Public supply water use refers to the withdrawal, treatment, distribution, and end-use of water by public or private utilities that provide potable water to multiple users, typically including residential, commercial, institutional, and light industrial sectors, as well as public services such as firefighting. In water-resources research, it is quantified in terms of withdrawals from surface water and groundwater, conveyance losses, and delivered volumes, often disaggregated by customer category and metering data. This topic encompasses system efficiency, demand patterns, infrastructure leakage, per capita use, and interactions with regulatory, hydrologic, and climatic constraints in integrated water-resource planning and management.
More than two billion people worldwide still lack access to safely managed drinking water, the United Nations said Tuesday, warning that progress toward universal coverage was moving nowhere near quickly enough.
Environment
Aug 26, 2025
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35
The Colorado River is in trouble: Not as much water flows into the river as people are entitled to take out of it. A new idea might change that, but complicated political and practical negotiations stand in the way.
Earth Sciences
Aug 7, 2025
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The worst water Colt Smith has seen in 14 years with Utah's Division of Drinking Water was at a mobile home park, where residents had been drinking it for years before state officials discovered the contamination.
Environment
Jul 24, 2025
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With four areas of the U.K. now facing drought conditions, new research from the University of Surrey shows that helping households use less water means first understanding their everyday habits—and getting the public onboard ...
Environment
Jul 16, 2025
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For nearly a month, hundreds of thousands of Iowans have not been allowed to water their lawns—even though there's no drought.
Environment
Jul 11, 2025
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Peak water flows in parts of India's largest river basin have been falling by more than one-sixth every decade, according to a study published in npj Natural Hazards that highlights a similar trend across the country, impacting ...
Earth Sciences
Jul 7, 2025
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35
England is facing a water crisis. The UK government has just announced plans to fast-track two massive reservoir projects in Cambridgeshire and Lincolnshire, warning that without them, we could run out of drinking water by ...
Environment
Jun 3, 2025
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20
Lead contamination in municipal water sources is a consistent threat to public health. Ingesting even tiny amounts of lead can harm the human brain and nervous system—especially in young children. To empower people to detect ...
Environment
May 29, 2025
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A UC Riverside-led study has found that a smartphone app that tracks household water use and alerts users to leaks or excessive consumption offers a promising tool for helping California water agencies meet state-mandated ...
Earth Sciences
May 27, 2025
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30
In a research letter published in the journal Science, researchers from the UTS Center for Technology in Water and Wastewater write that wildfires can contaminate drinking water distribution systems, posing substantial and ...
Environment
Apr 17, 2025
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