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| Black & Veatch discusses issues affecting global water industry Black & Veatch, a leading global engineering, consulting and construction company, held a special media event with news representatives in Melbourne, Australia, and discussed the latest issues affecting the global water industry. The Black & Veatch event was held during Ozwater '09, Australia's largest annual water conference and exhibition. Dan McCarthy, President and CEO of Black & Veatch's global water business, provided his insight on water industry issues and focused particularly on the impact of the current global economic crisis. "The water industry has been affected by the global economic downturn, " he said. "Water utilities are facing a drop in revenue and more difficulty in accessing finance for projects. The recent U.S. economic stimulus package was a welcome boost, with US $6 billion being set-aside for water and wastewater projects; but the levels of investment are well below what many in the industry were hoping for. "To put this in perspective, we estimate that the annual investment in water and wastewater systems approached $50 billion in the United States last year." McCarthy added that, "There's a huge funding gap between the actual levels of investment and what the real infrastructure needs require. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has estimated that a $200 billion funding gap exists for wastewater and a $270 billion funding gap for drinking water through 2028." Peter Binney, Director of Sustainable Planning for Black & Veatch's global water business and a keynote speaker at Ozwater '09, spoke about the importance of water reclamation as a solution to climate change and water scarcity. "Water reclamation is going to play a larger role in helping urban communities overcome the challenges of water scarcity, " Binney said. "Growing water demands, the effects of climate change and the lack of traditional sources of water will mean that water utilities will have to make greater use of previously developed water supplies and local sources." Another key conference presenter, Jonathan Clement, a Global Practice and Technology Leader with Black & Veatch, spoke to journalists about the advancement of ceramic membrane technology. He pointed out how this advanced technology can be used in municipal water reclamation systems to protect public health with lower operating costs. write your comments about the article :: © 2009 Construction News :: home page |