EPA Report Warns Of Critical 'Labor Shortage And Longterm Staffing Risks' Within America's Water Industry

Deemed most vulnerable, New England’s water industry works state-by-state to develop public-private partnerships to build pipeline

New England’s water industry and regional public utilities are preparing for a different kind of storm; the “silver tsunami.” With up to 50-percent of the workforce expected to retire by 2035, a recent report by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) says clean water will be put at risk without action. The report says without an adequate water workforce, there will be increased risk for water contamination, slower emergency response times, and reduced capacity to handle new contaminants, like PFAS. Across the six New England states, the average age of a water operator is 50 – seven years older than the national average – making New England’s water infrastructure most vulnerable.

“A sufficient workforce and a pipeline of candidates entering the industry is critical to protecting and preserving the clean water standards we’ve all come to expect,” said Mary Barry, Executive Director, New England Water Environment Association (NEWEA), the largest association of clean water industry professionals in the northeast. “Our operators are critical to the daily preservation of public health – without the next generation stepping into these jobs, we could experience an interruption to reliable water treatment services, which would have significant environmental implications,” Barry said.

Recognizing the severity of the impending shortage, New England municipalities, non-profits and private companies have established dozens of partnerships across the region to train and recruit people to the industry.

“The national shortage is due to the fact our industry has a branding and awareness issue – people don’t fully understand the wide variety of jobs and they are traditionally undervalued and dismissed,” said Scott Beeney, Workforce Development Leader, Veolia North America. In 2023, the Boston-based environmental and clean water company established a curriculum-based program to educate and train upper-level high school students about the industry and its employment opportunities. With successful classroom training programs in all six New England states, graduates have the training to start working immediately, with several hired immediately.

“I thought jobs in wastewater would be nasty, and I was so surprised so many jobs use chemistry and biology to protect the environment,” said 19-year-old Nolan Nanson, a graduate of the program in Stonington, Connecticut. Just one year out of high school, Nanson is a Plant Operator at a treatment facility. “I am already earning a great living and saving up to buy my first home,” Nanson said.

Chuck Lawrence, an Instructor at Upper Cape Cod Regional Technical School, says until their school rolled out the program, very few students had interest in water industry jobs. “Student response has been off the charts. Once students see that water industry jobs provide an opportunity to protect the environment, keep water clean, and build a meaningful career, they quickly develop a newfound interest,” Lawrence added.

In Massachusetts, nonprofit X-Cel Conservation Corps, recruits high school graduates and those traditionally underemployed for a specialized 14-week field and classroom training program to learn all aspects of the clean water industry jobs. Upon completion, X-Cel provides job placement stipend to assist newly employed secure reliable transportation. Over the last five years, the nonprofit has placed 79 water workers throughout Massachusetts.

In Maine state workforce rules were adjusted in 2024 to allow veterans to leverage their military experience into water industry jobs, which created opportunity to start above entry-level and advance starting salaries. Veteran Travis Peaslee, General Manager of the Lewiston Auburn Clean Water Authority (LACWA), championed the rule change, adding “the skills and discipline gained from a military career are highly transferrable to the front lines of public health.” Veteran Benjamin Pendleton, who was a Marine Science Technician in United States Coast Guard, recently leveraged the law and accepted a position within the Division of Water Quality Management saying that, “veterans possess the ability to interpret state and federal laws and understand the urgency and quick decision-making needed in emergency situations – you need those skills in the water industry.”

All six New England states have a variety of job placement and internship programs.