The impact of Hurricane Helene on western North Carolina has underscored the importance of resilient infrastructure across North Carolina. This is especially the case for water and wastewater systems statewide. Beyond the impact of storms and severe weather events, as our state’s population and economy continue to grow, so does the demand on infrastructure. 

Continued modernization of infrastructure is central to North Carolina’s competitiveness. Through the work of NC Leads, the Foundation is uniquely positioned to bring organizations together with unbiased data to advance critical infrastructure solutions in partnership with industry leaders and job creators. 

In this month’s Foundation Forecast, NC Chamber Foundation Sr. Director of Infrastructure Competitiveness Dana Magliola reports on Hurricane Helene’s impact on water systems in North Carolina and next steps on the Foundation’s efforts to improve North Carolina’s water infrastructure.

Meredith Archie
President
NC Chamber Foundation 

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Solving for Infrastructure Resiliency in North Carolina 

In the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, damage to vital infrastructure is one of the most pressing issues facing western North Carolina’s immediate and long-term recovery.

Soon after the storm hit the region, the most visible infrastructure damage was to surface transportation and electrical infrastructure. Floodwaters undermined foundations and entire roadways were washed away downstream, while landslides left other portions of roads and highways impassable.

The disruption of critical routes left communities disconnected, delayed emergency response efforts, and prevented the delivery of essential supplies such as clean water, food, medicines, and fuel.

High winds and flooding also wreaked havoc on electrical infrastructure, damaging power lines, substations, and transformer stations leaving thousands of residents without power. 

Amidst transportation and power restoration efforts, the storm’s disastrous impact on the region’s water and wastewater infrastructure became quickly apparent. Across western North Carolina, entire water systems were destroyed, and many sewage treatment facilities were damaged, overwhelmed or operationally incapacitated, leaving thousands without access to safe drinking water still today.

North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) data showed that 93 water systems were placed under boil-water advisories following the storm, and many small systems were completely inoperable due to equipment damage.ⁱ Not captured in NCDEQ statistics, investor-owned utility companies in the region, including Aqua North Carolina and Carolina Water Service, were also significantly impacted, facing disruptions in service, damaged equipment, and contamination concerns. In Buncombe and Avery counties, water mains ruptured, and treatment facilities were inundated, resulting in widespread contamination risks and loss of service.ⁱⁱ

North Carolina’s Long-Term Water Infrastructure Challenge 

Hurricane Helene’s widespread damage has brought into sharper focus the state’s larger infrastructure challenges beyond the front lines of recovery from natural disaster. The Tar Heel State is one of the fastest-growing states in the U.S., third in overall population growth behind Texas and Floridaⁱⁱⁱ according to the U.S. Census Bureau, while the state has also produced significant economic development wins over the past decade.

As population, industrial, and commercial development drive growth, the strain on our state’s infrastructure ecosystem becomes more intense. According to a 2022 report by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), North Carolina needs an estimated $21 billion for wastewater and stormwater projects and another $20 billion for drinking water projects over the next 20 years.^iv North Carolina is currently a water-rich state with 17 river basins and nearly 450 classified water supply watersheds; yet due to projected population growth, and commercial development supporting that growth with needed services, as well as industrial development providing jobs for the population, regional water demand by 2065 is anticipated to increase by up to 380% relative to the 2010 baseline.  

Beyond growth, the age of North Carolina’s infrastructure compounds these challenges. Decades-old pipes and treatment plants, especially in rural communities, need replacement and modernization. According to the Environmental Finance Center at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, only about 15% or less of rural water systems in North Carolina are financially stable^v, with many smaller utilities operating with outdated equipment that cannot reliably handle the ever-increasing demand. Many rural systems struggle with insufficient revenue to cover both operational costs and necessary infrastructure upgrades, especially in smaller communities where a limited customer base restricts revenue generation. These under-resourced systems are vulnerable to severe weather events, making disaster recovery slow and more costly for affected areas. 

North Carolina’s response to its water infrastructure needs has leveraged recent increases in federal and state funding opportunities. The federal American Rescue Plan allocated significant funding to water and wastewater infrastructure projects as part of COVID-19 relief efforts, while the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) provided additional federal support for many infrastructure verticals including water.

The North Carolina General Assembly has also acted by approving $5.6 billion in state funds for water infrastructure projects during the 2023-25 biennium, the largest state allocation to date. According to North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality (NCDEQ), this funding infusion has made considerable progress possible^vi, especially for larger systems in urban areas like Raleigh and Charlotte, but it has yet to fully address the needs of smaller, rural systems with limited financial capacity and aging infrastructure. 

Water Infrastructure Resiliency and Competitiveness: Next Steps 

Across the state, the visible and tragic impact of Hurricane Helene has focused awareness on the need for resilient and sustainable infrastructure, but this issue has been an important and pressing challenge for North Carolina long before the storm. 

This summer, the NC Chamber Foundation formed a Water Resources & Infrastructure Task Force of cross-industry experts to identify key issues, prioritize needs, and propose solutions to address North Carolina’s water infrastructure challenges. In support of this work, the NC Chamber Foundation developed a Request for Research Proposals (RFP) to provide a competitive analysis, inform recommendations, and identify barriers to progress for North Carolina’s water infrastructure. The research and results from this effort will provide insight into the current state of water infrastructure and management in North Carolina, provide best-practices information from comparable states or regions, initiate a process of benchmarking and comparative assessment of water infrastructure, and will develop projections and recommendations for a future robust, resilient, and sustainable future state of water infrastructure in North Carolina.

We invite water experts in the fields of Sustainability, Infrastructure Resilience, Economics, Policy, and/or Technology/Automation to participate in North Carolina’s infrastructure planning for the future. The link to the RFP can be accessed here.  

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ⁱ https://www.northcarolinahealthnews.org/2024/09/30/in-the-wake-of-deadly-helene-western-nc-thirsts-for-water/ 
ⁱⁱ https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/bf7fdc09ffd242a5a8c6b5fe714e9c7f
ⁱⁱⁱ https://www.newsobserver.com/news/state/north-carolina/article283184263.html
^iv https://sdwis.epa.gov/ords/sfdw_pub/r/sfdw/cwns_pub/cwns_needs?session=17053340322871
^v https://dashboards.efc.sog.unc.edu/nc
^vi https://www.deq.nc.gov/news/press-releases/2023/02/23/governor-cooper-announces-4629-million-clean-water-and-wastewater-infrastructure-funding-tours-water