The Future of Water

By Bluefield ResearchBusiness Science Technology

The Future of Water episodes

September 29A US$4.8 Billion Municipal Biosolids Market With Nowhere To Put the Sludge
In this episode, podcast host Reese Tisdale is joined by Bluefield analyst Pat Byrne to talk through how PFAS is changing the rules, the costs, and the options for what utilities do with their sludge.
PFAS has worked its way into biosolids, and utilities are left figuring out what to do about it. With states writing their own PFAS rules and no national standard in sight, the cost of managing biosolids is climbing—and Bluefield sees the market nearly doubling to almost US$5 billion by 2035.
Key questions include:
How does PFAS from factories, firefighting foam, and consumer products end up in biosolids—and why can't treatment plants just filter it out?
Ban bills stalled in New York, Massachusetts, and Hawaiʻi in 2026, while four states moved toward tiered limits and 22 have done nothing. Why are legislators pulling back?
States keep landing on 20 to 25 parts per billion as a starting point—is that number grounded in science, or is it just what everyone copied from Michigan?
If a state bans land application tomorrow, where does the sludge go—and who pays?
PFAS destruction runs US$63 million to US$230 million per plant over 20 years. Is it a real solution, or a big-city luxury?
Where should investors put a dollar: testing, dewatering, hauling, or destruction?
Is PFAS in biosolids a national crisis or a regional industrial problem—and what would it take to change that assessment?
If you enjoy listening to The Future of Water Podcast, please tell a friend or colleague, and if you haven’t already, please click to follow this podcast wherever you listen.
If you’d like to be informed of water market news, trends, perspectives and analysis from Bluefield Research, subscribe to Waterline, our weekly newsletter published each Wednesday.
Related Research & Analysis:
PFAS Policies Narrow Biosolid Disposal Options
U.S. Municipal Biosolids Management: Drivers, Trends, and Forecasts, 2025–2035
42 min
September 15The Firms Behind the Decisions: Engineering and Construction's Expanding Role in Water
Water accounts for a minority of revenue for nearly every major engineering and construction firm in the sector—somewhere between 15% and 23%—yet investment keeps accelerating. In this episode, Reese Tisdale is joined by Bluefield analyst Caroline Vauclain, who just wrapped up a deep dive into 40 leading firms, examining water sector market share, strategic focus, and M&A activity.
The firms profiled aren't just building water infrastructure anymore. They're positioning themselves to control the decisions behind it—and that shift matters more than any single project they win. Key questions include:
What makes engineering and construction firms worth a closer look, and what tension runs through both segments?
What is the most surprising finding once all 40 companies were profiled side by side?
Water is a minority of revenue for almost every firm—who stands out in positioning, and why?
How are these firms actually growing, and does the strategy differ by region?
What does the global-diversified versus domestic-focused split reveal about who wins?
What does recent M&A activity signal about where both segments are heading?
If you enjoy listening to The Future of Water Podcast, please tell a friend or colleague, and if you haven’t already, please click to follow this podcast wherever you listen.
If you’d like to be informed of water market news, trends, perspectives and analysis from Bluefield Research, subscribe to Waterline, our weekly newsletter published each Wednesday.
Related Research & Analysis:
Leading Water Engineering and Construction Firms: Profiling Company Strategies and Trends
26 min
August 25Are We Reading the Water Market Right?
Episode 150 marks a milestone for The Future of Water: Bluefield summer intern Swapnil Gandhi turns the tables and interviews host Reese Tisdale. Instead of Reese asking the questions, he's answering them—covering what Bluefield got right early, the data that reshaped how Bluefield reads the industry, and where the biggest pressures and overlooked opportunities lie in water today.
From the long-term case for water reuse to the compounding infrastructure deficit facing U.S. utilities, the conversation covers a lot of ground—early market calls, cybersecurity, critical minerals, data centers, and more. Reese offers a candid look at how Bluefield approaches an industry that is being asked to do more with less.
Key questions include:
What early market call has held up over time, and what does it say about how Bluefield approaches the industry?
What dataset most changed how Reese sees the water sector?
