You’ve probably experienced the frustration of bone-rattling potholes or traffic back-ups from emergency road repairs on a hot summer day. Now imagine a separate, hidden infrastructure system that is larger and, in some cases much older, than roads and bridges. You can’t see it, but our hardworking water and wastewater systems keep our crops growing, schools running, port traffic moving and military bases operation ready – allowing us to go about our daily routines without a second thought.   

Unlike the potholed roads, these systems don’t show their age as easily. But a broken water system can be devastating. No water for coffee or a morning shower. Forget about brushing your teeth, flushing the toilet or water for your dog’s bowl. And that is just residential use. Commercial enterprises, from hotels to hospitals, factories to power plants, carwashes to aquariums, need water, too.

On Oct. 12, municipalities in Hampton Roads will join other groups across the country to recognize “Imagine a Day Without Water,” addressing the importance of maintaining the underground water and waste water systems that bring a steady flow of clean water to our homes and businesses. We invite you to join askHRgreen.org and the HRPDC Regional Directors of Utilities Committee in this effort by:  

1)    Giving up one activity that day that involves water and see what it’s like to go without. 

2)    Going to www.shareH2o.org and consider a gift to the Help 2 Others (H2O) Program, a local 501(c)3 organization that assists families in danger of losing residential water service because of an unexpected crisis.

3)    Discussing the importance of our region’s ongoing investment in this critical infrastructure by joining the conversation at www.facebook.com/askHRgreen

 An investment that ensures our region’s public health, safety and economic vitality is one that should be maintained. It’s hard to imagine living without it.