"2018 Preview: What Not to Ignore About Water Infrastructure"

"Infrastructure was supposed to be an arena of bipartisan comity in Donald Trump’s first year as president. Instead, it became an afterthought as the administration tussled with Congress over health care, border security, and tax cuts while jettisoning waves of advisers and staff.

Having signed the tax bill just before Christmas, Trump promised to offer a public works plan in the new year. Large sums of money are potentially in play — a $1 trillion figure has been discussed by both Democrats and Republicans for repairing, modernizing, and extending the nation’s water pipes, roads, airports, dams, transmission lines, bridges, and sewer systems.

Nearly everyone agrees that significant investment is necessary, especially as a warming planet renders old design assumptions obsolete. Perpetually low performance grades, just above failing, from the American Society of Civil Engineers attest to serious deficiencies in the nation’s connective hardware. But simply building more stuff, infrastructure experts argue, can set up communities for long-term financial failure. Maintenance, they say, should be a bigger part of the infrastructure equation."

Brett Walton reports for Circle of Blue January 4, 2018.