August 8, 2012

Growing Media Coverage Over Rising Water Rates Caused by Iron Pipes

Baltimore is not unlike many other cities in the United States that allow only iron pipes in their water systems. Owing to an increasing number of water main breaks and rising utility rates across the country, media are calling on cities that exclusively use metallic pipes to open up their procurement policies to allow non-corroding, cost-effective and longer lasting materials like PVC pipe.

A recent article in the Baltimore Sun, “A cheaper way to fix Baltimore’s leaky pipes: The city should join others that now use PVC rather than iron,” highlights the issue. “PVC can save Baltimore ratepayers money and stop the constant and expensive disruptions to service... Baltimore needs to remove any procurement policies that prevent it from being used,” says columnist Marta H. Mossburg, who is a senior fellow at the Maryland Public Policy Institute and a fellow at the Franklin Centre for Government and Public Integrity. Click here to read article.

Regards,