Clean Water Advocate | Spring 2021

T H E N AT I O N A L A S S O C I AT I O N O F C L E A N WAT E R A G E N C I E S

S P R I N G

2 0 2 1

ADVOCATE C L E A N WAT E R

T H E N AC WA M AGA Z I N E

Sharing Our Story: Clean Water Communication & Advocacy The Importance of Engaging Ratepayers in Their Own Language The New Normal: A Virtual Certainty?

Building Community Trust Through Partnerships

CONTRIBUTING WR I T E R S Terry Leeds Beverli A. Marshall Mami Hara Pamela Mooring Tricia Garrison Sean J. Stone Jean Smith John Gonzalez Leila Rice Matt Stouder Jamie Samons Laura Briefer Kristina Surfus

M A N AG I N G E DI TO R

For more than 50 years, the National Association of Clean Water Agencies (NACWA) has been the nation’s recognized leader in legislative, regulatory, legal and communications advocacy on the full spectrum of clean water issues.

NACWA represents public wastewater and stormwater agencies of all sizes nationwide. Our unique and growing network strengthens the advocacy voice for the public clean water sector and helps advance policies to provide affordable and sustainable clean water for all. Our vision is to advance sustainable and responsible policy initiatives that help to shape a strong and sustainable clean water future.

David Zielonka Manager Media & Communications dzielonka@nacwa.org

A R T & DE SI G N DI R E CTO R Sarah Bixby Lead Graphic Designer sbixby@nacwa.org

PU B LI SH E D B Y The National Association of Clean Water Agencies (NACWA)

C O N TAC T NACWA 1130 Connecticut Ave, NW Suite 1050 Washington, DC 20036 (202) 833-2672 | info@nacwa.org

MEMBERSHIP Kelly Brocato Sr. Director, Membership Development & Retention kbrocato@nacwa.org

W W W. N AC WA . O R G

C L E A N WAT E R A D V O C AT E

Table of Contents

NEW WAYS OF COMMUNICATING DURING A GLOBAL PANDEMIC

12 PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE

2

NACWA to Build on a Tough, But Successful Year Terry Leeds

Tales from Quarantine: Pandemic Fatigue and Toilet Paper as a News Hook Tricia Garrison

14

The New Normal: A Virtual Certainty?

Sean J. Stone

TRANSFORMING RATEPAYERS INTO ALLIES

4

The Importance of Engaging Ratepayers in Their Own Language Beverli A. Marshall

7

Centering on Community

10

DC Water Branches Out with New Publishing and Merchandise Arm

16

NEORSD Finds Virtual Success in Connecting with Employees Jean Smith & John Gonzalez

18

Virtual Classroom Presents New Educational Opportunities at Hampton Roads Leila Rice

Mami Hara

NACWA/AMWA CAMPAIGN

20

Interview with Pamela Mooring

Affordable Water, Resilient Communities Kristina Surfus

NACWA AWARDS

26

COMMUNICATING WITH RATEPAYERS AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

A Golden Opportunity to Engage Laura Briefer

22

Building Community Trust Through Partnerships Matt Stouder

24

Applying Enterprise Design Thinking to Clean Water Communications Jamie Samons

2

A M E S S A G E F R O M N A C W A’ S P R E S I D E N T

NACWA to Build on a Tough, But Successful Year

BY TERRY LEEDS

|

K A N S A S C I T Y, M O

The nation and our clean water community have been through unprecedented times over this past year. I have had the unique opportunity to be NACWA’s first (and I hope only!) fully “Virtual President”. We have navigated an incredibly challenging year that has been marked by an ongoing pandemic that we now are emerging from, racial divides that continue to plague our nation (but that the water sector is coming together to help address), and a Capitol Hill riot that has underscored the bitter and partisan political environment we have been in and hopefully from which we will begin to emerge.

T H E C L E A N WAT E R A D V O C AT E | S P R I N G 2 0 2 1

Despite these and other enormous challenges, NACWA has remained focused on its role, its vision and its mission. NACWA has played an even more vibrant role in connecting us to share best practices and shape a policy landscape that seems to grow more complex each day.

Again, I would like to thank my fellow Executive Committee members as well as the NACWA Board of Directors for their amazing leadership during this very challenging time. If you look at the progress that has been made since NACWA temporarily closed its offices last year in March to keep its staff safe, it is truly remarkable what we have accomplished together. Over the past year, NACWA has: •

Ensured that there were no dues increases this past fiscal year and reduced the cost of sponsorship to reflect the difficult economic times. In line with these moves, NACWA is having one of its strongest membership retention years and, halfway through the year, has already added 16 new members;

•

Successfully rescheduled in-person conferences and meetings to virtual meetings in a manner that has exponentially increased registrations and participation. NACWA has also held more regular and timely Utility Executive Zoom strategy calls to help navigate complex pandemic-related and other policy issues for utility executives across the country;

•

Ensured that the water/wastewater workforce is now deemed "essential" by key federal and state decision-making bodies;

•

Obtained nearly $1.2 billion in funding for the first-ever federal low-income water customer assistance program housed at the Department of Health and Human Services;

•

Gathered vital information on the billions of dollars of revenue loss to utilities resulting from the pandemic and the related business shutdown and unemployment crisis to maximize opportunities for federal funding eligibility for water/wastewater utilities through

Covid-19 relief legislation and ongoing stimulus package and annual water program funding negotiations on Capitol Hill; •

Developed a new affordability campaign with the Association of Metropolitan Water Agencies (AMWA) called Affordable Water, Resilient Communities (I encourage you to visit AffordableH2O.org and get involved, if you have not already!) that has framed the affordability issue in both the legislative and regulatory arenas.

The above are but a few examples of how NACWA is helping frame water issues for the Biden-Harris Administration and the 117th Congress, with tangible results already visible via the $111 Billion for water included in the Administration’s recent infrastructure proposal. But the full pace and scope of issues NACWA has been addressing are truly unprecedented.

T H E C L E A N WAT E R A D V O C AT E | S P R I N G 2 0 2 1

We have done so by catering to our strengths of public service and an unmatched commitment to our diverse communities and the water workforce.

As a utility leader, I have known that the water workforce is made up of heroes. But it has been a highpoint of my year thus far as President to work on policies and best practices that have elevated our sector’s “H20 Heroes” and will ensure — as a legacy matter! — that the policy landscape will permanently prioritize our needs and the needs of our communities as an essential services sector.

I have learned, however, that NACWA’s ability to influence this broad array of issues is only as strong as the commitment of our member agencies and our private sector partners. Members in every Congressional District must weigh in through NACWA and we need all NACWA members to weigh in on behalf of water infrastructure funding as an infrastructure package and annual program funding become the focus of national attention.

In my last Clean Water Advocate message, I pledged to all NACWA members that I would build on what has made NACWA successful to date – more aggressive and influential advocacy coupled with stepped up sharing among an unparalleled utility leaders network capable of lifting us to a new level of public service and environmental sustainability. I sincerely hope you feel we have delivered on this pledge.

