Featured Video: Lime Softening Techniques for Water Operators

Hello, and Happy Friday! After the longer water treatment video last week, here is a little water treatment bite. In this 2-minute AWWA video, Fred Bloetscher briefly describes the process for adding lime to the reactor at a large drinking water treatment plant. He also demonstrates how quickly the lime reaction works to clarify the water.

For more on lime softening topics, visit our document database and type "lime softening" (without the quote marks) into the keyword filter, then click Retrieve Documents.

Featured Video: Direct and Conventional Filtration

A new year is often a time of reflection, re-focusing, and a return to the basics. Even if you're not someone who believes in New Years' resolutions, the turn of the calendar year can still be a great time to consider the big picture and the details in it that are important to you. If you have a little time now that the holidays are over, this can also be a great time to brush up on your drinking water treatment knowledge. This 23-minute video is a walkthrough of a direct filtration plant, but it's a lot more than that. Ty Whitman of The Water Sifu explains each treatment step in detail while providing video of the flash mix process, flocculation basins, gravity filters, backwashing, and the spent washwater reclamation process. He also discusses the differences between the direct filtration processes he's demonstrating and conventional filtration.

For more in-depth instruction on drinking water topics, visit our training event calendar and search by your state to see training offered near you.

Featured Video: Safe Drinking Water Act Anniversary

As December draws to a close, let's take a moment to commemorate the passing of the Safe Drinking Water Act 42 years ago, in December of 1974. For the fortieth anniversary, the Minnesota Department of Health released this video. The reminiscences on this landmark legislation include interview excerpts with former Vice President Walter Mondale (a Minnesota native) who was part of the Senate that passed the bill.

As we get ready to begin a new year, it's worth remembering how much public water utilities have accomplished in their vital work protecting public health. Though they may sometimes feel invisible, your efforts help protect the health and well-being of the people in your communities. Whatever else this past year might have brought you, that is certainly a reason to celebrate this New Year's Eve.

Featured Video: Use of Davidson Pie

What's a holiday season without a little pie? The Davidson Pie might not be very tasty, but it can help you work math problems assisting with chemical addition and process control at both water and wastewater utilities. This 3-minute video explains the construction of the pie and works an example problem using it.

For more water and wastewater math help, search our document database using the "Certification/Exam Prep" category filter and the word "math" (without the quote marks) in the keyword filter.

Featured Video: Will It Flush?

With the holidays coming up, a lot of your customers may be getting particularly creative with their flushing activities. After all, for a lot of us the holidays mean a lot of hectic activity and a house full of guests. When the house is full, the trash is full, and the bathroom's getting worked overtime, sometimes standards can relax a bit. And who can blame them? A lot of products do say "flushable," right there on the label.

If you think your customers could use some extra information on how several commonly-flushed products actually behave once they're out of sight, this video might help. In it, Pre-Treatment Technician Tracy Stevens from the City of Spokane Department of Wastewater Management uses a jar test setup to demonstrate the dangers to sewers and wastewater pumps posed by facial tissues, flushable wipes, dental floss, Q-Tips, feminine hygiene products, and flushable kitty litter. If you need to give someone a refresher on the flushable, this video could be a great place to start.

For more on utilities' efforts to fight flushables and fatbergs, search "flushable" (without the quote marks) in the keyword filter box of our document database. The City of Portland also has a list of items not to flush or put down your sink:

• disposable diapers
• tampons and tampon applicators
• sanitary napkins
• cotton balls and swabs
• mini or maxi pads
• condoms
• cleaning wipes of any kind
• facial tissue
• bandages and bandage wrappings
• automotive fluids
• paint, solvents, sealants and thinners
• poisons and hazardous waste
• cooking grease 

Tribal Utility News Subscribers Give Us Insight into Tribal System Needs

My Problems Are Your Problems

While there are unique challenges facing tribal utilities, some of the common themes from the survey results address challenges faced by small utilities all over the country. Many small systems struggle to find and keep certified operators, raise the money to keep the system going, and keep the board engaged with the utility’s needs and responsibilities. While the specific ways in which those challenges crop up may be specific to tribes, a lot of resources intended for small rural systems could be helpful to tribal utilities as well.

Tribal Challenges

That said, tribal systems also face unique challenges related to sovereignty, government, federal support, and tribal issues and attitudes.

Remoteness and Isolation
Survey respondents mentioned that some tribal systems may not recognize that there are opportunities to cooperate or reach compromises with nearby non-tribal systems. In some cases, non-tribal water utilities might provide support that’s more conveniently located than tribe-specific assistance providers in the region. On the flip side, some tribes are in such secluded areas that they may be inaccessible to state and county support. And some tribes may wish to work with state entities but be facing other roadblocks.

Support From Tribal Government
As with many small rural utilities, tribal utilities sometimes struggle to get meaningful support from those in charge. Sometimes the tribal government doesn’t understand the need for qualified operators to run the system. Sometimes the tribal council doesn’t want to get involved in the utility at all, or ends up using utility job appointments for political patronage. Sometimes there just isn’t interest in water and wastewater issues.

