American Society of Civil Engineers gives US energy, water infrastructure a D+ grade
In Virginia, the American Society of Civil Engineers gave energy and water infrastructure a D+ grade for for 2013.
“More than five million miles of pipeline exist in the U.S. alone, and worldwide, countries annually install approximately 500,000 miles of pipeline with a market value of more than $50 billion,” said Sunil Sinha, associate professor of civil and environmental engineering at Virginia Tech. “Pipelines crisscross our communities near our homes and schools, yet little attention is paid to this critical infrastructure until catastrophic failures occur.”
“Unfortunately, the pipeline infrastructure is aging and already operating outside its design limits. How a nation operates, retrofits, and expands its pipeline infrastructure will help determine the quality of life for future generations and that nation’s competitiveness in the global economy,” he added.
In 2010 Sinha led the development of a National Pipeline Infrastructure Database. This database is “like a Wikipedia for the drinking water and wastewater utilities except users do not have editing privileges,” Sinha said.
Category: Research
