On September 15, communities across the U.S. will celebrate the big and small ways that tap water contributes to our quality of life. Without access to tap water it wouldn’t be just coffee or flushable toilets that would be missing. Many businesses and manufacturers would surely shut down without access to water. Firefighters would be defenseless and unable to protect our communities from fire. Doctors wouldn’t even have a way to prevent spreading illness from one patient to another.

While local utility departments work hard to bring safe and reliable tap water to their customers, the region should know that just because the infrastructure is invisible doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. Hampton Roads may be surrounded by water, it falls from the sky and flows through our rivers, but it is far from free. Processing, treating, and bringing water to and from your house is a costly process. No matter how much or little water is used, the price tag for these processes stays the same or may go up to finance repairs to our aging systems. Yet the average residential water bill in Hampton Roads is still less than other household bills like cable TV or cellphone services. Comparatively with everything that water provides, public water systems are a great value.

We challenge our readers to share with us what you’d miss most in a day without water at facebook.com/askHRgreen or how tap water provides you with an amazing quality of life.