Drinking water is one of our most essential resources, and yet more than 884 million people globally do not have access to water that is safe to drink. Every year during the first week of May, we, as a company and an industry, set aside time to acknowledge the important role that access to safe drinking water has on society. This week, American Water is once again joining the American Water Works Association in celebrating the annual observance of Drinking Water Week.
During this time, we take pride in reminding our customers that we work hard to help provide high-quality drinking water, because we understand the impact of having access to safe drinking water can have on a person’s life.
Access to drinking water from the tap keeps life flowing.
Having access to not just tap water, but safe-to-drink tap water, supports our customers as we stand by our commitment to help keep their lives flowing. Here are just a few ways that access to safe drinking water from the tap plays a role in our lives:
- Helping your family stay hydrated. According to The Mayo Clinic, men should drink 3.7 liters of water a day and women should drink 2.7 liters. Children up to eight years old should drink an eight-ounce cup for every year they’ve been alive.
- Keeping up your good hygiene. When we brush our teeth, wash our faces or take a shower, we are trusting that, if we swallow a few drops or many, the water we’re drinking is safe.
- Making your morning cup of coffee. A standard 12-cup coffeemaker takes 72 ounces of water to fill. The quality of the water is important not just for safety, but also for taste.
- Taking care of your pets. Our furry family members need to stay hydrated as well. For example, dogs need to drink around 1 ounce of water per pound of body weight each day. So, your average Golden Retriever needs about 65 ounces of quality drinking water every day.
- Saving you money. Depending on water from the tap is a money-saving convenience. On average, bottled water costs nearly 2,000 times more than the water coming out of your faucet.
American Water’s commitment to providing high-quality tap water.
During this week and every other week of the year, we at American Water understand the immense responsibility we have to provide reliable access to drinking water. Providing safe, reliable drinking water has a lot to do with the treatment plants and the pipes that deliver it. It’s with this in mind that we keep working to better ourselves and our service for customers through many means, including investing in infrastructure. In fact, over the next 10 years, American Water plans to invest $22 to $25 billion in infrastructure.
At the end of the day, American Water lives by its commitment to our customers because we know they are depending on us to provide them with safe, clean, reliable drinking water.
For more information about Drinking Water Week, visit the AWWA website.