Although I will not be President when we next get together in person at a NACWA conference, please know how grateful I and the NACWA team are for all you do. I look forward to raising a glass and toasting to these accomplishments soon!

Sincerely, Terry Leeds NACWA President Director, KC Water Kansas City, MO 3

4

T R A N S F O R M I N G R AT E PAY E R S I N TO A L L I E S

The Importance of Engaging Ratepayers in Their Own Language

BY BEVERLI A. MARSHALL

|

I N D I O, C A

T H E C L E A N WAT E R A D V O C AT E | S P R I N G 2 0 2 1

On August 11, 2000, President Clinton issued Executive Order 13166 requiring that all Federal agencies, and agencies receiving Federal funds, ensure that important documents and information were available to those with limited English proficiency (LEP). This meant that someone who does not speak English as their primary language must have meaningful access to critical information. Public agencies that do not receive Federal funding are not required to follow this rule unless their state has a similar requirement. So, why is the LEP program worth talking about?

Here is why it is a good business model even if you are not mandated to do so.

•

Understanding what we do and why it is important is in the best interest of our customers (ratepayers).

•

It shows that we are committed to transparency and community engagement.

•

It encourages customers to be a part of the decision-making and democratic process.

The population representation does not need to be a majority to create a need for translation. For example, the Department of Health and Human Services issued guidance that a representation of 10% of the total population triggers the need to translate documents and websites into the nonEnglish language for Qualified Health Plan issuers.

In many states, the 10% total representation threshold may not be reached, but it could be reached within a county, city, or district service area. In California, the Bilingual Services Act

requires cities, counties, and districts that receive state funds to translate documents into another language if that language is represented by at least 5% of the population served.

Valley Sanitary District (VSD) serves a population of approximately 75,000 of which 73% identify as Hispanic and 57% speak Spanish at home. In recognition of this demographic representation, we started translating documents into Spanish last year. While this expands the size of our newsletters and rate change notices, it is well worth it to ensure that our residents and business owners understand what we do, why we do it, and how their rates are calculated.

In the past, many wastewater agencies were happy to stay below the radar – no attention is good attention. With the need for considerable rate increases to pay for ever-rising costs of operations and maintenance as well as significant capital improvement projects, it is no longer an option to stay in the shadows. We need to get out into the public and toot our own horns, showing how we are part of ensuring public health and environmental protection for our communities. We need to help the public understand why we need to continue the good work that we do and ensure that our services, and those that we serve, are a critical part of the decision-making process. The best way we can do this is in the languages of those that we serve.

T H E C L E A N WAT E R A D V O C AT E | S P R I N G 2 0 2 1

Imagine, as a native English speaker, that you are visiting a country where the population speaks another language. You find yourself needing to have a detailed or technical conversation about something, but everything you look at seems indecipherable. What do you do? You could hope to find someone who speaks English, but they may not understand the technical terms needed. Wouldn’t it be easier if you could find the information translated into English? That is the foundation of the Federal LEP program. For most water and wastewater agencies, this is not an issue because we do not receive federal funds.

Beverli A. Marshall serves as General Manager of the Valley Sanitary District in California.

5

T H E C L E A N WAT E R A D V O C AT E | S P R I N G 2 0 2 1

6

T R A N S F O R M I N G R AT E PAY E R S INTO ALLIES

BY MAMI HARA

|

S E AT T L E , W A

Seattle Public Utilities (SPU) strives to be a community centered utility. We aim to put people at the heart of everything we do and aspire to build long-lasting, equitable, and inclusive relationships with the communities we serve so that we might co-create solutions that honor community needs and priorities.

SPU has always been committed to providing exceptional service and value to our ratepayers. But over the last several years, as we’ve sought to better understand and address the needs of the diverse communities we serve, our thinking expanded. We are learning that to deliver our essential services equitably, affordably, and sustainably – and to meet the challenges of the future – we need to partner with communities in authentic and empowering ways.

T H E C L E A N WAT E R A D V O C AT E | S P R I N G 2 0 2 1

Centering on Community

Centering on community has taught us the importance of leading with humility and seeking to appreciate the experience and expertise of people who live, work, and play in the communities we serve.

It has also emphasized the importance of applying an equity lens to our work and relationships, particularly with BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and people of color) and low-income communities. The COVID-19 pandemic has laid bare the racial and economic inequities that plague our society and underlined the fact that public agencies must do all they can to ensure that everyone has equitable access to essential services. As a community centered utility, we strive to identify and eliminate service inequities in disinvested communities and vulnerable populations.

7

8

Centering on community has taught us the importance of leading with humility and seeking to appreciate the experience and expertise of people who live, work, and play in the communities we serve.

T H E C L E A N WAT E R A D V O C AT E | S P R I N G 2 0 2 1

Our goal to be truly community-centered is still very much aspirational, but we are seeing progress, for example, implementing programs with mutual financial, environmental, and public health benefits. Beginning with our water conservation program – an early demonstration of the success of this approach – SPU continues to collaborate with the community on many mutually beneficial programs, including our residential green stormwater infrastructure program; tree and garden stewardship; community clean-ups; food recovery; recycling, waste diversion, and plastics prevention; FOG (fats, oils, and grease) disposal; and other issues that directly relate to the ecological health of our waterways.

Through community collaboration, we’ve also found ways to expand the delivery of our essential services to populations that need them the most.

Our Purple Bag Program, for example, provides consistent and dependable trash removal services for people living unhoused. Our wastewater pumpout program for residents living in RVs helps protect community health and local waterways. And during the pandemic, collaboration with local organizations like Uplift NW and Kappa Alpha Psi have provided hot showers and clean, dry clothing to unhoused Seattleites.

Looking to the future, we have huge challenges to face. We will wrestle with the increasingly severe impacts of climate change; water and waste pollution; growth, economic inequality, and affordability; and racial and social injustice.

To face these challenges with resilience and resourcefulness, public utilities will need to rely on strong partnerships with the communities we serve.

SPU is working to develop these partnerships through programs like Community Connections, in which we partner with trusted community organizations to build channels of communication with BIPOC, immigrant and refugee, and low-income communities. Through projects like Shape Our Water, we are bringing diverse communities into the long-range planning process for our drainage and wastewater systems. Through innovative pilots like Seeds of Resilience, we aim to invest in the future of the communities we serve by fostering entrepreneurship centered on environmental equity and stewardship. And as part of our work to advance Seattle’s Green New Deal, we’ll help create new green jobs that will benefit traditionally underserved communities and our region as a whole.

These are just some of our efforts to build deep and fruitful connections with community, but they illustrate an important evolution in the way we work. Across our organization, employees at every level understand and take pride not just in how our work benefits people, but in how our relationships with people make our work better. How utilities manage water and waste has the power to drive transformative change for people and the planet.

But we can’t do it alone.

