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NEWS
WEFTEC 2011 Attracts
Strong Crowd to Los
Angeles
A total of 16,961 water professionals
and 923 exhibiting companies from
around the world attended WEFTEC
2011, the Water Environment
Federation’s (WEF) 84th annual
Technical Exhibition and Conference,
which was held Oct. 16-19 in Los Angeles
The calm before the storm – the WEFTEC
Exhibit Hall just before the doors opened
for attendees.
The conference offered attendees
their choice of more than 900 presentations
in 114 technical sessions, 37 workshops,
eight local facility tours, as well
as several high profile events. Key sessions
and workshops featured in-depth
topics such as private sewer system
management, innovative applications
of recycled water, water infrastructure
investment, recent developments in
membrane bioreactor technology, and
improved energy efficiency for wastewater
treatment plants and processes.
Of particular interest was a highpowered
Water Leaders Session that
featured a panel of top leaders in the
water community’s consulting, finance,
and public service sectors. The group
shared their perspectives on water in
the coming decade, including some of
the anticipated challenges and innovations
in policy, governance, finance,
infrastructure, public safety and health,
technology and R&D. Moderated by
former U.S. EPA Administrator G.
Tracy Mehan III (Principal of the
Cadmus Group), the panel included
Gretchen McClain (President of ITT
Fluid and Motion Control), Laurent
Auguste (President and CEO of Veolia
Water North Americas), Dan McCarthy
(President and CEO of Black & Veatch
Water), David Gray (Managing Director
of Global Industrial Services for Credit
Suisse), and Jeff Eger (WEF Executive
Director).
Another highlight was the Utility
Executives Forum that examined the
challenges faced by utilities during this
time of economic uncertainty. Attendees
heard about the outlook for the water
sector as well as opportunities for innovation
by using new approaches to
financing, organization and technology
through firsthand accounts by venture
capitalist David Henderson (Managing
Director of XPV Capital Corp.), Richard
Fox (Chairman & CEO of Camp Dresser
& McKee) and top executives representing
three utilities from across the country,
Tim Houghton (Executive Assistant
for the City and County of Honolulu,
Hawaii), Bill Gaffi (General Manager of
Clean Water Services, Hillsboro, Ore.),
and George Hawkins (General Manager
of DC Water, Washington, D.C.).
WEFTEC 2012 is scheduled for Sept.
29 through Oct. 3 in New Orleans, La.
NAWC President of the Board Lisa Sparrow,
President and CEO of Utilities Inc., speaks at
the Water Summit.
La Jolla Hosts NAWC
Water Summit
Every day, water service companies
help provide essential water and wastewater
services to nearly 73 million
Americans. The voice of the private
water service industry is amplified by
the National Association of Water
Companies (NAWC) that successfully
hosted its annual Water Summit in La
Jolla, Calif., from Oct. 2 – 5.
NAWC’s Summit provided a forum
for more than 350 water industry professionals
to exchange ideas and share
solutions that serve customers and
make a difference for our nation as a
whole. Speakers offered a variety of
perspectives on the realities and challenges
in the water utility industry, as
they focused on the theme of Public
Service & Private Enterprise: A
Powerful Combination for Moving
Water Forward.
The audience listened to featured
water book authors Brian Fagan, Elixir:
A History of Water and Humankind;
Robert Glennon, Unquenchable:
America’s Water Crisis and What to do
About it; Steve Maxwell, The Future of
Water – A Startling Look Ahead; and
David Zetland, The End of Abundance:
Economic Solutions to Water Scarcity.
In their books, the authors discussed
how water has shaped our lives, and
will continue to do so in the future.
Karen Barnes, from The Shelton
Group, discussed how research and
social media trends suggest a shift in
water customers’ expectations and
interest in receiving water info. Barnes
outlined a few communications strategies
utilities can use to strengthen programs,
and highlighted the WaterSense
supported campaign “Wasting Water is
Weird.”
Public leaders from San Diego and
Los Angeles described how they set
objectives for water infrastructure and
service in the face of supply challenges
during the “Water is Your Business:
Local Leaders on Building
Partnerships” session. Maureen
Stapleton, General Manager, San
Diego County Water Authority, shared
her beliefs on working with the private
sector to achieve goals. Other summit
highlights included two panels focused
on financial perspectives on regulation
and its impact on access to capital, a
panel dedicated to leadership in the
workplace, a professor who spoke
about California’s water challenges,
and Ned Breslin, CEO, Water For
People, who emphasized today’s urgency
to solve global safe water issues.
Eric Thornburg, President and CEO,
Connecticut Water, ceremoniously
passed the gavel to the new NAWC
12 Water Utility Infrastructure Management
November/December 2011