How much of a data center's water footprint is onsite versus at the power sector level, and is there opportunity for new markets such as nuclear SMRs?
How real is the cybersecurity threat to municipal water systems, and what is driving the vulnerability?
What industry beyond data centers and semiconductors deserves more attention for its water implications?
Is the water sector making progress toward a more sustainable footing, and what is driving the gap between where systems are and where they need to be?
What would an ideal world look like for human water consumption, and what does Reese's version of a "third age" of water look like?
How often do abstract conversations like this happen in the industry, and should they happen more?
If you enjoy listening to The Future of Water Podcast, please tell a friend or colleague, and if you haven’t already, please click to follow this podcast wherever you listen.
If you’d like to be informed of water market news, trends, perspectives and analysis from Bluefield Research, subscribe to Waterline, our weekly newsletter published each Wednesday.
Related Research & Analysis:
The Water-Power Nexus: How Data Centers are Reshaping the U.S. Water Landscape
Water Utility Cybersecurity: Execution, Not Scale, Is the Real Gap
U.S. Midstream Water Treatment Technologies: Market Trends and Competitive Landscape, 2026–2036
1 hr 13 min
August 11Beyond the Dashboard: Digital Water's Operational Turn
Digital water companies have gone through distinct phases: first selling data, then selling analytics. Now it's selling decisions, and increasingly autonomous control. This shift is showing up across Veralto, Badger Meter, Xylem, Bentley, Schneider Electric, ABB, and Rotork—different products, same direction. They're all moving closer to operations because software only becomes valuable when it changes what happens in the field.
In this episode, Reese Tisdale is joined by Bluefield senior analyst Maria Cardenal to unpack what this transition means for the European water market—and why a relatively obscure Swiss meter manufacturer's acquisition of i2O Water from Mueller Water Products is a signal worth paying attention to.
Key questions addressed:
What is happening across the U.K. right now that makes the GWF-i2O deal make sense at this exact moment?
What did most coverage of the acquisition miss—and what is the real story behind the deal?
How does the U.K. water market compare to what is happening in Germany, Belgium, Denmark, Spain, and the rest of the EU?
Across all digital water companies, not just GWF, what has changed most in the last five years?
What are the biggest misconceptions about this acquisition, or about where this market is headed?
Fast-forward to 2030: which European digital water company, or type of company, looks completely different than it does today?
If you enjoy listening to The Future of Water Podcast, please tell a friend or colleague, and if you haven’t already, please click to follow this podcast wherever you listen.
If you’d like to be informed of water market news, trends, perspectives and analysis from Bluefield Research, subscribe to Waterline, our weekly newsletter published each Wednesday.
Related Research & Analysis:
GWF Gains U.K. Market Access, Pressure Control Capabilities Through i2O Acquisition
40 min
July 28Mid-2026 Water Check-In: Deals, Geopolitics, and What's Next
At the midpoint of 2026, the water sector is sending mixed signals. Deal flow is up sharply, with 161 transactions recorded year-to-date and Q2 activity climbing 42% year-over-year to its strongest pace since 2021. Yet the headlines telling a story of a booming market sit alongside a different conversation happening in boardrooms, where CEOs are navigating Middle East conflict, tariff pressures, energy price volatility, and PFAS-related costs. Podcast host Reese Tisdale and Bluefield VP & Managing Director Keith Hays dig into both stories and what they mean for the year ahead.
Key questions addressed:
How does record deal flow square with the uncertainty CEOs are describing?
Which 2026 transactions best illustrate where the market is heading?
Has private equity finally reached the tipping point for exits?
How exposed is water infrastructure to Middle East geopolitical risk?
Are utilities and data center operators moving past the AI water controversy?
What water market theme offers the strongest five-year investment case?
What's the biggest water risk that CEOs are underestimating right now?
If you enjoy listening to The Future of Water Podcast, please tell a friend or colleague, and if you haven’t already, please click to follow this podcast wherever you listen.
If you’d like to be informed of water market news, trends, perspectives and analysis from Bluefield Research, subscribe to Waterline, our weekly newsletter published each Wednesday.
