How Corrosion Threatens Residential Water Supply and What We Can Do About It

There are more than 2.2 million miles of underground water infrastructure in the USA, much of which is well past its intended service life. As our population grows and climate-related disasters, such as floods, hurricanes, and extreme temperatures, impact these systems, the greater the risk of corrosion becomes.

It is much too easy to forget about such risk when these pipelines are buried. The “out of sight, out of mind” mentality increases the risk of service disruptions and public health failures. There are steps municipalities need to take so residential water supplies remain reliable, safe, and accessible to all who need them.

Corrosion and Drinking Water Infrastructure

When metal is exposed to corrosion, it undergoes gradual deterioration. In drinking water systems, that can happen internally when water reacts to the walls of pipes and externally due to soil moisture, salinity, and contaminants. Corrosion will break down the metal, leaching lead, copper, iron, and manganese into drinking water. Rust will build up and constrict flow, causing pipe walls to fail and increasing the risk of breakage.

The EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) predicts that our drinking water systems will require over $470 billion in repairs by 2037 to avoid an increased health risk. Corrosion is a leading cause of this high price tag.

Flooding, Saltwater, and the Rising Corrosion Threat

Nobody wants another Flint, Michigan scenario. Municipalities are faced with tough decisions, and Flint was no different. Moving its water supply from Detroit to the Flint River in 2014 exposed the local community to massive health concerns that eventually led to national news spotlights and lawsuits, resulting in much higher than anticipated costs.

Some of the options related to water supply management are outside the decision-making processes of select boards or town offices. Climate volatility is increasing, exposing systems to greater corrosion risks, particularly in coastal, low-lying, or flood-prone areas. That requires extra attention to avoid:

• Soil Saturation & Anode Shielding: Rising water tables will increase the conductivity of the environment surrounding buried infrastructure. Stray current movement is enhanced, and saturating protective coatings will fail to function effectively. That creates oxygen-depleted zones that encourage microbial influenced corrosion (MIC).
• Saltwater Intrusion: Coastal regions from Maine to Florida are already seeing storm surges and sea level rise. Saltwater is then introduced into systems that were originally designed for freshwater use. Salt (especially chloride ions) is highly aggressive toward metals like steel and copper. Those salt-laden floodwaters will penetrate valve boxes, hydrants, and mechanical rooms. Just look at 2005’s Hurricane Katrina for evidence of such damage.  
• Temperature Extremes & Ground Shifts: A shift in sudden freeze-thaw cycles will crack and displace protective coatings or entire buried pipeline systems and tanks. The moment that the protective barrier is broken, corrosion begins to work. Shifting soils due to the same processes will physically stress joints, leading to leaks and increased corrosion initiation.

The fact of the matter is that climate change is causing a higher risk of corrosive elements. There is a reason the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers releases updated climate change adaptation plans. This is no longer a theoretical concern.

Why Homeowners Should Care

The more municipal facilities and infrastructure are exposed to corrosion damage, the greater the risk to women, men, and children who receive water inside their homes. Lead will seep into water, and pressure will lessen. Even something as simple as an unfixed leak could lead to high monthly utility bills.

Your home might be at risk if:

• It was built before 1986
• You can taste metal in your water, or it is discolored
• You live in coastal or flood-prone areas
• Your plumbing includes galvanized steel

Corrosion does compromise internal plumbing. This will result in expensive repairs, diminished water quality, lower property values, and a greater potential for health risks (especially for young children and pregnant women).

How Engineers Combat Water Infrastructure Corrosion

The good news is that there is help available. Corrosion may be inevitable, but with the right tools, it is also manageable. Professionals with direct experience in corrosion science, cathodic protection, and environmental engineering are crucial to ensuring the safety and longevity of municipal water systems.

Using cathodic protection systems provides advanced and monitored assurance that redirects corrosion activity away from critical pipelines, tanks, and other facilities (like a water treatment plant). When properly designed and maintained, this can extend the lifespan of resources by decades, especially when combined with IoT (Internet of Things) sensors, cloud computing, and ML (machine learning) integrations.

Experienced engineers will also recommend and install corrosion-resistant materials. Instead of copper, galvanized steel, and lead pipes from legacy systems, new materials like high-density polyethylene or PVC can be introduced. Epoxy-lined ductile iron or fusion-bonded coatings ensure buried pipelines are well protected. Even something as simple as stainless-steel fittings reduces exposure to salinity.

Emphasis must be placed on protective coatings and linings, such as epoxy coatings on steel pipes or cement mortar linings inside water mains. However, these all require regular maintenance and real-time monitoring.

That is why working with teams like ours at Dreiym Engineering is so crucial. You want those advanced corrosion surveys and soil resistivity testing to ensure the surrounding environment will not create future damage. At the very least, you’d hire a team like ours for future proofing or estimating reports when considering what cathodic protection to utilize for water infrastructure.

What Municipalities Can Do

The responsibility of delivering clean, safe, and useful drinking water often falls on the shoulders of municipalities and governing boards. That can be a real challenge as budgets tighten and climate change impacts where to best utilize available resources. The end result is that corrosion management often gets delayed in favor of another “more critical” situation.

To help prevent such situations, a forward-thinking municipality should:

• Schedule and conduct regular risk assessments for the most vulnerable infrastructure
• Implement smart monitoring devices like ML, IoT, and cathodic protection systems
• Plan for a “climate-resistant” infrastructure that redesigns systems to withstand flooding, salt exposure, and temperature shifts
• Partner with specialists who can offer long-term corrosion planning

It’s imperative that municipalities recognize the long-term cost savings and reduced health risks associated with these measures, rather than focusing solely on upfront costs. Making these changes now is likely to be much more cost-effective than delaying a vote for years or decades down the road when it is much too late.

What Homeowners Can Do

While municipalities control most water infrastructure, homeowners can take several steps to reduce the risk of corrosion-related water problems. Plenty of rural communities utilize wells or have outdated systems that need changing. A responsible homeowner should consider:

• Getting annual water tests to detect minerals, metals, and pH/hardness levels for corrosion threats
• Checking the type of installed plumbing already present in the house to ensure it doesn’t contain risky copper, lead, or galvanized steel
• Installing advanced filtration for point-of-use water, especially in homes with younger children
• Running cold water for 30-60 seconds before drinking to flush out any potential contaminants

A little public education goes a long way toward lowering the health risk of the population. Communication should come from municipal authorities and public health organizations, but should be backed by the knowledge and expertise of respected engineering firms, such as Dreiym Engineering.

Infrastructure Health is Public Health

The risk of corrosion may not be as intriguing as a political scandal or a massive fire causing damage to a downtown area. The problem is that this silent, persistent threat will impact the drinking water of millions of homes. Once a system is damaged or contaminants leach into the infrastructure, the risk grows exponentially.

Mitigating the threat of climate change-related events like flooding, saltwater exposure, hurricanes, and other disasters must take center stage. Smart design, material science, and proactive monitoring are crucial to preventative maintenance.

Working with our team at Dreiym Engineering ensures you have an experienced partner that can offer advice and design in cathodic protection systems and advanced monitoring solutions. We stand ready to support the next generation of resilient water systems.