EPA’s 2011 Drinking Water Infrastructure Needs Survey and Assessment

by United States Environmental Protection Agency

In 2011, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) conducted its fifth Drinking Water Infrastructure Needs Survey and Assessment (DWINSA or Assessment).

The purpose of the Assessment is to document the 20-year capital investment needs of public water systems that are eligible to receive Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF) monies – approximately 52,000 community water systems and 21,400 not-for-profit noncommunity water systems.

As directed by the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA), EPA conducts the Assessment every four years and uses the results of the survey to allocate DWSRF funds to the states. The results are also used, in part, to allocate DWSRF tribal set-aside funds to EPA Regions.