Monday, April 26, 2021, at 9 PM
When water comes rushing out of the tap, seemingly clear and perfect, it’s easy to think we’ve got it figured out. But in reality, the underground world of pipes and sewers is in trouble. Reporters with The Water Mainfrom American Public Media have been doing a deep dive into America’s water infrastructure. What they’ve found is disturbing. When it rains, water floods many Chicago homes and human excrement might surge into the river. Small towns in rural Kentucky lack adequate wastewater treatment. Lush Florida is one of the many surprising places in the country grappling with freshwater scarcity and sustainable ways to access it. And seven years after Flint, lead pipes still carry drinking water into millions of American homes. But there are some cities who are figuring out solutions to the kinds of problems our show highlights, and the podcast In Deepdives into them, too.
In Deep is a podcast from the Water Main that asks the question, "Do you know where your water's been?" Season 1 of In Deep explored the labyrinth of how our water is cleaned, managed, and delivered — from toilet to tap.
Former Marketplace sustainability reporter Jed Kim and a team of reporters takes In Deep listeners across the United States — from Florida’s Tampa Bay to Chicago — to tell the stories of something we often take for granted: clean water.
When it comes rushing out of the tap, seemingly clear and perfect, it’s easy to think we’ve got water figured out. It’s hard to imagine that the underground labyrinth that brings us drinking water, and takes away our dirty sewage, is old, crumbling and in real trouble.
Over the course of eight episodes, season 1 featured conversations with water advocates, historians, scientists, politicians, and everyday citizens who know firsthand the importance of maintaining our water systems and the danger presented if they fail. Quench your thirst for knowledge and drama as we dive into the strangely fascinating world of clean water.
Follow along on social media via @thewatermain.