News & Events

WEF Announces 2008 State Winners of the U.S. Stockholm Junior Water Prize

The Water Environment Federation (WEF; Alexandria, Va.) has announced the 2008 state winners of the U.S. Stockholm Junior Water Prize (SJWP). WEF Member Associations selected and will sponsor state winners and their science teachers to attend the national competition, hosted by the Florida Water Environment Association, June 19–21, in Orlando, Fla. Click here for the list of winners.

The purpose of the SJWP program is to increase students’ interest in water-related issues and research and to raise awareness about global water challenges. The competition is open to projects aimed at enhancing the quality of life through improvement of water quality, water resources management, water protection, and water and wastewater treatment.

The U.S. winner will receive $3000 and an all-expense-paid trip to Stockholm, Sweden, for the international competition as well as the opportunity to present his or her research to water quality experts at WEFTEC®.08, WEF’s 81st annual technical exhibition and conference in Chicago, this October. In addition, the U.S. winner’s school will receive $1000 toward enhancing science education, and as many as three finalists will receive $1000 each.

In the United States, WEF and its Member Associations organize the national, state, and regional SJWP competitions with support from sponsors, including ITT Corp. (White Plains, N.Y.), The Coca-Cola Co. (Atlanta), and Delta Air Lines (Atlanta).

The national winner will represent the United States at the international competition in Stockholm, Sweden, during World Water Week, Aug. 17–23. The international winner will receive $5000 presented during a royal ceremony by the prize’s Patron HRH Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden.

Click here for more information about the SJWP competition.

The 2008 World Water Monitoring Day™ (WWMD) program, in partnership with Procter & Gamble (the makers of Safeguard® and Ivory®; Cincinnati), will feature a campaign to recognize the United Nations International Year of Sanitation. Beginning this spring, WWMD will distribute some 12,000 water monitoring kits, including bars of soap and a handwashing fact sheet, to people in more than 50 countries as part of its “Wash Your Hands, Save a Life” campaign.

The WWMD program, which is coordinated by the Water Environment Federation (Alexandria, Va.) and the International Water Association (London), is an international educational program designed to build public awareness and participation in water resource protection. It is expected to surpass participation records for last year, when more than 46,000 people from 43 countries tested water quality worldwide.

Using kits provided by WWMD or ordered online, participants test water quality indicators including dissolved oxygen, acidity, temperature, and turbidity. Results are reported online, tabulated, and presented in a year-end report that documents program participation. The integration of the “Wash Your Hands, Save a Life” campaign into this year’s WWMD program provides an opportunity to offer a key message about basic hygiene to people around the world. In countries where adequate sanitation systems and hygiene knowledge are lacking, this message can save lives.

The 2008 WWMD program, which runs from Sept. 18 to Oct. 18, is sponsored by the U.S. Geological Survey, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, PerkinElmer (Waltham, Mass.), ITT Corp. (White Plains, N.Y.), CH2M Hill (Englewood, Colo.) and Smithfield Foods (Norfolk, Va.).

To get involved, see www.WorldWaterMonitoringDay.org.

Parsont Joins WEFTEC® Exhibition Sales Staff
 
On June 9 Marc Parsont will be joining the Water Environment Federation (WEF; Alexandria, Va.) as the assistant director of exhibition sales, responsible for WEFTEC® exhibit and sponsorship sales in WEF’s Conferences & Exhibitions Group.
 
Parsont’s background includes 10 years at the International Association of Amusement Parks & Attractions (IAAPA; Alexandria, Va.), where was responsible for booth and sponsorship sales. In 2006 the IAAPA annual trade show was ranked No. 44, based on net paid square feet, in the Tradeshow 200 listing published by Tradeshow Week® (Los Angeles). (WEFTEC.06 ranked No. 103.)  IAAPA’s 2006 meeting featured a comparable number of exhibiting companies as WEFTEC with more than twice the net square footage.

Parsont can be reached at mparsont@wef.org or 703-684-2434.

Water Is Life, and Infrastructure Makes It Happen™ will offer a free webcast called “Leveraging Liquid Assets” June 20 at 2:00 p.m. EDT. It is Chapter 3 in a series of webinars designed to put public outreach tools in the hands of utilities for building public support of infrastructure investment. See www.WaterIsLife.net to register.

“Leveraging Liquid Assets” will preview the PBS documentary that exposes the looming crisis in water and wastewater infrastructure due to lack of investment. (It is scheduled to begin airing in the fall.) The webinar will showcase Water Is Life, and Infrastructure Makes It Happen communication strategies and the Liquid Assets toolkit to create local opportunities for multimedia promotion in order to elevate infrastructure issues to the political debate during the election season.

Promoted as the “Inconvenient Truth” for infrastructure, the PBS documentary was produced by Pennsylvania State University (State College) and sponsored by the Water Environment Association (Alexandria, Va.), National Association of Clean Water Agencies (Washington, D.C.), the American Society of Civil Engineers (Reston, Va.), and a number of other sister organizations. It features all aspects of water, wastewater, and stormwater to assess the crumbing condition of U.S. infrastructure. New York City; Pittsburgh; Herminie, Pa.; Los Angeles; Santa Monica, Calif.; Orange County, Calif; and Las Vegas are all featured in explaining a variety of issues from sustaining water resources to asset management.

