City Water Pipes and Storm Drains Now Comprise a Vital Part of The Earth’s System of Watersheds

A  recently published U. S. Forest Service study proposes that we must take into account that what we refer to as “watersheds” are no longer confined to the Earth’s natural formations.  In fact, within two decades the world’s population will consist of 60% city dwellers, so concepts like Urban Ecosystem and Urban Watershed must become part of the way we deal with water issues.

Watersheds now include “thousands of miles of pipes, including storm, sewer and water pipes,[and] are routing water in and out of buildings and ultimately between and across [natural] watersheds.” We must now include in water planning such issues as “how deep pipes are located, how much they leak and what they are leaking. . .”.

Please go here for the full Science Daily article.