According to a recent report card on America's Infrastructure by the American Society of Civil Engineers our aggregated infrastructure grade is a D.
That's a D, as in dilapidated, decaying, diminishing, dated, diregarded.
That's kind of a bummer. And according to them it will cost $2.2 Trillion over the next five years to make things ok. So it seems, even if we didn't need the economic stimulus (which we do), there is a pretty good reason to be doing the investment in infrastructure ANYWAY.
Look at these grades:
Aviation D
Bridges C
Dams D
Drinking Water D-
Energy D+
Hazardous Waste D
Inland Waterways D-
Levees D-
Public Parks & Recreation C-
Rail C-
Roads D-
School D
Solid Waste C+
Transit D
Wastewater D-
Yikes! I live near a dam, albeit on the high side, but...YIKES!
From the website:
The Report Card is an assessment by professional engineers of the nation's status in 15 categories of infrastructure. In 2009, all signs point to an infrastructure that is poorly maintained, unable to meet current and future demands, and in some cases, unsafe. Since the last Report Card in 2005, the grades have not improved. ASCE estimates the nation still stands at a D average. Deteriorating conditions and inflation have added hundreds of billions to the total cost of repairs and needed upgrades. ASCE's current estimate is $2.2 trillion, up from $1.6 trillion in 2005.
Got that, by not investing in infrastructure upgrades we are costing ourselves MONEY ...cabbage ...moolah ...dinero. We can pay now or pay more,much more later. OF course manyof these infrastructure projects have a considerable safety consideration, so by delaying we are also risking more than greater costs...we are risking lives and property.
And many of these infrastrutre save money in another way, they use our scarce resources more efficiently and cost effectively. Working in sustainability into our infrastructure at this time is a perfect opportunity to save money in the long term and improive out quality of life.
The study points out several ways, naturally money is needed, not just federal money (as in the stimulus package), but money from all stakeholders, local money and even the private sector. Innovative thinking is needed.
And leadership is needed. Naturally with Obama at the helm we have grown-up leadership that understands the problem. The current economic calamity is dire and the stimulus package is essential. If you know someone who doesn't beleive it, let them know that it is for productive causes that we would have to spend on anyway, that we need to spend on anyway.
Too many people think the stimulus would be just another set of checks sent out, but it has to be more than that. It needs to be an INVESTMENT. And it is investment in the things government should be doing ANYWAY.
Now I realize there is a caveat here about the report. Naturally their suggestions would be a boon to Civil Engineers and the companies they work for (I DO NOT work an engineer or for an engineering firm). But there can be little doubt that economic stimulus is needed and we don't have to throw into digging and re-filling holes. The money can and should be spent effectively improving our infrastructure, improving our future.