgewood serves about 20,000–22,000 service lines, with roughly…
A new federal incentive could accelerate one of the most practical solutions to water scarcity: reuse. Bruno Pigott of the WateReuse Association points to a proposed 30% tax credit for industries that install water reuse systems—a policy designed to make conservation financially viable at scale. The logic is straightforward. Industries—from…
Inside this brewery, water isn’t just used—it’s captured, treated, and put back to work. At Stone Brewing in Escondido, California, water efficiency, conservation, and reuse are built into the operation. The facility runs an on-site treatment and reclamation system—recovering close to 70% of its wastewater and putting it back to…
Abandoned cranberry bogs are becoming unlikely engines of ecological recovery in New England. Daniel Hayden of Restore America's Estuaries describes a growing effort to transform retired cranberry farms into functioning wetlands—reconnecting them to nearby estuaries, restoring natural water flow, and replanting native vegetation. These projects are not just land conversions—they’re…
Getting into homes has become one of the biggest hurdles in removing lead pipes. In this segment, Alex Wells of the Passaic Valley Water Commission explains how New Jersey’s lead service line replacement effort is confronting a practical reality: utilities can’t replace what they can’t access. In cities like Paterson,…
11 million gallons. 500 species. And almost zero water wasted. Inside the Georgia Aquarium, one of the largest aquatic facilities in the world, more than 99% of water is recycled and reused—a system designed to conserve millions of gallons every year. Advanced filtration technology from Xylem keeps massive exhibits like…
Use federal water funding to unlock state and local investment—that’s the shift at the center of the Aspen National Water Strategy. Martin Doyle of Duke University says the proposal is straightforward but underutilized: structure federal dollars to leverage and sequence spending across all levels of government. Instead of fragmented funding…