With 2023 proving a turbulent year and 2024 promising more disruptions, utilities are still optimistic about the future of the water sector.
The podcast Talking Under Water’s final episode of 2023 notes industry trends and dives into the results of WaterWorld, Wastewater Digest and Stormwater Solutions, 2023 State of the Industry surveys.
The three Endeavor Business Media water brands collected responses from hundreds of audience members across the United States. Survey questions included respondent and utility demographics, sentiments about 2024, planned projects and more.
For the drinking water sector, inflation stuck out as a significant concern.
“I think this impacts quite a few things: it impacts the workforce; it impacts construction quite a bit,” said Bob Crossen, editorial director for the water brands, in the episode. “I think it also impacts the way people are looking at funding and regulatory things as well.”
An aging workforce across all water sectors was another significant finding from the survey.
“You can see the correlation between the drinking water folks that Mandy spoke about — 13% are 70 years old and older. For WWD it’s 19% are 70 years old and older,” said Crossen. “That’s a sizeable chunk of folks.”
As this segment of the water workforce chooses to retire, a shift in available experienced labor may further disrupt drinking water utilities' operations in the years ahead.
More information from the WaterWorld 2023 State of the Industry survey will be available in January 2024.
Listen to the full episode “2023 State of the Industry” on Wastewater Digest.
