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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Infrastructure

Drinking Water Infrastructure Needs Survey and Assessment: Sixth Report to Congress
Describes the results of the 2015 Drinking Water Infrastructure Needs Survey and Assessment at the national and state levels. Includes information and statistics describing small water systems serving populations of 3,300 or fewer and addresses the needs of American Indian and Alaska Native Village water systems.
Date: 03/2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
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National Trends in Drinking Water Quality Violations
Examines patterns in health-related violations in the Safe Drinking Water Act by analyzing data from 17,900 community water systems from 1982-2015. Identifies vulnerability factors in communities and water systems. Includes a rural and urban comparison of total violations by water system, and provides county-level information on violation hot spots and spatial trends in community water systems.
Author(s): Maura Allaire, Haowei Wu, Upmanu Lall
Citation: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America (PNAS), 115(9), 2078-2083
Date: 02/2018
Type: Document
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Integrating Economic Resilience in Performance-Based Transportation Planning
Details a report on community transportation planning based on economic performance. Discusses measures to factor in the demands of local economies and community wealth creation into transportation planning. Features several rural examples.
Date: 01/2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Association of Development Organizations
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Creating Connections What Broadband Means for Rural America
Offers articles on the challenges of providing broadband access in rural areas, federal policy options, and other local stakeholders working on solutions to build and strengthen rural communities. Includes discussion on how Garrett County, Maryland successfully expanded broadband access, and how tribes are building infrastructure to provide broadband access for their members.
Citation: Rural Voices, 22(2)
Date: 2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Housing Assistance Council
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Advancing Obesity Solutions Through Investments in the Built Environment: Proceedings of a Workshop
Summarizes a September 2017 workshop focused on the role of the built environment in the prevention and treatment of obesity. Identifies promising strategies to create more healthful and equitable environments. Contains some discussion specific to rural areas and small communities, including efforts to support physical activity throughout Montana.
Additional links: Read Online
Author(s): Roundtable on Obesity Solutions
Date: 2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Health and Medicine Division (HMD), National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
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Human Intestinal Parasite Burden and Poor Sanitation in Rural Alabama
Reports on the presence of intestinal parasites in Lowndes County, Alabama, a location selected for this study due to high poverty, use of open-sewage systems, and past hookworm burden. Findings based on participant interviews and stool, serum, and soil samples. Includes data on parasite infection, participant gender, raw sewage in the home, asthma or other lung disease, and diarrhea in the past week.
Author(s): Megan L. McKenna, Shannon McAtee, Patricia E. Bryan, et al.
Citation: American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, 97(5), 1623-1628
Date: 11/2017
Type: Document
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Report to the President of the United States from the Task Force on Agriculture and Rural Prosperity
Report from the Interagency Task Force on Agriculture and Rural Prosperity identifying key opportunities for improving the well-being of America's rural communities and citizens. Provides recommendations to the President of the United States, focusing on five main areas: e-Connectivity, improving quality of life, supporting a rural workforce, harnessing technological innovation, and developing the rural economy.
Date: 10/2017
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Interagency Task Force on Agriculture and Rural Prosperity
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A 'Scrappy' Push for Health: 'Our Best Asset Is Our People'
Provides an overview of health challenges in Allen County, Kansas, and actions that communities in the area have taken to address them, including fundraising for a local hospital, building bike and walking trails, establishing job training programs, advocating for improved access to healthy food, and more. Allen County is a recipient of the 2017 Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's Culture of Health Prize.
Date: 09/2017
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
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Drinking Water and Wastewater Infrastructure: Information on Identified Needs, Planning for Future Conditions, and Coordination of Project Funding
Reviews federal programs that provide funding for drinking water and wastewater infrastructure projects and describes how infrastructure needs are identified. Also details how federal agencies support states' efforts and the extent to which federal agencies coordinate funding initiatives. Analysis is based on a review of infrastructure projects in 6 states: Alaska, California, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, and Tennessee.
Additional links: Full Report
Date: 09/2017
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
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The Appalachia Initiative: A Bipartisan Approach for the 21st Century
Reports on the current challenges facing Appalachia. Breaks down data by education and workforce, entrepreneurism and job creation, energy and infrastructure, and rural health. Looks specifically at mortality rates, obesity and diabetes prevalence, and drug overdose death rates.
Date: 09/2017
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Bipartisan Policy Center
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