Water

New Jersey is investing billions of dollars in cleaner, more reliable water systems. But replacing pipes and upgrading treatment plants will not be enough if utilities cannot find the people needed to operate them.

Safe drinking water is one of the greatest public health and engineering achievements in American history. Yet millions of Americans reach for a bottle instead of the tap. As utilities invest billions to modernize drinking water systems, the story behind America's favorite packaged beverage offers a new perspective on the infrastructure most people rarely see.

Before water reaches a Philly faucet, it passes through a closely controlled sequence of settling, chemical treatment, filtration, disinfection and testing. The city’s three treatment plants process more than 300 million gallons on an average day, drawing from the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers before sending finished water through approximately 3,100 miles of mains.

Could hackers attack your drinking water?

The July 2026 storms exposed long-standing infrastructure challenges in New Jersey and left residents angrily asking why systems continue to struggle when heavy rain has become increasingly common. Our latest analysis examines how the state's water, transportation and energy systems performed and what the response revealed about the state's infrastructure.

When heavy rain hits cities like Newark, Jersey City and Camden, it can overwhelm century-old sewer systems and send a mixture of stormwater and untreated sewage into nearby waterways. New Jersey has combined sewer overflow (CSO) outfalls across 21 municipalities, discharging an estimated 23 billion gallons of sewage and stormwater each year.

PFAS have been found in the bodies of an estimated 97 percent of Americans, with research linking exposure to potential health risks. Residents can use NJ’s PFAS mapping tool to check local water quality and take steps to limit exposure.

More than water is wasted when a water main breaks. Businesses lose revenue, treated water goes to waste, and emergency repairs cost more. Here’s a breakdown of the real economic impact of deferred maintenance.

A new kind of water crisis has been unfolding, driven not by visible pollution or failing pipes, but by PFAS, the so-called “forever chemicals” found in drinking water across the state. While federal standards lagged for years, New Jersey moved early, building its own testing programs and enforcing strict limits. Read more on how New Jersey became a national leader in the fight against PFAS.

New Jersey’s water story began in crisis: contaminated rivers, cholera outbreaks, and failing private suppliers. Out of that turmoil came reservoirs, treatment plants, and the regional systems we rely on today. Now those systems are aging, and the state faces a new era of hard choices. How we got here, and what comes next.