July 2025 Vol. 80 No. 7

Editor-in-Chief Robert Carpenter examines how proposed EPA budget cuts could jeopardize key sewer and water funding programs, leaving cities scrambling as federal support dwindles.

A trenchless services expert weighs in on the ongoing debate over underground utility strikes, pointing to a critical issue many in the industry overlook: incomplete as-built documentation. Could addressing this gap be the key to preventing future strikes?

Plans are taking shape to link power grids across the Americas — a project that could span from Alaska to Patagonia and reshape the continent’s energy future. Political leaders are reviving interconnection efforts as renewable power surpluses in Latin America grow.

Industry leaders, engineers and researchers gathered in Houston for the 30th CIGMAT Conference to confront challenges in energy, flooding and urban infrastructure. Key sessions spotlighted innovative solutions — from smart cement to large-scale water treatment projects — shaping the future of resilient cities.

A Wisconsin sewer district completed a complex CIPP lining project beneath the Fox River, restoring more than 7,700 feet of interceptor pipe. The work, carried out entirely from barges, overcame unique challenges posed by the riverbed and urban setting.

Daniel Shumate, Managing Director, FMI Capital Advisors Inc.   If you happened to be Rip Van Winkle and fell asleep at the beginning of 2025 and awoke in July, you would have no idea of the volatility that the public markets experienced and the global confl..

Celebrate innovation in underground infrastructure. Submit your project for the 2025 UI Awards, honoring excellence in HDD, fiber, water, sewer, gas, power, asset management, and emerging technologies.

Azuria Water Solutions has acquired BLD Services, a major U.S. pipeline rehabilitation company known for CIPP lateral liners and underground utilities work across the Gulf Coast and Eastern regions. The deal strengthens Azuria’s water infrastructure capabilities nationwide.

Colorado judge clears $485 million pipeline construction, Texas approves $20 billion water package, Flint still battling lead pipe backlog, North Dakota plans 344-mile gas pipeline, Alabama man survives 500-foot drainage pipe ordeal — all in the latest issue of Underground Infrastructure’s Newsline!

United Rentals rolls out customizable mobile office packages; Vermeer debuts microtrencher for fiber installs; Guzzler’s vacuum unit speeds trenching in Arizona; CASE, Yanmar, John Deere launch new excavators and engines — all in this month’s New Products from Underground Infrastructure!

It is said that life imitates art, and in every epic story, there is a hero, a villain, a victim and a guide. In this story, the villain is corrosion caused by hydrogen sulfide gas, victimizing the manholes in Midland, Texas; the guide, perhaps, is Madewell Products Corporation and its products being used to rehabilitate the manholes.

In 1982, trials for watermain pipe rehabilitation commenced in the United Kingdom using the spray-in-place pipe (SIPP) lining method with slow-cure epoxy. In the early 1990s, Dr. Ian Robinson at E Woods developed a SIPP lining material with a 16-hour cure time. Subsequently, over 100 SIPP rigs were used to rehabilitate watermains across the United Kingdom.

Personal protective equipment (PPE) for employees exists to prevent injury and illness. This goal can only happen when the proper equipment is chosen and properly fitted to the employee. Respiratory protection is one type of PPE designed for this purpose.