Related Research & Analysis:
Water Mergers & Acquisitions: Trends and Deal Flow, Q2 2026
CRH Moves Along Value Chain with US$700 Million Axius Water Acquisition
Midstream Water Bolstered by Energy Markets Volatility
53 min
July 14Is the Data Center Water Problem Fake?
Podcast host Reese Tisdale is joined by Bluefield Research Director Amber Walsh and Analyst Zineb Moumen to examine the data center market through a water lens. The conversation covers what the numbers actually show, where they fall short, and what water companies stand to gain on both sides of the Atlantic.
Bluefield's analysts break down U.S. and European market dynamics, address a provocative claim that the data center water problem is "fake", and share what surprised them most in the research.
Key questions covered in this episode:
What are the key areas Bluefield is watching in the data center market?
Is the data center water problem actually "fake"—and where does that argument hold up or fall apart?
What is the real problem utilities face when a data center comes to town?
What are the biggest differences between the U.S. and European markets?
What surprised Amber and Zineb most during their research?
What should listeners watch over the next five years as the data center market evolves?
If you enjoy listening to The Future of Water Podcast, please tell a friend or colleague, and if you haven’t already, please click to follow this podcast wherever you listen.
If you’d like to be informed of water market news, trends, perspectives and analysis from Bluefield Research, subscribe to Waterline, our weekly newsletter published each Wednesday.
Related Research & Analysis:
U.S. Water Utility Strategies for the Data Center Buildout: Opportunities, Trends, and Outlook
Europe Water for Data Centers: Market Trends, Opportunities, and Forecasts, 2026–2036
The Water-Power Nexus: How Data Centers are Reshaping the U.S. Water Landscape
39 min
June 30Last Call for the Colorado River
The clock is running out on the Colorado River. Lake Powell sits at 23% capacity. Towns are hauling water by truck. The 2025–26 snowpack is the lowest on record.
After decades of missed deadlines, the federal government is now being forced to act. A binding record of decision—determining how the river will be operated going forward—must be in place by October 1, 2026. At the same time, the 2007 interim guidelines, the 2019 drought contingency plans, and water-sharing agreements with Mexico all expire. Two decades of Colorado River governance unwind at once.
In this solo episode, Reese Tisdale walks through the timeline, the exposed stakeholders, and what Bluefield sees as the resulting opportunity—including US$47 billion in municipal reuse investment forecast between 2025 and 2035, the proposed Advancing Water Reuse Act, and a U.S. and Canada digital water market on pace to reach US$29 billion by 2036. Reese makes the case that the conditions forcing hard decisions on the Colorado are also generating the strongest market signals the water sector has seen.
If you enjoy listening to The Future of Water Podcast, please tell a friend or colleague, and if you haven’t already, please click to follow this podcast wherever you listen.
If you’d like to be informed of water market news, trends, perspectives and analysis from Bluefield Research, subscribe to Waterline, our weekly newsletter published each Wednesday.
Related Research & Analysis:
U.S. Municipal Water Reuse: Market Trends and Forecasts, 2025–2035
Water for U.S. Agriculture: Irrigation Trends, Technology Adoption, and Market Forecasts, 2026–2031
U.S. & Canada Digital Water Landscape: Trends and Growth Forecasts, 2026–2036
21 min
June 16Who Owns Your Water and Who Wants To?
The U.S. investor-owned utility (IOU) market just posted its strongest opening quarter in three years. Bluefield Analyst Megan Bondar joins host Reese Tisdale on The Future of Water to dig into what's driving that activity. The conversation covers the structural differences between greenfield and peer-to-peer transactions, why the geographic map looks completely different from Pennsylvania to Texas to Florida, and who's showing up in this market that wasn't here five years ago.
Key questions include:
What is an investor-owned utility, who are the major players, and why does this market matter right now?
What is the difference between greenfield and peer-to-peer M&A, and why does that distinction matter?
Who is executing greenfield deals well, and what does it take to compete in that space?
How do the top M&A markets—Pennsylvania, Illinois, Texas, Florida—differ in competitive dynamics and regulatory environment?
Where does the IOU market go from here, and what policy and political factors are shaping the next five years?
If you enjoy listening to The Future of Water Podcast, please tell a friend or colleague, and if you haven’t already, please click to follow this podcast wherever you listen.