Mami Hara is the General Manager/CEO of Seattle Public Utilities in Washington.

Upcoming NACWA Events M AY 17 -2 0, 2 02 1

National Pretreatment Virtual Event J U N E 14 - 15, 2 02 1

Strategic Communications: H2O Virtual Event J U LY 2 0-2 1, 2 02 1

Utility Leadership Virtual Event N OV E M B E R 17 - 19, 2 02 1

National Clean Water Law & Enforcement Seminar D E C E M B E R 13 -15, 2 02 1

Water Utility Resilience Forum

Register Today.

For more information about NACWA's events and meetings, visit nacwa.org/events.

N E W WAY S O F C O M M U N I C AT I N G D U R I N G A G L O B A L PA N D E M I C 10

DC Water Branches Out With New Publishing and Merchandise Arm I N T E R V I E W W I T H PA M E L A M O O R I N G

CAN YOU TELL US A BIT ABOUT WHY YOU STARTED THE BLUE DROP PROJECT? Blue Drop was created four years ago to generate non-ratepayer revenue by marketing DC Water’s products and technologies to help reduce the impact of rate increases on our customers. We have an eclectic set of products and services including Bloom, our Class-A exceptional quality biosolid that is used as a fertilizer and soil amendment.

We market event space in our LEED Platinum Headquarters building (see www.bluedrop.co/ services/facility-rental), we lease space for cell towers, market wastewater treatment methods developed by our Innovations Team and sell software products that were developed for customer service and operations.

T H E C L E A N WAT E R A D V O C AT E | S P R I N G 2 0 2 1

We created Wendy, Where Does Our Wastewater Go? (see photo, top right) to generate revenue as well as to help educate the public about a vital part of our purpose in a fun and accessible way.

|

WA S H I N G TO N , D C

WHAT DO SALES OF BLUE DROP PRODUCTS GO TOWARDS? HOW DOES REVENUE FROM BLUE DROP GO TOWARDS SUPPORTING THE COMMUNITY? Ten percent of each sale goes to the SPLASH fund, a DC Water program that helps customers maintain critical water and sewer service in times of financial emergencies. It is a last resort funding source for those facing disconnection. SPLASH is funded by donations from employees, via payroll deduction, Board members, and customers through bill roundup and donations of varying amounts.

Anyone can donate by reaching out to the Greater Washington Urban League, which administers the program, at utilities@gwul.org.

TELL US ABOUT THE TEAM AT BLUE DROP AND DC WATER THAT HELPED BRING WENDY TO LIFE? Torri Epperson is the author and a DC Water employee whose primary focus is community outreach through environmental education. Torri has also spent time in the classroom as a STEM teacher and brought this background to the project. The illustrator and designer are both local university students. Francesca Valente, Vice President at Blue Drop, supported the team in bringing the book to print.

WHAT WAS THE PROCESS OF PRODUCING AN EDUCATIONAL CHILDREN’S BOOK LIKE? The process of producing the book began with Torri brainstorming and writing the storyline. Process engineers from Blue Plains played an integral role in reviewing the book and ensuring accuracy

Children in the community love Wendy, so this opportunity to learn something new from her about where water goes after we use it has proven to be equally educational and exciting.

We are in circulation at the local library and are working with local bookstores to be on the shelves.

We’ve donated copies to classrooms, local reading nonprofits, and Little Free Libraries. We have included a resource page that calls out important vocabulary, asks guiding questions and even has an experiment where students can create their own wastewater to treat. of illustrations and process descriptions. Local teachers reviewed the story to give their feedback, such as encouraging us to use the correct jargon for processes so students can better learn the process and increase their vocabulary. Once the storyline was ready, we posted a Request for Proposals to choose our illustrator. Torri and Deborah Han collaborated on the ideas for the illustrations, and Torri shared images of the processes, so the illustrations are realistic.

TELL US ABOUT WENDY’S FIRST BOOK, WENDY, WHERE DOES OUR WASTEWATER GO? WHAT ARE YOU HOPING TO ACCOMPLISH WITH THE SERIES? In Wendy’s first book, she takes a group of students on a journey to learn about what happens to our water when we are finished using it. We want this book to help children – and their parents – understand the wastewater process. We hope that focusing on wastewater will contribute to a more robust understanding of what it means to care about water. We also hope it leads to a generation that adopts practices that protect the wastewater system and the environment.

CAN OTHER UTILITIES SHARE WENDY’S STORY? ARE THERE PLANS FOR EXPANSION?

T H E C L E A N WAT E R A D V O C AT E | S P R I N G 2 0 2 1

TELL US ABOUT HOW YOU HAVE WORKED TO GET WENDY BOOKS IN FRONT OF CHILDREN? HOW HAVE YOU HELPED EDUCATORS INTEGRATE WENDY INTO THEIR CURRICULUM?

We would love to share this resource with other utilities! We can alter parts of the story to personalize it and let utilities make it their own local resource. Utilities can purchase the license to the book to print it on their own.

DO YOU HAVE NEW STORIES LINED UP FOR WENDY? Wendy’s next journey will show students how water gets to their taps!

IS THERE ANYTHING ELSE ABOUT THE WENDY SERIES, OR BLUE DROP IN GENERAL, THAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO SHARE WITH THE REST OF THE CLEAN WATER COMMUNITY? We created this book as a resource for the community — not only our local community in the form of our ratepayers but also our utility community. We’ve got many more ideas in the pipeline for Wendy. Please reach out if you have any ideas for her as well!

WHAT HAS THE RESPONSE BEEN LIKE TO WENDY - FROM BOTH CHILDREN AND ADULTS? Feedback has been positive. Parents have said they enjoy the opportunity to satisfy their children’s curiosity about how the wastewater process works in their own region.

Pamela Mooring is the Communications Manager at DC Water in Washington, DC.

11

12

N E W WAY S O F C O M M U N I C AT I N G D U R I N G A G L O B A L PA N D E M I C

Tales from Quarantine: Pandemic Fatigue and Toilet Paper as a News Hook

BY TRICIA GARRISON

|

G R E E N B AY , W I

During the darkest winter days in Green Bay, Wisconsin, quarantine fatigue had set in. We’d all gotten a bout of “cooped-up-itis,” and it was time to mix up our outreach efforts.

T H E C L E A N WAT E R A D V O C AT E | S P R I N G 2 0 2 1

Our Team wanted to gently remind the neighbors that we’re here, working around the clock, so you can flush, do laundry, and take a shower whenever you please. Here are a few tips and tricks that we used.

1. DOG EAR YOUR STRATEGIC PL AN In the middle of a pandemic, in a tricky situation, how do you see your way out? Take a breath, and go back to your Strategic Plan. After a peculiar twist of public events this winter, we found ourselves in need of telling our story, in a timely fashion, and as widely as possible. So, we consulted our Strategic Plan: “Empower stakeholders with education to advocate.”

