Articles by: Contributing Author

By Jonathan Blackwell I have been a fan of Formula 1 dating back to my childhood, when the teams utilized 700+ hp V-10 engines that would produce the most beautiful sound as they revved to an astonishing 13,000 rpms on the straightaways. The times, andRead More

By Ryan Sitton At the beginning of this year, an unprecedented freeze hit the southern part of the United States. The state of Texas, which has its own, self-contained energy grid, saw power outages that it had never experienced. At one point, nearly six millionRead More

Water system providers across the United States have joined a multidistrict litigation (MDL) suit claiming that their water supplies are contaminated with per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) from aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF). These chemicals have been used for decades to extinguish chemical or petroleum firesRead More

By Kyle Stevens Climate change is a pressing issue for local governments. The unpredictable nature of storm events and sea level rise has put a strain on already aging stormwater infrastructure, requiring huge investments to address the problem. Paying for these investments should not relyRead More

By Teno A. West & Jillian Jagling A method for public water system asset preservation is a multi-pronged approach, backed by the goal of ensuring that the assets are returned to the owner in good condition, working order and repair, such that the owner isRead More

By Harold Mosley A car struck a fire hydrant in the middle of the night in California, creating a massive water leak. Even before first responders were notified, a pressure sensor sent a text alert to the water utility manager, who was able to dispatchRead More

Editor’s Note: This article is a follow-up to a piece in the April issue discussing how innovative features of the WIFIA program can help expand SRF loan capacity. By Katy Hansen, Sridhar Vedachalam & John Ryan In 2008, Iowa state lawmakers were determined to financeRead More

By Mark T. Hessel   Property insurance coverage for water and wastewater utilities can present many challenges – for insurer and insured, alike. Accurate coverage begins with proper recording and valuation of the underlying exposures; however, property typically found in utility operations can be difficultRead More

By Will Sarni It is estimated that currently 844 million people live without clean water, and 2.3 billion people do not have access to basic sanitation, according to water.org. Water scarcity affects more than 40 percent of the world’s population, and this figure is projectedRead More

Building a Smarter Water System through More than Metering By Andrew Chastain-Howley Advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) is a star attraction in the world of metering. Utility managers who hope for greater accountability and efficiency in customer billing may see it as a panacea. Although AMIRead More