Press Releases

NAWC Applauds Congress for Funding Water for the Poor Act

Omnibus spending bill funds access to safe drinking water and sanitation in developing countries

WASHINGTON, DC – Currently, 1.1 billion people live without access to safe drinking water and sanitation, the cause of an estimated 14,000 deaths per day globally. The National Association of Water Companies (NAWC) applauds Congress and President Bush for their efforts to deliver safe and affordable drinking water and sanitation to developing countries by funding the Senator Paul Simon Water for the Poor Act under the Development Assistance title in the FY 2008 Department of State, Foreign Operations and Related Programs Appropriations Act, H.R. 2764. The Water for the Poor Act allocates significant funds to increase sustainable and equitable access to safe drinking water and sanitation for the poor and makes access to safe drinking water and sanitation for developing countries a specific policy objective of U.S. development assistance programs.

“The NAWC supports efforts to fund U.S. foreign assistance programs that promote equitable access globally to affordable and safe drinking water and sanitation,” said Peter Cook, Executive Director of the NAWC. “Funding of the Water for the Poor Act is important because it provides funding for sustainable water infrastructure – not just in an emergency context.”

According to State Department figures, in 2005, the U.S. Agency for International Development spent almost $400 million on water. However, only $275 million went toward water supply and sanitation, and most of that amount was utilized for disaster assistance. The Water for the Poor Act, alternatively, provides start-up funding that can be used to tailor the water supply and treatment system to individual communities, allowing them to be fully sustainable, inexpensively implemented and maintained locally.

As the voice of the private water service industry, the NAWC represents companies found in all regions of the country. Member companies range from ownership of regulated drinking water and wastewater utilities and the many forms of public-private partnerships and management contract arrangements. A large component of the private water industry also includes educating consumers and the public about the importance of water conservation, water quality and water affordability.

The NAWC and its member companies actively support efforts to highlight and address the challenges of delivering safe and affordable drinking water and sanitation in the United States and beyond. American States Water Company, NAWC and other NAWC members have sponsored two PBS documentaries – Running Dry and The American Southwest: Are We Running Dry – to raise awareness on global and regional water crises and rally support for Water for the Poor funding.

“Access to affordable, safe drinking water and proper sanitation are challenges facing too many communities across the United States and countless developing countries around the world,” said Cook. “The private water industry is committed to providing our U.S. customers sufficient quantities of affordable and safe drinking water and we applaud our government officials for their efforts to improve access in developing countries as a component of U.S. foreign assistance.”

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