For more information about the Water Is Life education initiative and how you can become involved, contact Lorraine Loken, at lloken@wef.org or 703-684-2487.

Don’t miss your opportunity to showcase your products at the exhibition. Space is very limited, and remaining spots are selling out quickly. Contact Marc Parsont at 703-684-2434 or mparsont@wef.org to reserve your space.

Registration begins June 1 for the Operations Challenge competition at WEFTEC®.08 in Chicago. This annual demonstration of excellence in wastewater operations will be limited to 40 teams. This year the process control and laboratory events will be held on Monday, Oct. 20, and the collection, safety, and Godwin maintenance events will follow on Tuesday, Oct. 21. The competition will be followed by an awards ceremony at the Sheraton Chicago Hotel & Towers.

See www.weftec.org for a registration form, or request one by sending an e-mail to opschallenge@wef.org.

The Rocky Mountain Water Environment Association’s Commode Commandos won their second Operations Challenge competition in 2007. The Commandos, of the Littleton–Englewood (Colo.) Wastewater Treatment Plant, are coached by Leonard Robb. Stacey Walker is the team’s captain, and Brian Pritekel, Caleb Vannice, and Chong Woo complete the roster. The Commode Commandos will return to defend their title.

Be part of a continuing tradition by making trophies for Operations Challenge. Combine your creative and professional skills by designing and assembling these awards that acknowledge excellence in wastewater operations. Trophy Coordinator Dale Burrow needs volunteers for the Safety, Maintenance, Laboratory, and Collections prizes. For more information, contact Burrow at 972-263-2251; or Steve Harrison at 703-684-2400, x7715, or sharrison@wef.org.

The Alexandria (Va.) Sanitation Authority (ASA) has been recognized by the National Biosolids Partnership (NBP) as the 20th wastewater agency in the nation to be certified and admitted to the partnership’s environmental management system (EMS) for biosolids program.

ASA is one of 100 wastewater agencies currently participating in the NBP EMS program, and the first wastewater agency in Virginia to be certified and admitted into the NBP EMS program. ASA’s achievement recognizes that the agency has been independently verified as having an effective biosolids environmental management system. The ASA biosolids EMS was independently verified on April 29, 2008, by the audit firm NSF International Strategic Registrations (Ann Arbor, Mich.). ASA is planning an EMS celebration in early July.

The Virginia Expert Biosolids Panel, created through a 2007 Virginia General Assembly Joint House resolution, met for the second time on April 23 as part of a series of planned meetings. The panel was created to study the impact of land application of biosolids on human health and the environment. The panel composition and charge are described here. Twenty-two individuals, with broadly distributed interests and opinions, were appointed to the panel. The directive from the Virginia General Assembly asked the panel to respond to specific questions, including:

• Are citizen-reported health symptoms associated with the land application of biosolids?
• Do odors from biosolids impact human health and well-being and property values?
• To what degree do biosolids-associated contaminants accumulate in food (plant crops and livestock)?
• To what degree do biosolids-associated contaminants affect water quality?
• What are the effects of an accumulation of biosolids-associated contaminants in wildlife?

In an attempt to respond to the specific questions asked by the General Assembly, panel members divided topics into portions that could be addressed more easily. For example, on April 23 the panel discussed the three methods (Soil Test Method, Environmental Threshold Method and Phosphorus Index) allowed by the Commonwealth for handling the challenges associated with phosphorus concentrations and agronomic rate. Some panel members felt that the allowed initial-year overapplication of biosolids using either the Threshold or Phosphorus Index methods was a prime reason for many citizen odor and health complaints. They questioned the efficacy of an initial overapplication of phosphorus that is permitted using either the Environmental Threshold Method or Phosphorus Index. Either of these methods, it was explained, can allow for application of phosphorus beyond the agronomic rate in the first year with stipulation that ensuing year applications will compensate.

As a result of the discussion on this issue, the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) was asked to gather information that would help compare the financial impact of each of the three phosphorus tests on the management of solids by the generator and applicator. DEQ also was asked to gather and provide information on two related questions concerning the percentages of organic and inorganic phosphorus as determined by the Soil Test Method and the likely variance between phosphorus levels measured at the plant versus at the application site.
    
The next meeting of the panel is scheduled for June 25 and will include a presentation on alternative solids management technology. The panel’s preliminary report is due in November 2008, with a final report planned for January 2009.

For information on the panel activities, or to contribute to the information-gathering process, contact Neil Zahradka at nrzahradka@deq.virginia.gov.

• supplement existing stormwater management approaches;
• create more hydrologically functional site designs;
• provide new tools for urban retrofit;
• reduce the overall design, construction, and maintenance costs of the stormwater management infrastructure; and
• help address larger watershed-scale goals

WERF will provide $112,000 for the development of innovative tools and training that lead to greater awareness, understanding, and use of decentralized stormwater management techniques; appropriate implementation for stormwater management; improved water quality; energy savings; and other benefits (such as aesthetics).

Proposals must be received by 5:00 p.m. (EDT) on June 20. See WERF’s Open RFPs page or contact Jane Casteline at jacasteline@werf.org for more information.


©2008 Water Environment Federation. All rights reserved.