Our 2013 report on sustainable use of our groundwater supplies makes several references to having safe accessible sources of water for citizens and industries from power to agriculture. The news and “TedTalks” frequently bring us stories of people suffering from lack of water. While Engineers without Borders, numerous non-profits, and church mission groups dedicate large amounts of time to addressing small water supplies, it still remains a distant, remote topic to Midwesterners. See this article on Detroit: http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2014/07/what-happens-when-detroit-shuts-off-the-water-of-100000-people/374548/
Governing picks up the storyline about Detroit’s shutting off water to 100,000 residents and notes a handful of other cities who are using overdue utility bills as a flag to get to households who are in the early stages of fiscal problems.