Water organizations looking to reduce costs of projects

In a statement to the U.S. Senate Subcommittee on the Water and Wildlife, three of the nation's leading water organizations advocated for the enactment of a Water Infrastructure and Innovations Act (WIFIA) to reduce the costs of critical water infrastructure projects. In the statement, the American Water Works Association (AWWA), the Association of Metropolitan Water Agencies (AMWA) and the Water Environment Federation (WEF) also urged the continuing and strong federal support of existing State Revolving Fund (SRF) programs, which provide low interest loans for water projects and would be supported in part by the proposed WIFIA program.

Augusta County awarded for protecting potential drinking water sources

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has awarded two prestigious awards to the Augusta County Service Authority, in Augusta County, Va. The county was awarded the Source Water Protection Award for protecting existing and potential drinking water sources and the PISCES award, recognizing leadership and innovation in utilizing clean water infrastructure funds.

Drinking Water Week 2012 scheduled for May 6-12

Materials for Drinking Water Week 2012 are now available to be downloaded on the American Water Works Association (AWWA) website. The one week celebration will take place from May 6-12 and the theme of this year's event will be "Water. Celebrate the Essential." This year's event will have all the same great events from last year and will also feature a video contest and a chance for coloring contest submittals, which will be part of AWWA's 2013 Drinking Water Week print ads.

Iowa's water quality standards approved by the EPA

EPA has approved the Iowa Department of Natural Resources' (IDNR) designated use changes for 430 water bodies and disapproved proposed changes for 89 water bodies. Designated uses describe the achievable recreational activities and aquatic life uses for Iowa's waters. IDNR submitted these new and revised Iowa surface water quality standards to EPA for review and approval, as required by the Clean Water Act.

Navy planning to build water facility to improve drinking water

The U.S. Navy has plans to build a new water facility inside the Levittown School District to help improve drinking water in the area. A "moderate-sized building that will hold water filtering equipment," has been proposed by the Navy Facilities Engineering Command Mid-Atlantic. The plan involves the installation of two water filters before the construction phase of a permanent building.

Treatment plant workers earn 15 minutes of fame on TV show

A group of workers from the Moorhead Water Treatment Plant got together to watch the popular Discover Channel show "Dirty Jobs" as they were highlighted in a recent episode. The show takes a deeper look at some of the dirtiest jobs in the world and workers got to prove why they have one of the most difficult jobs in the country. The host of the show, Mike Rowe, performed maintenance work on the plant's water softening basin, which provides drinking water to Moorhead and Dilworth.

PEOPLE

• Pelican Water Systems, the Deland, Fla.-based industry leading manufacturer and distributor of premium water filtration products and salt-free technology, announced the addition of Justin Barker as vice president of business development. He will be responsible for leading their new worldwide marketing and distributor network. Prior to assuming this new position, Barker spent the previous 15 years in the pharmaceutical industry.

• Joseph "Augie" Guardino, general manager of Guardino Well Drilling Inc. in Morgan Hill, Calif. and Brian Lane, CPI, operations manager of Joe Samples Well Drilling Inc., in White Pine, Ten. were elected to the National Ground Water Association Board of Directors. Guardino was reelected to a second two-year board term at the 2011 NGWA Ground Water Expo and Annual Meeting.