In a year that shined a light on what it truly means to be essential, SUEZ has invested over $250 million to maintain and improve its owned and operated water and wastewater systems across the country.
“SUEZ truly kept its commitment to its customers,” said Nadine Leslie, CEO, SUEZ North America. “Whether we are providing safe, reliable drinking water services or ensuring that wastewater is being safely treated to return to the environment, our customers are at the forefront of what we do. This year presented numerous challenges, yet our employees stood by that commitment, embraced new health and safety regulations and continued delivering for the communities we serve.”
Infrastructure investments, such as water main replacements, treatment plant improvements, and system upgrades are critical to maintaining system reliability and resiliency. The company completes hundreds of projects every year aimed at ensuring customers have high quality water and wastewater systems for years to come. In 2020, the projects included replacing over 286,000 linear feet of water mains, upgrading treatment plants to perform more efficiently, replacing fire hydrants to ensure fire suppression, and installing automated metering equipment.
“We understand our customers’ need to have access to clean, safe water, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. Our goal is to continue to make investments that help protect our customers for generations to come, while remaining sensitive to their household budgets.”
Delivering the essentials of life during a pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic presented unprecedented challenges for the world and at the same time reminded people how essential water is to everyday hygiene. As people worldwide turned to the safety of their faucets to embrace handwashing, SUEZ crews throughout North America pivoted to embrace new health and safety standards designed to keep themselves and customers safe and to ensure the continuation of essential services.
“Safety is in our DNA; it’s truly part of our culture at SUEZ,” Leslie began. “Our teams have worked tirelessly throughout the pandemic, and they did so while adhering to guidance from federal, state and local health officials. It was because of their dedication that we were able to complete the projects needed to ensure system reliability for future generations.”
Addressing the needs of customers across the nation
According to the American Society of Civil Engineers, U.S. infrastructure needs- including water, power, roads, bridges and tunnels- have exceeded $2 trillion. While the federal and state governments grapple with the best way to proceed, SUEZ has taken a proactive approach.
“We will continue to deliver on investments in critical water infrastructure for our customers. From water mains to water quality treatments, from hydrants to new water tanks, from physical security upgrades to cybersecurity protections, our new and revitalized systems ensure that the communities we serve have high-quality water available when they need it- today and tomorrow.”
