sustainability | 2013 Report Card for America's Infrastructure

Happy Earth Day from ASCE!

April 22nd, 2013 | By: America's Infrastructure Report Card

Did you know the first Earth Day was celebrated in 1970? That it was first proposed by Senator Gaylord Nelson of Wisconsin? That Senator Nelson was inspired by campus activism on the late 1960’s? Learn all about the history of Earth Day here. The first Earth Day led to the creation of the United States Environmental Protection Agency and the passage of the Clean Air, Clean Water, and Endangered Species Acts. Earth Day went global in 1990, mobilizing 200 million people in 141 countries and elevating environmental issues to the world stage. Earth Day 1990 gave a huge boost to recycling efforts worldwide and helped pave the way for the 1992 United Nations Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro. It also prompted President Bill Clinton to award Senator Nelson the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1995 – the highest honor given to civilians in the United States – for his role as Earth Day founder. Learn about what ASCE is doing to encourage sustainable civil engineering practices on the sustainability section of the ASCE Web site.

Tags: sustainability
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The Clean Water Act Turns 40!

October 18th, 2012 | By: America's Infrastructure Report Card

The Clean Water Act is 40 years old this week, and we are all so much better for it because it. As we near the end of 2012, we can look back and say we’ve made remarkable progress on cleaning up the nation’s waters. Forty years ago, people were afraid to swim or fish in our waters, our lakes and our rivers. And quite frankly, we didn’t have the resources to address the issue.

The Cuyahoga River in Ohio, which caught on fire and sparked the creation of the Clean Water Act. Courtesy Flickr/jborger

In 1972 the Clean Water Act was enacted to regulate the discharge of pollutants into the waters in the United States and established water quality standards. It made it unlawful to discharge any pollutant into navigable waters unless a permit was issued. With this law and the hard work of local governments and engineers, we’ve kept billions of pounds of sewage, chemicals and trash out of our waters. Today’s engineers are doing amazing things and we have benefited from new technology. Urban waterways have gone from being wastelands to being the center of redevelopment and activity. The end result—waters are more swimmable, fishable and sources of drinking water are more protected. And that is something we can all be proud of as stewards of the Nation’s infrastructure. There is not a single location in this country where you cannot go and get a clean glass of water. But 40 years from now, will we be able to make the same statement? I don’t know. We are once again facing a challenge. The United States population is projected to grow 55 percent from 2000 to 2050, which will burden our infrastructure. Population growth, coupled with added development, further strains our system. Face it. Our water and wastewater systems are aging and are overburdened, with many of them built 100 years or more ago. Sadly, we’ve all seen the impact these aging pipes and facilities have on our daily lives. From broken water mains to “boil water” alerts. A recent economic study by the American Society of Civil Engineers found that the gap between what is being spent on water infrastructure and what is needed to meet the nation’s demands will reach $84 billion by 2020. Annual investment in water infrastructure is approximately $36.4 billion. In order to meet the needs of our growing population and ensure we continue to have clean drinking water the annual investment must increase to $91 billion. An estimated $9.4 billion per year between now and 2020 would avoid $21 billion per year in costs to households and businesses. Absent significant funding increases, there are some actions we can all take. If households and businesses adopt sustainability practices such as improved efficiency through process or equipment changes, water reclamation or green infrastructure to address wet weather management, the economic impact could be lessened.

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Check Out Our New "Failure to Act" Economic Report!

September 17th, 2012 | By: America's Infrastructure Report Card

Last Thursday, ASCE released its latest “Failure to Act” report on the economic impact of underinvestment in America’s infrastructure. In the report, we’ve projected a significant gap between planned investment and spending needs for the nation’s airports, marine ports, and inland waterways. With ports and inland waterways critical to our nation’s global competitiveness, the report forecasts investment falling $16 billion short of the $30 billion needed through 2020. For airports, there is a projected gap of $19 billion from a total need of $114 billion. Failing to meet the gaps creates a drag on the economy by causing congestion and delays for U.S. businesses that import and export goods, leading to higher transportation costs and causing the price of goods to rise. Read and download the full report. The fourth report in the Failure to Act series was released during two events in Washington, D.C., one for media members and another for Congressional staff. Both events were moderated by ASCE President Andy Herrmann, and joined by Virginia Port Authority Executive Director Jerry Bridges, and Rick Calhoun, President of Cargo Carriers. The event on Capitol Hill was highlighted by remarks from Congresswoman Janice Hahn (D-CA), co-chair and founder of the Ports Caucus. Previous Failure to Act reports have analyzed electricity, surface transportation, and drinking water and wastewater. Access the complete series at www.asce.org/failuretoact. You can view media coverage of the release below: America’s ailing ports invisible amid the country’s failing infrastructure Washington Post The estimate was presented Thursday in a report by the American Society of Civil Engineers, a professional trade group that has commissioned a series of reports on the gap between current spending on infrastructure and the funding needed to repair or … Aging Port Infrastructure Threatens 1 Million U.S. Jobs, Says ASCE Dredging Today Aging infrastructure for marine ports, inland waterways, and airports threatens more than 1 million U.S. jobs according to a new Failure to Act report from the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE)… American Society of Civil Engineers says U.S. jobs threatened by aging ports … Birmingham Business Journal A report by the American Society of Civil Engineers said jobs in the United States will be threatened unless maintenance of aging infrastructure for marine ports and inland waterways is properly funded. Billions in upgrades needed for ports, waterways, civil engineering group … Corpus Christi Caller Times The Failure to Act report, completed by the American Society of Civil Engineers warns that the country needs about $30 billion in infrastructure improvements to accommodate expanded international trade by 2020. That is about $16 billion more than what … Study shows port funding lax, but Manatee ahead of game Bradenton Herald That shortfall could create a drag on the U.S. economy to the tune of 1 million jobs and $700 billion worth of GDP by 2020, according to a report released Thursday by the American Society of Civil Engineers. The group lobbied for the federal government …