Unable to bring folks in for a tour, to personally visit people, or make large-scale public presentations, we produced a suite of digital materials, and we asked, and empowered, our stakeholders to spread the word about “10 Things to Know About NEW Water.” This package contained a video (produced by our talented Public Affairs & Education Team, Erin Collar and Hannah Malmberg) featuring “Out of Sight Essential Workers.” We linked the package to our holiday cards, posted to our blog, pushed it out on social, and engaged our stakeholders.

This included courting media attention.

2. A NEWS HOOK THAT WORKED: TOILET PAPER Remember when people were freaking out over toilet paper, hoarding and causing shortages in the pandemic’s early days? We used that as a news hook for our ‘out of sight’ essential workers story. To further build our brand, we produced a NEW Water Zoom backdrop for the TV interview with our Treatment Manager, Bruce Bartel. (Note: Luckily, we tested it before we went on air! Bruce’s gray shirt did not

T H E C L E A N WAT E R A D V O C AT E | S P R I N G 2 0 2 1

render at all – making him look like his head was floating on the clarifying basin behind him! Luckily, he was able to change prior to the interview.) After the story aired, we received a 117% increase in website traffic. Facebook comments include “Wow! Did not know this!

Very appreciative of their hard work!” and my favorite: “We really do take clean water for granted in this country.”

3. GROSS IS GOOD The toilet paper shortage taught us a powerful lesson: Gross works. For years, we had been using lovely “clean” imagery to politely implore people to stop treating their toilets like a trash can. When we heard that people were using paper towels instead of toilet paper, we left polite in the dust, and went “gross.” It worked.

Our “gross” social media PSA (globs of wipes, grease, and other unflushables in all their glory) went viral. We are currently collecting specific gross photos throughout our interceptor system, with enthusiastic municipal partners to produce targeted PSAs.

4. EVOLVE WITH YOUR PARTNERS Our annual Boys & Girls Club STEM Superheroes Camp is a hit with the children, as well as our staff. Aaron Eichhorst, Treatment Lead, plays the role of “Commander Cleanwater,” leading kids to protect our water from evil villains, “Sinister Sediment,” “Phosphorus Phury,” and “Unflushables,” using STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) skills taught in camp. The Club was keen to work with us to keep the momentum, regardless of the pandemic. We brainstormed. The Club was planning an on-site trash clean-up, so we created a digital educational package for teachers and campers about Wisconsin water, illustrating how picking up trash helps keep area waters clean. The “virtual” camp allowed us to stay connected with a valued community partner.

Tricia Garrison is the Public Affairs and Education Manager for NEW Water, the brand of the Green Bay Metropolitan Sewerage District in Wisconsin.

13

14

N E W WAY S O F C O M M U N I C AT I N G D U R I N G A G L O B A L PA N D E M I C

The New Normal: A Virtual Certainty?

B Y S E A N J. S TO N E

|

S T. LO U I S, M O

“The new normal.” It’s a phrase you hear a lot these days. The phrasing isn’t actually new; it has been uttered literally countless times in newsrooms across the country over the past decade to describe the do-more-with-less trajectory of the news business amid declining traditional viewership. But now, “the new normal” is part of our national daily vocabulary. Here’s the cool thing, though: It doesn’t have to be bad.

T H E C L E A N WAT E R A D V O C AT E | S P R I N G 2 0 2 1

It was Spring of 2020. A few of the businesses and schools in the St. Louis region were starting to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, and MSD Project Clear was putting the first of many protective measures in place: there would be no face-toface meetings with those outside of the organization unless absolutely necessary. My phone rang. It was one of our treatment plant managers who had gotten a call from a teacher interested in bringing a class to tour one of our seven plants and see how we treat water. “I’ve got a PowerPoint presentation on the process we show at the beginning of tours, but it’s kind of dry. Wouldn’t it be cool if we had like a virtual tour or something to share with them?” she said. Finally, a pricey and time-consuming project we’d been working on for months was going to have a chance to shine.

We started with a detailed tour, led by a plant manager who was truly an expert on every step of the process and was intimately familiar with every inch of the plant. Then, we took 360-degree scans at six-foot intervals of the entire plant. Then, we added info boxes. Then, we went back again and shot video of the processes in action. Then, we wrote, re-wrote and refined a series of scripts that could paint the full picture of the treatment process 30-60 seconds at a time. We walked the fine line between technical and understandable. We did our best to blend the educational with the artistic. We made darn sure to include all the nitty-gritty nasty visuals that make us all crack a smile anytime we “take a shortcut” across the press floor when a greenhorn visits a treatment facility. When we were done, we had created more than a virtual tour of a treatment plant; we’d created a virtual experience, complete with everything except the not-so-delightful aroma of wastewater treatment (maybe one day we’ll have scratch-andsniff screens too).

In the months since, the virtual tour has been taken by people from all walks of life. Students, teachers, contractors, the curious and more. It has been presented, featured and shared at a laundry list of virtual events. It has been, by any measure, a universal success for MSD Project Clear.

We could say it was a happy accident that this project was complete and went live in the earliest days of lockdowns and shelter-at-home orders.

We could call it fortunate timing that we had a new virtual education tool at-the-ready at a time teachers and school administrators were scrambling to develop virtual curriculums on the fly. We could call it the right product for the right time. Or we can recognize that forward-thinking and a willingness to open our wallet positioned our organization for success. And that will continue to be the case in the future.

When we were done, we had created more than a virtual tour of a treatment plant; we’d created a virtual experience, complete with everything except the not-so-delightful aroma of wastewater treatment (maybe one day we’ll have scratch-andsniff screens too). tunnel that’s 200-feet underground. They will be able to see every curve, seam and chamber, learn how it works, and how it will keep waterways cleaner. This is invaluable as MSD Project Clear moves forward with some of the most ambitious and pricey clean water projects in our region’s history.

T H E C L E A N WAT E R A D V O C AT E | S P R I N G 2 0 2 1

The idea predated me. Let’s scan an entire treatment plant, inside and out, and post it on our website. Then, people can see what their rates are going toward, what we are doing, and how it is benefitting the community and the environment.

With multiple vaccines now available and more on the cusp of emergency use authorization or FDA approval, our daily lives will soon start to look and feel more normal. But the reality is there will likely be an increased emphasis on working remotely and learning remotely in the future. That is “the new normal.” And clean water agencies would be wellserved to be out in front of that trend, instead of playing catch-up and trying to muscle their way into a crowded space down the road.

Explore the Lower Meramec Treatment Plant at www.MSDProjectClear.org/VirtualTour.

Sean J. Stone is a Public Affairs Specialist for the Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District in Missouri.

Soon, MSD Project Clear will unveil its second virtual experience: The Maline Creek Tunnel. It will give our customers their first chance to really experience a 28-foot finished diameter, 3/4-mile-long storage

15

16

N E W WAY S O F C O M M U N I C AT I N G D U R I N G A G L O B A L PA N D E M I C

NEORSD Finds Virtual Success in Connecting With Employees

BY JEAN SMITH AND JOHN GONZALEZ | C L E V E L A N D, O H

‘Employees who have the ability to telework can do so immediately.’

