Erick Burgueño Salas
Research expert covering climate change and the water industry
U.S. wastewater and sewage industry - statistics & facts
The wastewater sector in the U.S. is in dire need of a financial boost to modernize its infrastructure. Despite its current state, the industry offers robust coverage across the country, with most of their domestic effluent safely treated. Such effluent is taking care of by more than 17,500 publicly owned treatment works nationwide. Furthermore, the urgent improvements are also required to build a more resilient system against overflows and the subsequent environmental impact to American water bodies.
On the other hand, sanitary sewer systems only collect limited amounts of stormwater. However, as of 2024, there was no federal system in place to monitor overflows from sanitary sewers, and therefore no precise data available on the frequency, volume, and location of such events.
The U.S. wastewater industry collects, treats, and disposes millions of gallons of effluent a day, making it one of the most effective in the world. In spite of that, strong investment flows are needed to cover the necessary upgrades, and more overflow monitoring should be implemented to properly quantify the environmental impact of the industry.
The infrastructure is in financial need
Around 630 billion U.S. dollars in capital investments are needed for wastewater projects in the U.S. approved as of 2021 and expected to occur before 2041. From the total financial needs of the sector, around 115 billion dollars are for stormwater management, making it the most pressing matter to attend to in the industry. To address the urgency of the matter in this and several other sectors, the U.S. government passed the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) in 2021, authorizing more than a trillion U.S. dollars for infrastructure spending. Almost 13 billion U.S. dollars are for the so-called Clean Water State Revolving Fund. This is the program that will provide financing for projects like municipal and decentralized wastewater plants and stormwater runoff mitigation, among other water quality infrastructure. Another 1.4 billion U.S. dollars are to be invested in sewer overflow and stormwater reuse municipal grants.Spillages and pollution
One of the main issues to be addressed when modernizing the wastewater infrastructure is environmental pollution caused by spillages. There are two categories of wastewater overflows in the U.S., combined and sanitary sewer overflows. Combined sewer systems gather rainwater, domestic sewage, and industrial wastewater into one pipe to later canalize them to a treatment plant. When the runoff exceeds the capacity of the system, a mix of raw wastewater overflows to nearby water bodies. From 1985 to 2024, the Ohio River received the most combined sewer overflows in the U.S., with almost 500 events reported. It is important to emphasize that only around 700 communities in the U.S. have combined sewer systems, mostly located in the Northeast and around the Great Lakes.On the other hand, sanitary sewer systems only collect limited amounts of stormwater. However, as of 2024, there was no federal system in place to monitor overflows from sanitary sewers, and therefore no precise data available on the frequency, volume, and location of such events.
The U.S. wastewater industry collects, treats, and disposes millions of gallons of effluent a day, making it one of the most effective in the world. In spite of that, strong investment flows are needed to cover the necessary upgrades, and more overflow monitoring should be implemented to properly quantify the environmental impact of the industry.
