Balancing Innovation with Historical Practices in Standards Development

The American Water Works Association’s (AWWA) 2012 report, “Buried No Longer: Confronting America’s Water Infrastructure Challenge,” shows the cost of repairing and expanding U.S. drinking water infrastructure will top $1 trillion in the next 25 years. The looming infrastructure challenges and the need for repair, replacement, and rehabilitation of vast amounts of water and wastewater pipeline infrastructure will require innovative ideas, practices, and products. Design practices of engineers and investment by utility purchasers for long-term infrastructure assets requires prudent and responsible consideration. Proven practices and products are often preferred over the unknown life expectancy of less mature technologies. Balancing innovation with historical practices is, and will continue to be, an ever-growing challenge for the water and wastewater community and the key decision makers in the industry. This paper covers the approaches that AWWA takes in Standards Development to recognize new technologies while maintaining a balance of adequate historical use and proven design. The paper includes examples from recent pipeline standard revisions and the ensuing debates over inclusion of newer technologies (ANSI/AWWA C605 on Underground PVC Pipe Installation, and ANSI/AWWA C906 on Polyethylene Pipe). The paper provides a better understanding of how new technologies are considered for AWWA Standards, the criteria defined for standards, and the review process for consensus approval. The paper includes an invitation looking for feedback from the audience as to their ideas for balancing and accelerating innovation in the standards process.