‘All employees must remain 6ft. apart.’

T H E C L E A N WAT E R A D V O C AT E | S P R I N G 2 0 2 1

‘Face coverings are required.’

Virtual, virtual, virtual...

Early on, the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District (Sewer District) assembled COVID-19 work teams to ensure our 24/7 operation continued to protect public health and the environment in the Greater Cleveland community. This included the development of policies designed to protect employees, like the COVID-19 Employee Face Covering Policy, COVID-19 Leave Policy and Teleworking Policy. Internal communication distribution channels have included e-mail, electronic monitor postings in the plants, intranet and reverse 911 text messages, just to name a few.

‘With support of various Sewer District departments, the Communications team was able to pivot quickly and push timely and important information to employees,’ said John Gonzalez, Sewer District Manager of Communications. ‘This was very important particularly at the front of the pandemic as Governor Mike DeWine was providing new and updated guidance so frequently.’

Still, it was clear that, while there was an abundance of communications tools utilized to disseminate information, the messenger was just as important.

‘The pandemic has been difficult for many people. Work lives and home lives changed quickly. Employees who were used to coming into the office started working from home, and those working in the plants, in the field or in various office spaces were required to remain socially distant from colleagues with whom they had long worked sideby-side,’ said Gonzalez. ‘That’s why we felt it was so important for employees to hear from Sewer District leadership on a regular basis: Important updates, resources, and to know that leaders were listening to their concerns, responding to their questions, appreciating employees’ hard work.

As a result, the Sewer District

launched the bi-weekly CEO Update Video.’

The first 4-minute video launched in early April 2020 and included policy information as well as a message about the financial health of the Sewer District.

‘There were so many unknowns last April, including potential financial impacts to our operations as well as changes at home, including childcare challenges,’ said Kyle Dreyfuss-Wells, Sewer District CEO. ‘It was very important to me to communicate to employees that I was listening, and we were on this journey together. The CEO Update Videos have given me that opportunity.’

At the conclusion of each video, employees are encouraged to submit questions via a community e-mail managed by the Communications team, which are answered within 24 hours. In some cases, questions are also addressed in the upcoming CEO Update Video.

T H E C L E A N WAT E R A D V O C AT E | S P R I N G 2 0 2 1

At the beginning of 2020, it is certain no communications professional would have bet virtual interfacing and topics like a global pandemic, social distancing, and face coverings would dominate internal messaging. However, as cases of COVID19 continued to increase, including in Ohio, the seriousness of the virus and its impact to our communities was clear.

‘We’ve added information to the videos based on questions and feedback we’ve received from employees, so this communication tool has been a huge opportunity to both share information that is important but also give employees the ability to add to the content,’ said Gonzalez.

A recent addition to the CEO Update Video includes an employee focus feature. To date, three employees from Operations, Analytical Services, and Engineering & Construction have had the opportunity to speak about their work. Additional features are scheduled for future videos.

‘Employees have really enjoyed learning from their colleagues about their work,’ said Gonzalez. ‘While it is no substitute for in-person communication, it certainly gives an opportunity for employees to stay connected to each other.’

Given the positive response to the CEO Update Videos, the Sewer District’s Communications team plans to continue to use them as a standard communication tool to update employees about a variety of topics.

Jean Smith is the Senior Manager of Communications and Community Relations, and John Gonzalez is the Manager of Communications at the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District.

17

18

N E W WAY S O F C O M M U N I C AT I N G D U R I N G A G L O B A L PA N D E M I C

Virtual Classroom Presents New Educational Opportunities at Hampton Roads

BY LEILA RICE

|

V I R G I N I A B E A C H , VA

T H E C L E A N WAT E R A D V O C AT E | S P R I N G 2 0 2 1

How do you continue raising awareness and educating the communities you serve about your biggest, boldest, most innovative initiative and its many environmental benefits when in-person tours, presentations, and hands-on classroom learning activities are no longer an option?

That was the challenge the Hampton Roads Sanitation District (HRSD) communications team faced when COVID-19 restrictions sidelined all in-person tours and activities at its treatment plants and the SWIFT (Sustainable Water Initiative for Tomorrow) Research Center. The SWIFT Research Center was one of HRSD’s most frequently toured facilities, especially for middle school students. It had been open and actively recharging the Potomac aquifer for less than two years when the Pandemic hit. The facility continued to operate, replenishing the aquifer with up to one million gallons of drinking water quality SWIFT Water™ daily as scientists and student researchers gathered critical information that would inform full-scale development, but tours and post-tour enrichment activities could no longer take place.

Somehow, fact sheets, videos and PowerPoint presentations fell short as alternatives when compared to the rich, immersive experience of actually being in the SWIFT Research Center and seeing firsthand how HRSD is taking highly treated wastewater (that would otherwise be discharged to local waterways), putting it through additional rounds of advanced water treatment to bring it to

drinking water quality and using it to replenish the overdrawn Potomac aquifer – eastern Virginia’s primary groundwater source. While not a new concept nationally or internationally, indirect potable reuse is new to southeastern Virginia, so public education and awareness are especially important as the initiative shifts into full-scale development within the next year. By 2032, HRSD will be able to replenish the Potomac aquifer with up to 100 MGD of SWIFT Water™ daily, enhancing the sustainability of the region’s long-term groundwater supply and significantly reducing the amount of nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorus it discharges into regional waterways.

By 2032, HRSD will be able to replenish the Potomac aquifer with up to 100 MGD of SWIFT Water™ daily, enhancing the sustainability of the region’s long-term groundwater supply and significantly reducing the amount of nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorus it discharges into regional waterways.

T H E C L E A N WAT E R A D V O C AT E | S P R I N G 2 0 2 1

Under our new pandemic reality, HRSD’s community education and outreach specialist immediately got to work modifying existing lesson plans in the HRSD Classroom, adapting them to work with common materials that can be found at home, and creating new lesson plans for teachers to use with their students who were now attending school virtually. (Ordinarily, HRSD would supply students with all the materials needed for activities like Washing Water or building their own Amazing Aquifer – either in the SWIFT Research Center multipurpose room following a tour, or during an in-class visit.)

When considering options for continuing our SWIFT Research Center tours through a virtual platform, we needed to look no further than our own SWIFT Program Management partners at AECOM. AECOM had recently developed a robust virtual open house tool to duplicate the in-person open house experience at the click of a link. Using intuitive design, visitors can move through the virtual room, explore exhibits, and view videos and simulations at their own pace. The HRSD SWIFT Research Center Virtual Tour was developed using this technology and utilizing the exact layout and design of the actual facility, complete with interpretive kiosks providing detailed animations, explanations and interesting facts for each step of the advanced water treatment process.

