August 2014
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Thirty-six years ago I joined a fledgling organization called the Association of Metropolitan Sewerage Agencies (AMSA). Though small, it had a bold mission to help ensure the success of the Clean Water Act and, by doing so, bring about profound benefits for the economy, the environment, and the public. As the years passed, it became clear that the utilities AMSA represented were not “sewerage agencies” they were “clean water agencies” – cleaning up the world’s most vital resource, water. And so out of AMSA, the National Association of Clean Water Agencies (NACWA) was born.

As I reflect upon my decades leading this great organization, I do so with an immense sense of pride in what we have accomplished together. And as I embark upon my last year as Executive Director, I want to share, through these monthly emails, some parting thoughts regarding the water sector and how I believe NACWA can build on its unmatched record of achievement in the clean water advocacy arena.

Last month at NACWA’s Summer Conference in Portland, I shared my vision for the Association for the next year and beyond. I have included an updated version of that PowerPoint presentation for your information and review.

As the presentation underscores, it is working for this group of true environmentalists — whose vital work often goes unheralded — that means the most to me. NACWA has been your voice and, as the Association prepares to celebrate its 45th anniversary, I believe we have made tremendous progress in changing the clean water paradigm. Today, policymakers, the public, and even NGO groups who once might have jeered at the thought of collaborating with us, see you as environmentalists, protectors of public health, resource recovery facilities, and defenders of the world’s most important natural resource – water!

This has been achieved primarily because of one great asset – NACWA’s culture. It is a culture that is steeped in the character of its members: dedication; service; loyalty; a sense of being part of a great family; and, underlying it all, a results-driven mindset based on a vital sense of mission.

These cultural values have led to NACWA’s record of achievement on a range of advocacy issues that have saved or yielded hundreds of billions of dollars. The return on your investment in our Association is remarkable. These achievements, to name but a few, have included: pretreatment streamlining; a reasonable national combined sewer overflow policy; six billion dollars in funding for clean and safe water in the stimulus package; integrated planning and affordability frameworks; and, most recently, the expansion of additional subsidization eligibilities for the clean water state revolving (CWSRF) – as well as an expansion from 20 to 30 year CWSRF loan repayment periods.

I am proud of these achievements. But I am even prouder of the achievements of you, our members. The leaders of our sector far too often complain about how water infrastructure is “out of sight and out of mind”. If we are out of sight or out of mind, however, it is because of the unmatched success of NACWA’s public clean water agency leadership. Now is the time to be seen and we should shout our achievements from the rooftops to all who will listen. Everyone across this country can bathe their children, drink from their taps, flush their toilets, go to the beach, and virtually never have to worry about it. This is because of the incredible work you are all doing on a daily basis. Going forward, it is imperative that we abandon negativity and proactively shape perception.

As far as I am concerned your work is not “out of mind”. Instead your work provides an unequalled and inestimable “peace of mind”. This peace of mind constitutes the true value of water. This peace of mind constitutes the true power of water. This peace of mind is why I salute you and thank you for the opportunity over the past decades to help lead this organization.

I look forward to this upcoming year and, as always, to building upon the most important collaboration I know – NACWA’s collaboration with its membership. Because of this collaboration I have the peace of mind that comes with knowing we can overcome any challenge that may confront us — together.