One possible solution to these challenges was mentioned by a few survey respondents: utility boards. For most tribes, the water utility is under the direct control of the tribal council. Creating a separate water board allows the tribal council to focus on other governance issues while still ensuring that the utility receives guidance and oversight.

Dependence on Federal Entities
Some tribes don’t want to take ownership of their utilities, preferring to rely on federal support. Other tribes may want to be engaged, but find themselves dependent on slow-moving federal bureaucracy and assistance.

Tribal Issues and Attitudes
A number of factors related to the broader culture and conditions on the reservation could affect the performance of a tribal utility. Reservations with high unemployment might see their newly trained operators leave the utility for a better-paying job elsewhere. Sometimes there is resistance to working with non-tribal systems or working with outside entities to deal with problems or repairs. Some tribes may have restrictions in place that make it difficult for non-tribal operators to find someplace to live on the reservation. And finally, as with any small community, sometimes tribal politics affect the utility’s operation and management.

Tribal Education Needs and Resources Follow From These Challenges

Help is Out There

You're Not Alone

Tribal Resources from WaterOperator.org and USEPA

At WaterOperator.org we recognize that small tribally-owned and operated public water systems often face unique challenges, beyond what impacts other small and rural communities. Because of this, we have created a number of ways to find information that is specific to tribes. This video provides an overview of our document and event databases, tribal newsletter, tribal assistance provider list, and the tribal contact manager.

For tribal drinking water systems:

• Building Water System Capacity: a Guide for Tribal Administrators
• Lead and Copper Rule Minor Revisions: Fact Sheet for Tribal Water System Owners and Operators
• Preventive Maintenance Tasks for Tribal Drinking Water Systems: Guide Booklet

For tribal wastewater systems:

• Primer for Municipal Wastewater Treatment Systems
• Tribal Management of Onsite Wastewater Treatment Systems

And for tribes concerned about protecting their source water:

• Drinking Water Quality in Indian Country: Protecting Your Sources

Check out the video for more on the resources we collect and offer, and if there’s a tribal resource you think we really need to know about, tell us in the comments!

Starting Off on the Right Foot: Basic Seasonal System Startup

As summer draws near a lot of small, seasonal water system operators are showing up, blowing off the cobwebs, and getting the show on the road. Every state has slightly different regulations and requirements for small system startup, and it’s important to know what your state requires. The Revised Total Coliform Rule requires seasonal systems to certify that they've completed state-approved startup and sampling procedures, so be sure to check anything we say here against your state's guidance. Having said that, it doesn't hurt to have a few reminders as you work through your startup routine. Here, we summarize the most common considerations for small seasonal system startup.

ILWARN Offers Emergency Assistance for Small Systems

Small Utility Support

ILWARN is working to get the word out that the mutual aid assistance services they offer can be just as useful to small systems as they are to large ones. Their small systems flyer provides lots of introductory information, FAQs, and mythbusting on their resources and membership requirements. It’s worth noting here that there is no registration fee to join ILWARN, there are no size restriction, that members will be reimbursed for their assistance, and that no member is required to offer assistance. Pre-existing local agreements are not affected by ILWARN membership. Utilities wanting a more detailed idea of how ILWARN membership works might also want to check out the Operational Plan, which has resource sections for before, during, and after an emergency. 

A Helping Hand in the Signup Process

If you’re convinced ILWARN is a solid resource for your utility, there are more resources to help you get started. ILWARN has provided step-by-step guides to completing your registration with their website, requesting and offering assistance through the website, and requesting and offering assistance when the internet isn’t available or an emergency occurs after hours. And of course, you need to sign the mutual aid agreement and turn it in before you can participate in ILWARN assistance requests. 

Small utilities face lots of challenges, but you don’t have to face them alone. Statewide mutual aid agreements help get as many people as possible in your corner when the chips are down. If your utility isn’t in Illinois but you’re interested in WARNs in your area, you can learn more about the WARN regions here.

Free Board Training Offered for Missouri Utilities

Being on the board at your water utility can be a daunting task. Many small water utilities face a host of managerial challenges, including inadequate revenue, deteriorating infrastructure, and difficulty finding and securing a qualified operator. In addition, small towns can make conflict of interest cases and other infringements on board ethics difficult to avoid. In recognition of these challenges, many TA providers around the country have started offering board training and support in addition to their operator resources. One organization offering free training for boards and councils in their state is Missouri Rural Water Association.

MRWA is offering free 2-hour evening trainings for water boards and councils designed to be presented during or prior to a regularly scheduled board/council meeting. These trainings cover two to three management topics from a list including board/council member responsibilities; how to conduct an effective meeting; Sunshine Law; water system basics; utility rates and finances; conflict of interest/ethics; project financing; and asset management. In addition to these short trainings, MRWA will also offer 1-day, 6-hour courses intended to satisfy the requirements for water district board members to receive attendance fees for board meetings a per RSMo 247.

If your water utility board or council in the state of Missouri would like to schedule a MRWA training session, please contact Liz Grove at 573-231-6797 or by email.

If you think your board would benefit from management training but you don’t live in Missouri, you have a few options. You can check out our event calendar, and filter by your state and one of our management categories (Asset Management, Financial Management, or Utility Management). Or you can check with the TA providers in your area, including the state Rural Water Association and your RCAP region.