Water recycling and reuse is a growing trend across the world. With supplies of clean, safe water becoming more and more limited, the need for these water conservation efforts will continue to grow. In the United States, it is estimated that the volume of recycled water produced will increase by 37 percent, from 4.8 billion gallons per day to 6.6 billion gallons per day, by 2027. 

The WateReuse Association has been working for over 30 years to make water recycling advancements a priority in legislation in the United States by advocating for legislation that supports water recycling efforts and opposing laws that endanger them. 

Currently, there are two important water recycling bills in the Senate that the WateReuse Association supports. The America’s Water Infrastructure Act of 2020 (AWIA) and the Drinking Water Infrastructure Act of 2020, if passed, would provide almost $20 billion for infrastructure projects and a grant program to fund community water recycling projects nationwide. The grant program, called the Alternative Water Source Grants Program, would be administered by the EPA.

In addition, the Senate Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee has created a Federal Inter-Agency Working Group on Water Reuse, which will include representatives from different agencies across the federal government and will focus on collaborative water recycling efforts. 

In the US House this July, the Water Resources Development Act of 2020 (WRDA) was passed. This act reauthorizes funding for water projects and policy by the Army Corps of Engineers. In the same month, the House also passed H.R.2, or the “Moving Forward Act,” which provides $1.5 trillion for water and wastewater infrastructure projects. This sum includes $40 billion specifically earmarked for clean water and $20 billion for drinking water. 

Given that the United States is in the midst of dealing with the coronavirus pandemic and the presidential election, pending federal water reuse legislation may not be finalized until next year. While politicians may not all agree on water recycling bills, the support of the American public for water reuse has grown. In a survey conducted this April by SUEZ Water, over a third of the respondents said they would drink recycled water, and almost half were willing to use recycled water for irrigation purposes. With both support and need growing for sustainable water use, it is time for the US to take this matter seriously.