Weather & Science
Asheville’s Dirty Water Warns of Climate Risk to Aging US Infrastructure
Fierce storms like Hurricanes Helene and Milton, as well as extreme heat and drought, threaten to overwhelm the nation’s water treatment plants.
Photo illustration: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images North America
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Hurricanes Helene and Milton devastated swaths of the southeastern US by bringing too much water. Now, communities are struggling with the opposite problem: too little of it.
The North Fork Water Treatment Plant supplies most of the drinking water to Asheville, North Carolina, and some surrounding mountain towns. Built in the 1970s, it was known for its clear water, which flows into the plant from a large reservoir.