Words On Water

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Words On Water #199: Briefing on the Infrastructure Investment & Jobs Act Nov 10, 2021

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November 10, 2021

Steve Dye is the Legislative Affairs Director for the Water Environment Federation. In this episode Steve provides a briefing on the Infrastructure Investment & Jobs Act, which will provide nearly $1.2 trillion for the nation’s infrastructure. He explains that $51 billion is allocated to drinking water, wastewater, and stormwater infrastructure and provides a detailed breakdown of the investments. Steve also discusses how the historic investment was driven by years of advocacy by WEF members and the broader water sector.

Episode #199
Hosted by Steve Dye

Words On Water #198: Jamie Eichenberger on His Journey to WEF President Nov 01, 2021

Show notes

November 1, 2021

Jamie Eichenberger is President of the WEF Board of Trustees and an Associate Vice President at HDR. In this episode Jamie talks about his background in water, journey as a WEF member, importance of students and young professionals, and this year’s priorities for the WEF Board of Trustees, which includes crafting a new strategic plan.

Episode #198
Hosted by Travis Loop

Words On Water #197: Melody White On The State of Water Reuse Oct 13, 2021

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October 12, 2021

Melody White is Principal Application Development Manager at Hach. In this episode Melody discusses the state of water reuse and the continuing increase in projects around the United States. She talks about how population growth and drought are driving water reuse, the barriers of cost and public acceptance, and advancing the science and technology. Melody also speculates on where water reuse may go in the next five to 10 years.

Episode #197
Hosted by Travis Loop

Words On Water #196: Shea Dunifon on Outreach to the Younger Generation Sep 08, 2021

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September 9, 2021

Shea Dunifon is the Education Coordinator for Pinellas County in Florida. In this episode, Shea says that municipalities can shift the paradigm in how they think about engaging the public, especially younger generations. She explains creating teaching materials to accommodate multiple grade levels as well as schools with varying levels of resources because accessibility is an important pillar in her values. Shea talks about creating more informed citizens and filling the water industry’s talent pipeline of the future.
Episode #196
Hosted by Mel Butcher

Words On Water #195: Jon Koch on Championing Co-Digestion Aug 31, 2021

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August 31, 2021

Jon Koch is the Director of the City of Muscatine, Iowa’s water resource recovery facility and Stormwater Department Director. In this episode Jon discusses shepherding a multi-year project that included planning, design, construction, commissioning, and start-up of new facilities to enable co-digestion of food waste and fats, oils, and grease from local food manufacturers and businesses with the facility’s wastewater biosolids. Jon talks about a variety of topics including gathering internal support for the ambitious program, equipment selection, feedstock profiles, setting tip fee pricing, and residuals management.

This is the first of a series of episodes hosted by WEF Residuals and Biosolids Bioenergy Subcommittee Chair Sarah Deslauriers and Vice Chair Dave Baran.

Words On Water #194: Evan Kirk on Benefits of Integrated Planning Aug 17, 2021

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August 17, 2021

Evan Kirk is the acting Senior Project Director at the Environmental Finance Center at the University of North Carolina. In this episode Evan explains the practice of integrated planning and the benefits it brings to utilities and communities. He discusses how utilities can evaluate if integrated planning is an appropriate fit. Evan also talks about common barriers to integrated planning and ways the Environmental Finance Center can assist.

Episode #194
Hosted by Travis Loop

Words On Water #193: UNLEASH and the Alabama Black Belt Hack Aug 03, 2021

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August 3, 2021

Anniestacia Miskel is a water engineer at Arcadis, Lindsey Broderick is a structural engineer at ZFA Structural Engineers, and Gabi Itokazu is PhD Student in Biosystems Engineering at Auburn University. In this episode they discuss UNLEASH, a global innovation lab that gathers top talents to collaborate on solutions that help meet the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Anniestacia, Lindsey, and Gabi talk about the UNLEASH Hacks, which are are localized hackathons aimed at solving challenges. They explain how the UNLEASH USA 2021 hack focused on developing sustainable, equitable solutions for sanitation issues in Alabama’s black belt region.

Episode #192
Hosted by Travis Loop

WOW: Take It From The Top With Paul Bowen Jul 26, 2021

Show notes

July 27, 2021

Paul Bowen is a former water and sustainability executive at the Coca-Cola Company and a Past-President of the Water Environment Federation. In this episode Paul says the best way to be prepared for the future is strategic planning, an activity in which he participated at both WEF and Coca-Cola. He discusses the need to include risk assessment and risk mitigation in the planning process to lessen the negative impacts of future obstacles. Paul also talks about the importance of debriefings after activities and events, not just to identify what went wrong but additionally what went right.

WOW: Take It From The Top
Hosted by Tom Kunetz

Words On Water #191: Dave Ross and Lindsey Mann on Wipes Class Action Lawsuit Settlement Jul 22, 2021

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July 22, 2021

Dave Ross and Lindsey Mann are Partners at Troutman Pepper. In this episode Dave and Lindsey discuss a preliminary class action lawsuit settlement between the Charleston Water System and wipes manufacturer Kimberly-Clark that could affect any entity that owned and/or operated wastewater conveyance and treatment systems since January 6, 2018. They discuss how the settlement, if approved by a court, would require Kimberly-Clark’s products to meet current flushability standards as published by the International Water Services Flushability Group, implement independent testing, and require educational content and label changes, as well as require the Charleston Water System to endorse these Kimberly-Clark products as flushable. Dave and Lindsey explain that the settlement would have no effect on claims by class members seeking money for harm caused by wipes but would release all claims for injunctive relief by any class member related to any wipe product of Kimberly-Clark.

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