21世纪上半叶，国内外竞争可能会改变生活污水行业。要求新建或升级工厂的监管要求、延期维护的后果、对加价的抵制，以及陷入金融动荡的社区，都将威胁到该行业对竞争压力的反应和改善的愿望。本文报告了一项全国性调查的结果，指出了公共水市场为解决这些问题而出现的趋势。 尽管一些受访者已转向绩效或管理审计、外包、裁员、自动化和基准测试，以实现变革并提高竞争力，但许多人正在考虑公私合作。

Internal and external competition will likely change the domestic water-wastewater industry in the first part of the twenty-first century. Regulatory requirements calling for new or upgraded plants, the consequences of deferred maintenance, resistance to rate increases, and communities in financial turmoil promise to threaten both the industry's response to competitive pressures and the desire to improve. This article reports the results of a national survey indicating the trends that are emerging in the public water market to fight these problems. Although some respondents have turned to performance or management audits, outsourcing, staff reductions, automation, and benchmarking to effect change and become more competitive, many are considering public-private partnerships.