page_title: Drinking water supply and sanitation in the United States
section_title: Water sources
hierarchical_section_title: Drinking water supply and sanitation in the United States / Technical and environmental overview / Water sources
caption_attribution_description: English: Wachusett Reservoir from Route 70, south of Clinton, Massachusetts
context_page_description: Issues that affect drinking water supply and sanitation in the United States include water scarcity, pollution, a backlog of investment, concerns about the affordability of water for the poorest, and a rapidly retiring workforce. Increased variability and intensity of rainfall as a result of climate change is expected to produce both more severe droughts and flooding, with potentially serious consequences for water supply and for pollution from combined sewer overflows. Droughts are likely to particularly affect the 66 percent of Americans whose communities depend on surface water. As for drinking water quality, there are concerns about disinfection by-products, lead, perchlorates, PFAS and pharmaceutical substances, but generally drinking water quality in the U.S. is good.
  Cities, utilities, state governments and the federal government have addressed the above issues in various ways. To keep pace with demand from an increasing population, utilities traditionally have augmented supplies. However, faced with increasing costs and droughts, water conservation is beginning to receive more attention and is being supported through the federal WaterSense program.
context_section_description: About 66% of the U.S. population (195 million people) are served by surface water systems, and 34% (101 million) are served by groundwater-supplied systems (as of 2009). Most groundwater systems are in small communities, and comprise 90% of the overall population of public water systems.
  For a surface water system to operate without filtration it has to fulfill certain criteria set by the EPA under its Surface Water Treatment Rule, including the implementation of a watershed control program. The water system of New York City has repeatedly fulfilled these criteria.
caption: The Wachusett Reservoir is a source of drinking water supply for Boston
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