Additional features of the SWIFT Virtual Tour include: •

Interpretive videos and animations across the two-story virtual facility highlighting the Potomac Aquifer, the Chesapeake Bay, and SWIFT’s eight-step advanced water treatment process

•

A life-like, self-guided virtual tour experience of the SWIFT Research Center, including close-up views of the SWIFT artifact wall and detailed illustrations of the SWIFT Recharge Well and how it works to replenish the Potomac aquifer

We look forward to resuming tours of the SWIFT Research Center, our lab and other treatment facilities in the near future, but until then, please enjoy a tour of SWIFT from the comforts of home.

To take a virtual tour of HRSD’s SWIFT Research Center, please visit SWIFTVA.com.

Leila Rice is the Director of Communications for the Hampton Roads Sanitation District in Virginia.

19

20

N AC WA / A M WA C A M PA I G N

Affordable Water, Resilient Communities

T H E C L E A N WAT E R A D V O C AT E | S P R I N G 2 0 2 1

BY KRISTINA SURFUS

In response to the urgent need for greater federal investment in clean water and drinking water infrastructure, NACWA teamed up with the Association of Metropolitan Water Agencies (AMWA) to launch the Affordable Water, Resilient Communities campaign to bring greater federal attention to this critical issue.

The Affordable Water, Resilient Communities campaign launched with three goals: establish a permanent and reliable Low-Income Water Customer Assistance Program (LIWCAP), secure much-needed wastewater infrastructure funding, and help public water utilities recover from the pandemic.

This campaign has already found success in centering the needs of the public clean water sector in Congress, with the Biden Administration, and in the national media.

While the policy proposals are complex, the underlying driver is simple: public water sector utilities support healthy, resilient communities, and local utilities and their customers have borne the increasing cost of this work without an adequate federal partner for years. The federal government needs to view utilities as true partners in community, environmental, and economic health and provide commensurate support for the utility work being done every day.

Each of the goals of the campaign are well underway. As to the first goal, NACWA is working to provide guidance and recommendations to the Department of Health and Human Services as it works to stand up federal water customer assistance provided in the December 2020 ($638 Million) and March 2021 ($500 Million) COVID-19 and Appropriations packages. NACWA is also closely engaged in the ongoing Congressional discussions

around establishing a permanent, long-term federal funding program for low-income water ratepayers.

To the second goal – increased federal investment in water infrastructure – developments are steadily building over the course of the year and as Congressional and White House attention pivots from COVID-19 relief to recovery. In February, Buffalo Sewer Authority General Manager OJ McFoy testified on behalf of NACWA on the importance of federal water infrastructure investment before the House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee. In March, DC Water Chief Operating Officer Kishia Powell testified on behalf of NACWA before the Senate Environment & Public Works Committee. NACWA was the only national association to be invited to testify at both hearings, providing NACWA’s message at a critical time. Both Committees are working to prepare legislation to authorize higher annual funding levels for key water programs and to provide a framework for an infusion of federal funding through a major, multisector infrastructure package.

The third goal of the campaign – help public water utilities recover from the pandemic and play a vital role in a strong economic recovery with reinvestment in America’s critical infrastructure – can also be directly advanced by this focus on infrastructure. NACWA’s CEO Adam Krantz emphasized recently to the press: “As we continue to look for ways to upgrade America’s infrastructure, federal investments in water must be on par with other infrastructure sectors like surface transportation. Water is the most heavily regulated of all infrastructure sectors because

Whether the goal is job creation, building back better after decades of federal under-investment, positioning communities for economic opportunity, or ensuring public health, resilience and climatereadiness, water infrastructure must be at the center of these overdue investments. Trust that the Association is working hard day in and day out – just like the water workforce does each and every day – to seize the opportunity to transform how water infrastructure and water utilities are considered, engaged, and funded at the federal level.

T H E C L E A N WAT E R A D V O C AT E | S P R I N G 2 0 2 1

While the policy proposals are complex, the underlying driver is simple: public water sector utilities support healthy, resilient communities, and local utilities and their customers have borne the increasing cost of this work without an adequate federal partner for years.

it is the most vital for protecting public health and the environment... Now is the time for the Administration and Congress to step up and help provide Americans with the 21st century water systems they deserve, create solid full-time jobs, and mitigate rising water rates to ensure more families are able to affordably access the water services that all deserve.”

As NACWA staff, we are continually impressed by not only the dedication of our membership to their communities but also to the greater good of the sector, and their interest and engagement in the NACWA community and NACWA advocacy. As utilities engage over the course of the summer, we hope that our campaign can be a resource, as well as a tool to help elevate our member utilities' local stories and voices.

The overall message to Congress and the Biden Administration is clear, straightforward, and powerful when spoken united: The federal government must reengage as a strong, longterm, cost-sharing partner in water investment in a manner that is on par with other critical infrastructure sectors. To do anything less is unconscionable given the scale of water challenges communities face and the pressure that has been placed on local communities and customers year after year.

Visit www.affordableh2o.org for campaign resources and to learn more, and join the conversation on social media by using #affordableh2o.

Kristina Surfus is Managing Director of Government Affairs at NACWA.

21

22

C O M M U N I C AT I N G W I T H R AT E PAY E R S A N D L O C A L G OV E R N M E N T

Building Community Trust Through Partnerships

T H E C L E A N WAT E R A D V O C AT E | S P R I N G 2 0 2 1

B Y M AT T S T O U D E R

|

S P R I N G F I E L D, O R

Now more than ever, it seems to be a trying time to be in the clean water business. Utilities are faced with unprecedented challenges, including increased regulatory requirements, revenue shortfalls caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, and building public awareness, understanding and trust among our constituents. At the same time, we must continue to protect community health and provide excellent customer service.

Along with our governing partners, staff working on behalf of the MWMC are advancing one of the Commission’s strategic planning objectives – building public support and effective partnerships.

To accomplish this, we have embarked on a grassroots effort with local community partners, including school districts, universities, watershed councils, drinking water utilities, local non-profits, and others.

One strategy that can help utilities overcome these challenges is working to build effective partnerships. In the Eugene-Springfield metropolitan region of Oregon’s southern Willamette Valley, the Metropolitan Wastewater Management Commission (MWMC) is doing just that. The MWMC, which was founded in 1977, is built on partnerships between the Cities of Eugene, Springfield and Lane County. The MWMC provides regional wastewater service to approximately 250,000 residents in the Eugene/Springfield metropolitan area in Oregon’s southern Willamette Valley.

One of the most effective partnership opportunities we have realized has been with the local school districts in a program affectionately dubbed “Clean Water University.” Clean Water University started in Springfield in 2011, where staff delivered a series of in-classroom lectures on the stormwater and wastewater treatment processes to 5th grade students. Class topics covered the water cycle, microbiology, pollution prevention, and wastewater treatment. At the end of the course, students “graduated” with a field trip to the MWMC’s regional wastewater treatment plant. The in-classroom curriculum was rewarding, but resource heavy to

implement. To streamline staff time, reach more students, and expand the program into Eugene, the event was shifted to the wastewater treatment plant in 2018. The new and improved program takes place over two full days (and will likely be expanding to three after the pandemic), with students from each class spending two or more hours at the plant.

