Water Treatment and Infrastructure Research
Our communities are increasingly facing greater challenges with our aging drinking water, wastewater, and stormwater infrastructure, including distribution systems and treatment technologies with immediate and emerging contaminants of concern. Drinking water issues, such as lead in service lines and treatment of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), are impacting communities across the nationwide.
Extreme precipitation events resulting in flooding and sewer overflows threaten community health and safety and ecosystems. In addition, changes in the frequency and intensity of prolonged drought, combined with increased water demand, present a threat to water supplies.
EPA’s research will provide critical information to inform regulatory actions and guidance at the federal level, implementation actions at regional and state levels, management of water at local levels, and technical assistance to communities.
Drinking Water
Learn about our drinking water research focused on developing and evaluating the cost-effective approaches needed to optimize drinking water treatment and distribution and decrease system vulnerability to disasters.
Alternative Water Sources
Learn about our alternative water sources research to help communities make decisions on alternative water use for climate adaptation.
Stormwater Management
Learn about our stormwater management research focused on managing stormwater and leveraging greenspace and associated green infrastructure to improve water quality, manage water quantity, and reduce flood frequency.
Wastewater
Learn about our wastewater research that's evaluating contaminants and treatment approaches for safely discharging wastewater and disposing of biosolids, identifying emerging risks to human health, and developing modeling tools that aid in decreasing system vulnerability to disasters.
Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS)
Learn about our PFAS research on remediating PFAS sources and the development of analytical methods, treatment approaches for drinking water and wastewater, and approaches for residual treatment and management.
Technical Support for Communities
Learn about our technical support for communities, including activities that apply research results, models, tools, and technical expertise to build capacity in communities with critical needs.