Thirty-two water utilities are being recognized for their leadership in community engagement, watershed stewardship and recovery of resources such as water, energy and nutrients.
The Utility of the Future Today recognition celebrates the achievements of forward-thinking, innovative water utilities that are providing resilient, value-added service to communities. The Utility of the Future framework provides a model for utilities of all sizes to achieve more efficient operations, enhanced productivity, and long-term sustainability.
The recognition program component, Utility of the Future Today, was launched in 2016 by four water sector organizations — the National Association of Clean Water Agencies (NACWA), the Water Environment Federation (WEF), The Water Research Foundation (WRF) and WateReuse, with input from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
The Utility of the Future concept is being promoted as water systems around the world are transforming operations through innovation and technology. The 32 utilities recognized this year are recovering resources from wastewater, engaging in their community, forming unique partnerships, and building an internal culture of innovation.
“It is great to see the ways utilities are using innovation,” says WRF CEO Rob Renner. “WRF and partners are thrilled to continue supporting utilities that are using innovation to better serve their communities.”
The following utilities are recognized for the first time:
• Beckley (West Virginia) Sanitary Board
• Benton Harbor St. Joseph (Michigan) Joint Wastewater Treatment Plant
• Carroll County (Maryland) Water Resources Coordination Council
• City of Detroit (Michigan) Water and Sewerage Department
• City of Grandville (Michigan) Clean Water Plant
• City of Tallahassee (Florida)
• City of Wooster (Ohio)
• Delta Diablo (Antioch, Ohio)
• Evesham Municipal Utilities Authority (Marlton, New Jersey)
• Fort Wayne (Indiana) City Utilities
• Great Lakes Water Authority (Michigan)
• Houston (Texas) Water
• Kenosha (Wisconsin) Water Utility
• Lafayette (Indiana) Renew
• Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (Boston)
• Metro Wastewater Reclamation District (Denver)
• Napa (California) Sanitation District
• Queensland (Australia) Urban Utilities
• Region of Waterloo (Ontario, Canada)
• Renewable Water Resources (Greenville, South Carolina)
• Spokane County (Washington) Environmental Services
• Toho Water Authority (Kissimmee, Florida)
• Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission (Laurel, Maryland)
• Water Environment Services (Oregon City, Oregon)
• Western Monmouth Utilities Authority (Manalapan, New Jersey)
• Western Virginia Water Authority (Roanoke, Virgina)
These utilities are recognized for a second year but for a new area of performance:
• Charlotte (North Carolina) Water
• Clean Water Services (Portland, Oregon)
• Columbus (Georgia) Water Works
• St. Cloud (Minnesota) Public Utilities
These utilities are being recognized for a third year and in a new area of performance:
• City of Fayetteville (Arkansas)
• DC Water (District of Columbia)
Honorees will be recognized during an awards ceremony at WEFTEC 2018 this October in New Orleans. To learn more, visit https://www.wef.org/utility-of-the-future or contact UtilityRecognition@wef.org.
