Master's Thesis Final Oral Defense-Matthew T. Richardson
| March 18, 2005 | |
| Matthew T. Richardson presented his final oral defense Tuesday, March 22nd, 2005 at 3:30 PM in 2301 McGavran-Greenberg. Full details are as follows:How to Stretch Our Public Investments in Water and Sewer Services Further Commentary on the Efficacy of Public Funding for Water and Sewer Infrastructure from 2000 Through 2003 Case Study: The Appalachian Region
2301 McGavran-Greenberg Abstract The funding of drinking water and sewer infrastructure in the United States has dramatically changed from the large federal grants of the 1970s to today’s complex system of grants and loans provided by many federal and state agencies. Meanwhile populations are increasing, regulations are more complex, and the systems are aging. Several recent national studies concluded that the current level of spending is inadequate to meet the nation’s infrastructure needs – resulting in a gap of $300 billion to $1 trillion over the next 20 years. The Presidential administration has recently proposed tightening the budgets even further. With the value of public funding programs in question, the demonstration of measurable results is required. Using the Appalachian region as a case study, this analysis developed a baseline funding database that documents the source, amount, and destination of each public funding transaction for water related infrastructure from 7 Federal and 41 State funding programs. Needs are represented by eight variables from three disciplines: economic (EPA Clean Watersheds Needs Survey results and median household income), environmental (permitted combined sewer overflow systems, POTW wastewater compliance, and septic system density) and social (Safe Drinking Water Act compliance and waterborne disease outbreaks). Three different regression models were run: the combination of all programs, separated by level of government, and each of the seven Federal programs individually. The county-level analysis results are reported in terms of funding program application eligibility requirements and survey results from 70 water infrastructure funding program managers. Combining all funding programs together indicated the expected positive relationships with POTW wastewater compliance, waterborne disease outbreaks, and EPA’s Clean Watersheds Needs Survey results. The individual program model captured the differences among the programs and targeted recommendations were developed for each program. With a few directed policy changes, such as incorporating waterborne disease outbreak data into funding distribution prioritization processes, improvements in the efficacy of public water and sewer infrastructure funding are both achievable and measurable. Committee: Academic Advisor-Greg Characklis For further information please contact Rebecca Riggsbee Lloyd by email at Rebecca_Lloyd@unc.edu |
