Fixing Atlanta’s Aging Water System Could Cost ‘Billions,’ Mayor Dickens Says

The leaks led to the cessation of activities, the closure of certain businesses, the diversion of many employees, and the inconvenience and endangerment of many local residents. However, the event was not unique.

“There are more than 250,000 water main breaks in the United States every year,” said Joseph Kane, a fellow at the Brookings Institution and an expert on the infrastructure systems the country depends on. “It’s not about if the infrastructure will fail, it’s a matter of When.”

Although the water crisis has not ended the massive economy centered in Atlanta, it is an intense problem in many parts of the city. The sudden breakdown of the city’s infrastructure is a visceral reminder of its importance to the social fabric and economic health of the community, said Katie Kirkpatrick, executive director of the Metro Atlanta Chamber.

Credit: John Spink

Credit: John Spink

“Infrastructure is essential to our current quality of life and future growth,” she said. “Hydraulic infrastructure, even if it is the least visible, is probably the most critical. »

At a news conference Thursday, Mayor Andre Dickens said the price tag to replace Atlanta’s aging pipes would be immense.

“I will ask the federal government for more money, a lot more money,” he said. “This will be a figure well into the billions. It won’t be a small number.

It’s almost impossible to guess the economic damage caused by the crisis so far – especially with repairs underway and the effects still rippling through the region. Yet even rough calculations put the damage at tens of millions of dollars — plus the cost of repairs to pipes that were often 80 years old or more.

The city’s Watershed Management Department has not yet immediately responded to requests for information about the cost of the emergency response.

The worst failures make headlines, and the Atlanta crisis added to the disasters in Jackson, Mississippi, and Flint, Michigan.

In Flint, the tax rolls were depleted by the loss of manufacturing and the governor appointed emergency managers who switched to a cheaper water source and residents drank poisoned water at lead for years. In Jackson last winter, freezing temperatures burst pipes, forcing thousands of residents to boil water for weeks.

Saving on costs in the short term can mean spending a lot more later, Kane said. “The elephant in the room is money.”

The bipartisan federal infrastructure law provides approximately $50 billion in funding for nationwide water system improvements, the largest investment in clean water in U.S. history. according to the Biden administration. But even so, 90 percent of spending on these systems comes from state and local governments, according to Kane.

As common as water problems are, the vast majority are relatively minor. But with so many pipes so old and a growing population, incidents can get worse, Kane said. “Atlanta is not an island. Atlanta is a wake-up call for the country.

Atlanta has seen growth in recent years, recently surpassing 500,000 residents. But as the city lost population for decades due to white flight while suburbs grew, the city represents less than 10 percent of the Atlanta area’s population. Yet the city retains many corporate headquarters – such as Coca-Cola, Delta Air Lines and Invesco – as well as shopping and retail centers.

Government data does not provide an estimate of the size of the city’s economy, although the Bureau of Economic Analysis says the metropolitan area’s economy as a whole exceeds half a trillion dollars annually. Even though Atlanta proper accounts for only 10% of that, the city has an economy of about $53 billion, or a daily average of $145 million.

Credit: Miguel Martínez

Credit: Miguel Martínez

Starting Friday, the water crisis halted – or undermined – activity in key parts of the city.

And concerns about the problem will persist, especially in businesses that can’t serve customers without water.

“Restaurants in the Atlanta area need to figure out how they can serve customers who want to dine out to avoid these problems,” Kevin Bryla, director of marketing at San Francisco-based SpotOn, which sells point-of-sale software at restaurants.

The crisis led to the cancellation of summer school programs, some businesses remained closed Wednesday, some companies — like Norfolk Southern — tried to limit the use of their offices and tens of thousands of people in areas affected were asked to boil their water.

Things were gradually returning to normal Wednesday morning when Mayor Andre Dickens said water service had been restored, although a boil water advisory remained in parts of the city as of 11 a.m.

The water crisis has had a significant impact on restaurant owners and food service workers who rely on sales and tips to make a living.

“The whole staff loses on the weekends, not just the business itself,” said Lisa Loomis, whose family owns Vickery’s Bar & Grill in Glenwood Park and the Steamhouse Lounge in West Peachtree, located just a short walk away. of the break.

Even before the crisis, water infrastructure was expensive.

Credit: John Spink / [email protected]

Credit: John Spink / [email protected]

Amid last week’s water shutoffs, Atlanta is also grappling with violations related to recent wastewater discharges that polluted the Chattahoochee and South rivers and other waterways. Atlanta, under a consent decree with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, has already spent billions of dollars to upgrade decrepit sewer and water systems. And voters last month approved maintaining a penny sales tax that pays for water and sewer work.

Repairing the damage can only increase the price.

As leaks are plugged, rotten pipes are replaced, and Atlanta residents return to their pre-flood lives, the memory of the crisis should guide planning, an expense that could avert another crisis even more costly, said Sadek Wahba, president of I Squared Capital, a private equity firm that invests in infrastructure and author of the upcoming book Build: Investing in America’s Infrastructure.

“The Atlanta water pipe problem is further evidence of the critical need for sustainable forms of infrastructure investment,” Wahba said. “And our infrastructure needs are so great that even with these major administrative initiatives, government spending is not enough.”

In the wake of the current crisis, the city must of course make repairs and improvements, but they must be done not only to plug leaks but also with the goal of preventing future disasters, said Brookings’ Kane. Institution.

“The question is when they make improvements, how resilient are those improvements? » Kane said. “You and I could very well be on the phone for five years after having the same conversation.”

-Staff writer David Aaro contributed to this report.