by Bob Luder, photos by Steven Hertzog
It’s something everybody does every day of their lives without giving it a second thought. They get out of bed in the morning, or even sometimes in the middle of the night, and walk straight to the nearest sink and faucet for a drink of water. Or guzzle out of a water fountain at a park during a workout or play day. Or wash their hands, shower, cook—any other numerous mindless daily activities. Yet does anyone stop and take a moment to think about the journey water takes from the source to the tap? What types of processes it must endure to make it clean and suitable for drinking, cooking, bathing, etc.? Something so basic to our daily human existence is easily taken for granted, but the process is long, complex and, yes, even fascinating. It’s something Mike Lawless, Trevor Flynn and Nic Caruthers think about incessantly each and every day. As members of Lawrence’s Municipal Services and Operations department, it’s their responsibility, along with 120 or so more employees, to ensure citizens of Lawrence and surrounding areas have a constant flow of clean, healthy and tasty drinking
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