Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
Table 2.1
Infrastructure report card
Category:
Grade
Aviation
D
Bridges
C
Dams
D
Drinking Water
D−
Energy (National Power Grid)
D+
Hazardous Wasters
D
Inland Waterways
D−
Levees
D−
Public Parks and Recreation
C−
Rail
C−
Roads
D−
Schools
D
Solid Waste
C+
Transit
D
Wastewater
D−
Source:
American Society of Civil Engineers,
Infrastructure Report Card for
2009
(2009).
Every few years, the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE)
releases its Infrastructure Report Card that evaluates the condition of
the nation's infrastructure (
table 2.1). Between 2005 and 2009, Aviation
declined from D+ to D, Roads from D to D−, and Transit from D+ to
D. The only improvement was for Energy, the national power grid,
which improved from D to D+. This is not a group of grades any Ameri-
can child would want to bring home to parents, but the parents are us.
These are our grades.
Our infrastructure is poorly maintained, unable to meet current and
future demands, and, in some cases, it is wholly unsafe. In its 2005 report
card, ASCE said it would take $1.6 trillion in repairs over a fi ve-year
period to bring all categories to passing grades. Today that number
stands at $2.2 trillion.
2
This estimate of $440 billion per year for fi ve
years to upgrade our infrastructure may be compared to 2009 federal
spending of $600 billion for defense and $420 billion for Medicare in a
total budget of $3 trillion.
Infrastructure modernization can be an important part of stimulating
the economy and lowering the rate of unemployment. Moreover, infra-
structure problems that are ignored do not go away; they only get worse.
