Rates & Affordability

Various customer assistance programs (CAPs) — including key areas for consideration associated with program design — can be explored by utility managers to help mitigate the impact on customers struggling to afford the cost of water utility services.

Water Utility Infrastructure Management (UIM) is pleased to announce that Steve Maxwell has joined its editorial board. Maxwell is Managing Director of TechKNOWLEDGEy Strategic Group, based in Boulder, Colo.

Aclara, a leader in Intelligent Infrastructure technologies part of the Utility Solutions Group of ESCO Technologies Inc., announced that the Toho Water Authority, Kissimmee, Fla., has chosen the STAR Network advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) system for a phased deployment, beginning with a 5,100-meter pilot.

Attendees to the Plastic Pipes XV Conference, Sept. 20-22, 2010 in Vancouver, B.C., Canada will now have more sessions available than at previous conferences.

The Water Environment Research Foundation (WERF) will receive $10 million in U.S Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) funds to evaluate new technologies that will help utilities cope with aging and failing water and wastewater systems.

Jerry Stevens, vowing to ?convert the brain drain into the brain power of young professionals,? was elected as AWWA?s next president-elect Jan. 18 during the winter meeting of the association?s Board of Directors.

The National Association of Water Companies (NAWC) announced that Charles Firlotte, president and chief executive officer of Aquarion Co., has been named president of the NAWC board of directors.

The Metro Wastewater Reclamation District has selected HDR to perform a sustainability study for its proposed 20-24 million-gallon-per-day Northern Treatment Plant, which is to be located just north of Brighton along the South Platte River.

Bill Shook (right) of AP/M Permaform talks to UIM Publisher Bernie Krzys at the UIM Conference December 15, 2009, at IUPUI in Indianapolis.

Perhaps a kind of infrastructure tipping point has finally been reached ? one sparked by a number of highly visible incidents including a bridge collapse, a steam pipeline explosion, a major water pipe break less than 15 miles from the White House, and another dismal report card from the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE).