Water Infrastructure and Natural Disasters

Water Infrastructure Resilience: Agencies Could Better Assess

Efforts to Assist Communities Vulnerable to Natural Disasters

U.S. Government Accountability Office | August 11, 2025

Fast Facts

Natural disasters can disrupt local drinking water and wastewater services. The Environmental Protection Agency, Federal Emergency Management Agency, and U.S. Department of Agriculture have given billions in grants and loans to make community water infrastructure more resilient.

But rural, low-income, and other vulnerable communities struggle to get access to this funding. Agencies have taken some steps to address this but could do more.

Also, maps of water service areas differ in quality and may not always help agencies identify communities that could benefit from help. Our recommendations address this and more.

Access the full GAO report below:

gao-25-107013.pdf

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