By Davies Hood, Induron President
The buzz might not be as loud as that surrounding the Super Bowl Champion New England Patriots and their whole “Deflate-Gate” fiasco. Heck, it’s not as emotionally charged as some of the other recent headlines that involve the enactment of a city wide curfew, but our nation’s infrastructure is it something that we as a nation need to pay close attention too. Infrastructure Week is this week, and it’s the perfect time to learn more about the current state of things.
The United States achieved the enviable position as world leader in part because of the advanced infrastructure that was built in the first half of the last century. Our country’s interstate system, potable water systems, electrical grid, sewer systems and network of bridges was the envy of the modern world.
Unfortunately, all of these systems that made our infrastructure the best one in the world are now aging and in need of some serious attention. Maintenance of these structures, from replacing water lines, painting bridges and fighting corrosion all require planning and money.
This is one of the main goals of “Infrastructure Week,” and something that we as a nation can no longer take for granted. As we are learning daily, neglect of our important infrastructure leads to failures like burst water pipes, collapsing bridges and “brown outs.” Fixing our infrastructure after it fails actually costs us more money in the long run than routine maintenance. And not fixing it introduces major potential problems, even significant personal danger in some cases.
Let’s address this issue now, instead of waiting on failure to cause enact ion. Let’s start with paying attention to Infrastructure Week!