Expanding Clean Water University to the wastewater treatment facility afforded additional partnerships to be developed. City stormwater staff from Eugene and Springfield were eager to participate, as were both local drinking water utilities. The overall emphasis of Clean Water University has shifted to the “One Water” concept, in recognition that all water (drinking water, wastewater and stormwater) is connected and must be managed sustainably.

The revised curriculum includes 10 different activity booths where students learn about the water cycle, along with all aspects of the One Water concept. Games like “Trash It” and “Big Bugs” allow students to learn about which items should be placed in the trash and not down the drain, as well about what types of insects are key indicators to a healthy ecosystem. The drinking water utilities discuss the importance of clean water for public health and potable water supply, and show demonstrations of how water is filtered to become safe enough to drink. The students still get to take the ever-popular wastewater plant tour to see how dirty water is cleaned before being safely returned to the Willamette River. There is even a booth that teaches students about the MWMC’s Biocycle Farm, where poplar trees are grown with recycled water and land-applied biosolids.

With all activities taking place over a two-day time period, reliance on staff to fill “volunteer” shifts has been key. Additional partnerships have been forged with public works staff from the two cities to fill the shifts, and even some of the MWMC’s Commissioners help out. In addition to the 700+ students that attend the event, teachers, chaperones and parents also participate in the program.

T H E C L E A N WAT E R A D V O C AT E | S P R I N G 2 0 2 1

Games like “Big Bugs” allow students to learn about what types of insects are key indicators to a healthy ecosystem.

Feedback from the students, teachers and community has been overwhelmingly positive.

The success of the program would not be possible without the partnerships of all involved, as well as the hard work of the MWMC’s communications team. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this year’s event was held virtually, but staff and students alike are looking forward to a return to the wastewater treatment facility next year.

More information about the MWMC’s Clean Water University program can be found on our website at, www.mwmcpartners.org/community-education/ clean-water-university/.

Matt Stouder is the Executive Officer at the Metropolitan Wastewater Management Commission in Oregon.

23

24

C O M M U N I C AT I N G W I T H R AT E PAY E R S A N D L O C A L G OV E R N M E N T

Applying Enterprise Design Thinking to Clean Water Communications

T H E C L E A N WAT E R A D V O C AT E | S P R I N G 2 0 2 1

BY JAMIE SAMONS

|

PROVIDENCE, RI

As communicators in the clean water sector, we try to bridge the gap between the technical and regulatory-driven language used by our engineers and the words our ratepayers and the general public will understand and appreciate. As NACWA and other advocacy groups have pointed out, some words work better than others when communicating and seeking public support for clean water issues.

“Wet weather event”, “biochemical oxygen demand”, and even “infrastructure” or “resiliency” can sound like technical jargon to our audiences.

Of course, part of the disconnect stems from the fact that so much of what we do in the clean water world is rarely seen by our users, and when they do see us, it’s often due to a crisis like a pipe collapse, plant failure, or combined sewer overflow.

At the Narragansett Bay Commission, we constantly ask ourselves, “How can we explain what we do in a way that has meaning for our ratepayers? For commercial fishermen? For beach-goers, boaters,

and swimmers?” In a communications landscape dominated by social media, it’s more important than ever to craft our language to be clear, concise, and meaningful. “What’s the tweet?” is a common question around the (now virtual) table. Increasingly often lately, and especially since the coronavirus pandemic has curtailed our in-person activities in our community, we have turned to the tools of Enterprise Design Thinking.

Enterprise Design Thinking (EDT), developed by IBM, is a framework to align teams and to solve users’ problems – in our case, the challenge to enable people who pay our sewer bills or are affected in any way by our operations to understand and appreciate where their rates go or why they are being disrupted. Despite its tech-y-sounding name, EDT centers outcomes around empathy for the user, whether that user is a ratepayer, a resident affected by sewer construction, or a student working on a science fair project.

The process of EDT is iterative and continuous, and includes space for failure and feedback. Ultimately, the work relies on three basic principles:

2. Everything is a prototype. Listen, learn, and course-correct.

“Fail fast and cheap” is a philosophy we don’t often pursue in clean water, and understandably so: regulatory permits, environmental responsibility, and protection of public health all hang in the balance if we fail in our mission. But, in order to evaluate the effectiveness of our communications efforts, our ability to course-correct will enhance our efficacy. For example, input from audience surveys, polls (formal or informal), and focus-groups can guide our messaging and help us fine-tune the words and channels we use to communicate.

T H E C L E A N WAT E R A D V O C AT E | S P R I N G 2 0 2 1

1. Put user needs first.

We can’t improve our users’ experience or impression of our work if we don’t have empathy for their circumstances and past experiences. When we craft a message, we ask what the ratepayer or affected person will think of it. When we determine what channels we use to disseminate the message – or even what day of the week or what time of day to use a specific channel – we consider our users’ accessibility and patterns. Do we know that more people log on to Facebook in the morning? Twitter at mid-day? We can use that knowledge to increase our availability to our users.

3. Build multi-disciplinary teams to move faster and work harder.

We can communicate neither effectively nor empathetically if we lock ourselves in our communications tower. We need the varied perspectives of our operators, customer service representatives, engineers, lawyers, and accountants. We find that each member of the team contributes unique attributes to the Narragansett Bay Commission story. EDT reminds us that stories resonate with people much more than facts and figures, so if we can find a way to tell a story about a necessary infrastructure project, that will mean much more to our users than simply relaying the percent reduction in pollutants the project will effect.

A final key concept of EDT, restless reinvention, discourages us from a “oneand-done” mentality. In the same way that the water quality in Narragansett Bay continues to improve with our clean water activities, so also must our messaging continually evolve to adjust with empathy and humility to the needs of our users. In this way, we create an ongoing feedback loop of challenges and solutions that will forge a more meaningful relationship with our community.

For more information about Enterprise Design Thinking, visit www.ibm.com/design/ thinking/page/framework.

Jamie Samons is the Public Affairs Manager at the Narragansett Bay Commission in Rhode Island.

25

26

N AC WA AWA R D S

A Golden Opportunity to Engage

BY LAURA BRIEFER

|

S A LT L A K E C I T Y , U T

The workers that comprise America’s public clean water sector are often the unsung heroes in any given community. They ensure access to water services 24 hours per day, fix service issues in the middle of the night, and when there is a sewer overflow or similar problem, they are there to fix it expeditiously.

T H E C L E A N WAT E R A D V O C AT E | S P R I N G 2 0 2 1

NACWA’s awards and recognition programs are designed to be a vehicle to lift up these unsung heroes and provide them with recognition from their colleagues and peers. Traditionally, these awards are presented at NACWA’s annual conferences throughout the year and present a worthy cause for celebration by award winners and fellow clean water employees. The awards offer a wonderful opportunity for utilities to promote their staffs’ hard work and inventive nature.

