The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is releasing a report on the “Importance of Water to the U.S. Economy.” The report is intended to help raise the awareness of water's importance to our national economic welfare, and to summarize information that public and private decision-makers can use to better manage the nation's water resources. It highlights EPA's review of literature and practice on the importance of water to the U.S. economy, identifies key data gaps and describes the implication of the study's findings for future research. The EPA said it hopes the report will be a catalyst for a broader discussion about water's critical role in the U.S. economy.
The main findings are:
- • Water is absolutely fundamental to the U.S. economy;
- • Water value and competition will rise; and
- • Decision-makers in the private and public sectors need more information.
Source: EPA
