New research shows that more and more American cities – even those considered wealthy – are home to people living without running water as people are “squeezed” by unaffordable housing and the cost of living crisis.
The study, published in Nature Cities, found The problem worsened following changes in the real estate market triggered by the global crash of 2008. And since 2017, it has “increased in scope and severity” to affect a broader range of U.S. cities, including Portland, OR, Phoenix, Houston, Atlanta, Dallas-Fort Worth, and Philadelphia, as well as large urban areas such as Los Angeles , New York City and San Francisco.
The investigation also found that out People with dark skin were disproportionately affected by a lack of domestic water, a situation defined by the authors as “sanitation poverty,” in 12 of the 15 largest cities.
The researchers, from King's College London and the University of Arizona, said the findings should “ring alarm bells” and warned that it will take a “heroic” transformation of housing conditions and social infrastructure for the U.S. to meet the United Nations' goal of to provide all people with access to clean drinking water, sanitation and hygiene.
Lead researcher Professor Katie Meehan, professor of environmental justice at King's College London, UK, said: “It is alarming how many US cities, including those considered wealthy and growing, are now home to more people living in more extreme situations live poverty. namely without access to running water.
“Our research is the first attempt to track these changes over time, starting in the 1970s and finding a dramatic urbanization of sanitation poverty in the 1990s and a sharp acceleration driven by the 2008 crash and the current housing crisis. and cost of living crisis was triggered.”
“Increasing pressure from high housing costs and spending means that more low-income and wealth-limited people in these expensive cities are living without running water. Far too many people, particularly people of color, now live in such extreme poverty as they are “forced into homes that do not meet basic standards of human dignity and life.”
Local water utilities and water boards must rethink and revise their assistance programs for low-income people in light of the rising cost of living and housing costs
Meehan said people can live without running water for a variety of reasons and, in most cases, work but don't earn enough to make ends meet. Some households may have been disconnected from water service because they fell behind on their bills, or had to move to housing without water access because other expenses took priority. Others may be living in houses that have been poorly maintained by their landlord but cannot afford to move out, some may be living in buildings such as sheds or warehouses that are not intended for housing, while others may be homeless.
Lucy Everitt, Ph.D. said a student at King's College London who was part of the research team Water shutoffs are a hidden problem in U.S. cities This can be captured indirectly through US Census data.
“New York City tops the list of 'worst offenders' when it comes to the total number of households in a U.S. metropolis without running water. Still, in March of this year alone, the city's water department issued more than 2,400 disconnection notices to properties that were delinquent on their payments. Since our analysis tracks the status of running water in homes as measured by the U.S. Census, we assume “We are recording many thousands of households that are denied access to running water due to their inability to pay.”
The study is the first to examine the problem over a 51-year period in the 50 largest U.S. cities. In the 1970s, 3.5 million U.S. households lacked access to running water, according to census data, and by 2021 that total had declined, but 0.5 million households, or 1.1 million people, still lacked access to running water. This corresponds to the fact that one in 245 households lives without running water. The team believes this is likely an underestimate of the true number because U.S. Census data is limited.
Other important results of the study are:
- Beginning in 1990, sanitation poverty shifted from a predominantly rural problem to an urban problem, and recent figures show that 71 percent of those experiencing sanitation poverty now live in cities.
- In 2021, the New York City metropolitan area led the nation in the number of people living in plumbing poverty – a staggering 56,900 people – followed by Los Angeles (45,900 people) and San Francisco (24,400 people).
- People of color make up the majority of people without access to running water in 12 of the 15 largest U.S. cities, including Los Angeles (82%), Miami (79%), San Francisco (74%) and Houston (71%) in 2021.
Dr. Jason R. Jurjevich, an assistant professor at the University of Arizona's School of Geography, Development and Environment, who was part of the research team, said, “Our results highlight success in reducing sanitation poverty in select U.S. cities over time has been achieved.” Development over the last twenty years has been uneven, with households of color often lagging behind. In Philadelphia, for example, people of color made up 40% of the total population, but accounted for 66% of people without access to running water in 2021.”
The authors said Not enough attention is being paid to how the housing crisis affects people's access to running water. They recommend reforms and improvements to the US Census Bureau's ability to collect nationwide data on household water access and the extent of water supply disruptions to monitor and achieve SDG development goals.
They also said local water utilities and water boards need to rethink and revise their assistance programs for low-income people in light of the rising cost of living and housing costs that are “limiting” people's ability to pay for water services.
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