If you’d like to be informed of water market news, trends, perspectives and analysis from Bluefield Research, subscribe to Waterline, our weekly newsletter published each Wednesday.
Related Research & Analysis:
Investor-Owned Utilities in Water: Market Share, M&A Trends, and Company Rankings
IOU Portfolio Rationalization Redraws the Competitive Map
Scale Is the Strategy: American, Essential Set Benchmark for Water Investor-Owned Utilities
40 min
June 02Are We Approaching a Federal Water Funding Cliff?
Utilities, contractors, equipment suppliers, and investors have a lot of questions about federal water infrastructure funding right now. How is money moving, where is it landing, and what does project activity look like over the next few years?
Bluefield's Senior Analyst Charlie Suse joins host Reese Tisdale to walk through the federal funding landscape, from State Revolving Funds (SRF) and Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) deployment to the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) and American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) wind-down. The conversation covers where capital is concentrated, why deployment gaps persist, and what the next era of federal water funding realistically looks like.
Key questions include:
What are the primary federal funding channels for water and wastewater utilities today?
What does the current SRF landscape look like?
Which segments are capturing the most funding, and which are facing the longest queues?
How transformational has IIJA actually been?
How do WIFIA and ARPA fit into the current market?
Why does a persistent gap exist between funding commitments and shovel-ready projects?
What does the next era of federal water infrastructure funding realistically look like?
If you enjoy listening to The Future of Water Podcast, please tell a friend or colleague, and if you haven’t already, please click to follow this podcast wherever you listen.
If you’d like to be informed of water market news, trends, perspectives and analysis from Bluefield Research, subscribe to Waterline, our weekly newsletter published each Wednesday.
Related Research & Analysis:
The State Revolving Funds Opportunity: Tracking US$140 Billion in U.S. Water Infrastructure Demand
Infrastructure Investment & Jobs Act (IIJA): Tracking the Spending, Q3 2025
37 min
May 19Inside Europe’s €643 Billion Stormwater Opportunity: Who's Positioned To Capitalize?
Europe's stormwater crisis has been building for decades—and the numbers are now impossible to ignore. The last three decades rank among the worst for flooding in 500 years of European records. In 2024 alone, floods killed more than 330 people, displaced 413,000, and caused €18 billion in damages. Bluefield Research has sized the European stormwater market at €643 billion in projected CAPEX through 2036—but chronic underfunding, fragmented procurement, and widening climate risk mean the opportunity is anything but uniform.
In this episode, Reese Tisdale sits down with Bluefield senior analyst Antonio del Olmo to unpack what's driving the investment gap, where the real growth markets are, and how the competitive landscape is shifting as digital-first players challenge the traditional hardware model.
Key questions include:
Why do the last three decades constitute a crisis rather than a long-term infrastructure challenge?
How does Europe's stormwater market stay chronically underfunded?
What does the regional investment picture look like for companies trying to enter or grow in this market?
As the traditional hardware distribution model faces pressure, what does the new competitive playbook look like—and who is getting it right?
Are digital-first players bypassing the traditional product sale a threat to hardware incumbents, or is it still early noise?
If you enjoy listening to The Future of Water Podcast, please tell a friend or colleague, and if you haven’t already, please click to follow this podcast wherever you listen.
If you’d like to be informed of water market news, trends, perspectives and analysis from Bluefield Research, subscribe to Waterline, our weekly newsletter published each Wednesday.
Related Research & Analysis:
Europe Stormwater Infrastructure Market: Key Drivers, Competitive Shifts & Investment Outlook, 2026–2036
U.S. Stormwater Infrastructure Market: Key Drivers, Competitive Shifts & Investment Outlook, 2024–2030
The New Standard for Stormwater: Integrated Drainage Design
44 min

About The Future of Water

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The Future of Water is Bluefield Research’s bi-monthly podcast examining the strategic, regulatory, and market dynamics shaping the global water sector. Spanning municipal and industrial markets, and extending from technology providers to investors, each episode focuses on the signals that matter—capital flows, policy developments, and business model shifts impacting opportunities in water.