AWWA INF52148

The annual expenditure on water mains rehabilitation in the United Kingdom has grown steadily since water privatization in 1989 to a level where it now represents the major capital spending of the water companies. This increase is likely to be mirrored in North America and Canada as greater emphasis is placed on asset condition and performance. To ensure that this expenditure on the water mains asset is being implemented efficiently and that justifiable benefits are being realized, there has been an increasing interest in the process by the regulators and the budget holders. In the United Kingdom, each water company now has to submit to the government regulator a definitive water main rehabilitation strategy against which they are both technically and financially audited. This strategy must include the company's statement of its water main rehabilitation policies and procedures that should facilitate the identification of justifiable and beneficial water mains rehabilitation schemes. With a continuing need to provide maximum benefits to customers at minimum cost, the water main rehabilitation strategy has been combined with other water distribution functions such as leakage, pressure management, hydraulic demands (fire flows) and future development growth to produce an Integrated Network Management Strategy. This paper describes how water main rehabilitation strategies have developed and how they are now a key part of a successful infrastructure investment program. There are a number of key areas common to any water main rehabilitation strategy and these are discussed. Includes reference, tables, figures.