November 19th marks this year's World Toilet Day, a United Nations designation designed to inspire action to tackle the global sanitation crisis. Worldwide, 3.5 billion people live without safely managed sanitation, including over 1 million households in the United States. Barriers to safe sanitation can include a lack of indoor plumbing; improperly functioning on-site wastewater disposal systems; or affordability issues that prevent households from accessing wastewater services or repairing septic systems.
Communities across the country are taking steps to ensure that everyone has access to safe sanitation:
- Wake County, North Carolina has piloted a program that provides financial assistance to repair wells and onsite wastewater systems for eligible low-income and elderly community members. The County recently participated in WaterNow’s Project Accelerator to create outreach and communication strategies to share this opportunity for support with hard-to-reach customers.
- Charlottesville, Virginia and Evans, Colorado, also participated in the Accelerator to revamp or develop programs to support customers seeking to replace or repair their toilets, by offering rebates or direct installation programs for water-efficient models.
In addition to supporting participating households, programs like these also keep local streams, lakes, and waterways clean, protect public health, and conserve water.
WaterNow’s Toolkit and Resource Library include more examples of communities working to ensure access to sanitation services, along with tools and resources to scale utility investment in sustainable, localized water infrastructure. In particular, the Toolkit’s Water Equity and Climate Resilience for Frontline Communities module outlines strategies for:
- Meeting Water Challenges with localized Water Infrastructure,
- Equitable & Affordable Water Infrastructure Investments,
- Building Capacity Through Partnerships, and
- Avoiding Water Shutoffs.
Tap in today to learn more about how WaterNow can help you implement and scale sustainable distributed water infrastructure solutions in your community.
Image: The installation of a new septic system onto a private residence in Gloucester, VA in May 2022. (Photo by Aileen Devlin | Virginia Sea Grant, CC BY-ND 2.0)