PGH WATER QUALITY
Identifying root causes, insights, and interventions for water quality
As a team, we researched and designed a system map of a wicked problem of water quality in Pittsburgh, PA. We aimed to visualize the problem by identifying root causes tied to politics and social systems and researching leverage points of change.
Timeline
7 Weeks
(Fall 2022)
Programs
Figma
Team
Charlie Blumberg
Ethan Huang
Joan Lee
Skills
Design Research
Systems Thinking
Visual Design
The Problem
Water Quality
Water — a resource that is often overlooked and taken for granted — is a serious problem affecting Pittsburgh; after all, Pittsburgh is famously situated at the intersection of three rivers, so why would water be an issue? As a result of outdated infrastructure, Pittsburgh’s water quality contains high amounts of lead from archaic, rusting lead pipes, posing an imminent threat to citizens’ health. The Lead Industries Association, for more than forty years since 1928, lobbied to promote the benefits of lead piping and plumbing. Despite available evidence that lead piping was dangerous, the lead industry continued to advocate for the use of lead pipes in cities, leading to issues decades down the line. The remnants of the mining that catapulted Pittsburgh to become the steel and iron city also continue to be present in the river water today: pollutants can still be found in the water from the steel plants. Replacing old lead pipes is a lengthy endeavor, and it is estimated to take more than 10 years, costing more than $400 million — resulting in the city looking for faster and more efficient short-term solutions.
Initial Brainstorming and Research
Mess Maps with STEEP forces
We researched the issue, consolidating and sorting the datasets through STEEP forces. Through our mess maps, we were able to sort our data from the Macro to Micro levels. This layered approach not only strengthened our analytical skills but also allowed us to identify patterns, relationships, and key leverage points within the issue.
Visual Language
Design Considerations
We decided to design the shape of the map in a simple, but organic shape, drawing inspiration from the flow of water.
Visual Language
Components and Additional Details
Maintaining the same shape, we created assets for the root causes and feedback loop sections of the poster.
Parts of the Problem
Root Causes
Parts of the Problem
Relationships
Connections between STEEP forces and stakeholders
Differences between the types of people living in Pittsburgh (permanent residents vs. temporary students) — the issue has been affecting Pittsburgh residents for a long time, but students in the area remain limited in knowledge about the issue and are being impacted without the knowledge of the problem
No regulation in public institutions means that even if precautions are made at home, you can still be affected in places like schools
Still an ongoing issue; progress for replacing the lead pipes and other initiatives like green infrastructure are slow -> effects of lead will continue to persist even if solutions are identified
Parts of the Problem
Scale
Macro to Micro: Historical context placed on top leading down to the individual on the bottom of the map
BUT, this wicked problem could be framed on a larger scale
One of the main root causes has to do with decreased public funding for water
Impacts social classes disproportionately; this concept overlaps with Flint’s water crisis, indicating larger implications and connections to a problem that is on a larger scale because of economic inequality stemming from systematic racism
Parts of the Problem
Feedback Loops
Parts of the Problem
Proposed Interventions
Final Thoughts
Reflection & Takeaways
I think the biggest takeaway from learning about systems is how we, as designers, can utilize systems thinking as a tool to understand and situate our work within a complex system. That is, looking deeply into the context in which our work may be placed and seeing how it will impact the existing system and change relationships. Something that has stood out to me throughout this class was the importance of scale in framing the wicked problem. Not only is there an optimal scale in which the greatest impact can be made, but changing the scale could change the framing of the wicked problem. I saw this while doing research for my group, in which there were connections to larger concepts and ideas that indicated how water quality is connected to larger, more complex systems. Even though we were focusing on Pittsburgh, I was intrigued by how the issue related to deeper implications such as systematic racism that could be found in other parts of the United States.
I was able to incorporate bioregional thinking to integrate ideas that extend to the environmental sphere and natural system, which is integral because water is a natural resource. Incorporating features such as the water cycle in Pittsburgh is important to understand the source of the water and how pollutants and lead get into the water stream in the first place. We also identified and highlighted positive and negative feedback loops to find cause-and-effect relationships through inputs and outputs. I was also able to establish Pittsburgh’s poor water quality as a wicked problem by setting the boundaries and examining the relationships between the STEEP forces and stakeholders. Through leverage points, interventions could be deeply identified by seeing the problem, the intervention method, and how to measure its success. The location at which the leverage points are located is also identified, with higher points being more effective but more resistant. I learned the importance of figuring out the order and duration of which the interventions should be made. For one, existing solutions being enacted are slow (replacing lead pipes), so lead continues to persist. Thus, we sought to find an immediate intervention in which high levels of lead could be alleviated while other long-term interventions were developed.