I have served on the NACWA Awards Committee for four years, and this year I have the privilege to serve as Chair. The Awards Committee is part of NACWA’s Board of Directors and is charged with reviewing applications for the Association’s multiple awards and recognition programs.

I know I speak for many of my colleagues when I say this is the most rewarding committee to serve on at NACWA because we get a national view of the amazing ways utilities across the country are elevating water in their communities. From continued excellence in meeting their National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits to the initiation of best management practices, technological innovations, and community engagement programs, NACWA members are making a positive impact, and this is our chance to acknowledge and celebrate their efforts.

NACWA’s awards and recognition programs are designed to be a vehicle to lift up these unsung heroes.

Each of NACWA’s award programs honors a different perspective on how a utility is making this contribution. Through the Peak Performance Recognition Program, utilities can share their dedication to meeting their NPDES permits and ensuring clean water. The Excellence in Management Recognition Program provides a more comprehensive acknowledgment of a utility’s dedication to being a well-run business – committed to financial feasibility, product quality, being a good employer, and steward of the environment. While the National Environmental Achievement Awards celebrate utilities’ efforts to be innovative in their operations and engagement with their community.

Moreover, these awards programs are an opportunity to share our stories with the communities we serve. As we continue to grapple with the ever present “flush it and forget it” problem and lack of acknowledgment of the work we do, we must take advantage of every chance to engage with our ratepayers and the households we serve; not just to inform them of proposed rate increases, water main breaks, or service disruptions.

Educating both the public and policymakers through positive news stories and social media posts about your contributions to public health, recreation, and the environment is crucial to being viewed as a

valued partner and resource.

Recently, we have seen an uptick in the communications efforts taken by member utilities who have won an award. By contacting local media outlets, be it newspaper, television, or digital media, utilities can meet their ratepayers on neutral ground where they will be most receptive to learning about their local utilities.

Like most Americans, I love to take pride in my local community.

Whether that means the local high school won the State Championship or a beautiful new park is built in my neighborhood, it fills me with pride and joy to be part of my community.

I would encourage all award winners to adopt this mindset and apply it to your circumstance: let your neighbors know that the clean water facility in their hometown is one of the best in the nation!

Then, take that news story and share it to your social media platforms.

Invite discussion. Explain how you came to win this award and the tangible effect this work has had on their lives. Over time, ratepayers will come to view their local public clean water facility with pride and appreciation.

I encourage you to look at the Awards section of the NACWA website, nacwa.org/awards, and participate in one of the programs listed this year.

Take this opportunity to broadcast and celebrate the great work you are doing with your colleagues and with your community.

NACWA is proud to announce the winners of this year’s National Environmental Achievement Awards. The recipients are member public agencies whose award-winning initiatives have made a remarkable impact on environmental protection, the advancement of the water sector, and the betterment of their respective communities. Please join us in celebrating their accomplishments!

OPERATIONS & ENVIRONMENTAL PERFORMANCE

Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District, WI Improving Our Neighborhood One Tree at A Time

PUBLIC INFORMATION & EDUCATION: E-MEDIA

City of Garland, TX Garland Water Utilities Story Map

Lynchburg Water Resources, VA Water Wonders

Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District, WI Water Drop Alert™

South Platte Renew, CO SPR Education and Outreach Program

Lake City Department of Public Utilities in Utah, a member of NACWA's Board of Directors, and Chair of NACWA's Awards Committee.

Great Lakes Water Authority, MI Flushables: Educating and Influencing Public’s Behavior

NEW Water, WI “Thank You, Farmers!” Video NEW Water Team

WATERSHED COLL ABORATION

Capital Region Water, PA Joint Pollutant Reduction Plan with the Paxton Creek Cooperative

Des Moines Public Works, IA Restoring Easter Lake

East Bay Municipal Utility District, CA Regional Monitoring Program for Water Quality in San Francisco Bay

South Platte Renew, CO PUBLIC INFORMATION & EDUCATION: EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM

Beaufort-Jasper Water & Sewer Authority, SC Trick or Treatment: A Guided Tour of BJWSA’s Water Reclamation Facilities

East Bay Municipal Utility District, CA EBMUD Virtual Tour Program

SPR Watershed Collaboration: SPCURE and Barr Milton

WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT

Alexandria Renew Enterprises, VA Urban Alliance Workforce Development Partnership

North Texas Municipal Water District, TX PUBLIC INFORMATION & EDUCATION: PRINTED MATERIALS

Laura Briefer is the Director of the Salt

PUBLIC INFORMATION & EDUCATION: VIDEO

City and County of Honolulu, HI Anatomy of Wastewater (Children’s Book)

Waterworks Program

The Clean Water Press N AC WA

I N

T H E

N E W S

C L E A N WAT E R C H A M P I O N S

C L E A N WAT E R S T E WA R D S

C L E A N WAT E R P R OT E C TO R S

THANK YOU TO NACWA’S 2021 SPONSORS We thank you for your many contributions to the clean water community.

C L E A N WAT E R A L L I E S

D&B Engineers and Architects, P.C.

INTERESTED IN BECOMING A SPONSOR? Contact Kindra Hemphill, Director of Marketing & Outreach khemphill@nacwa.org 202.533.1808

Do you want to have an active role in shaping the policies that will directly impact your utility?

INFLUENCE As emerging issues arise and the landscape of clean water evolves, we are all tasked with the challenge of staying proactive and primed for the uncertainty of the future. You have the power to influence the decisions and policies that will affect your utility both now and for years to come.

VOICE

FOR MORE THAN FIFTY YEARS N A C W A H A S A D V O C AT E D O N Y O U R B E H A L F, C O N S I S T E N T LY O F F E R I N G A N U N M AT C H E D R E T U R N O N I N V E S T M E N T . O U R M O S T VA L U A B L E RESOURCE IS THE COLLECTIVE I M PA C T O F O U R M E M B E R S .

NOW IS THE TIME TO ADD YO U R VO I C E .

As the only national association that solely represents public clean water agencies, NACWA is the collective voice of utilities from across the country. We advocate on your behalf to ensure regulators and lawmakers hear each utility’s perspective. Our members help shape national policy to benefit every community, including yours.

CONNECTION When you join NACWA, you are immediately connected with an unparalleled nationwide network of small, mid-size and large public utility executives to collaborate and share innovative strategies, common challenges and successful solutions.

RESOURCES

For more information on membership, contact Kelly Brocato, Sr. Director of Membership at kbrocato@nacwa.org or visit nacwa.org/membership.

NACWA’s members have access to the latest legislative, regulatory, legal, and communications expertise and analysis. We keep you informed of the significant shifts and developments in the sector, through online resources, interactive meetings and webinars presented by clean water thought-leaders and experts.