Jeff Mosher Selected As 2017 WateReuse Person Of The Year

Alexandria, VA - The National Water Research Institute (NWRI), Orange County Water District (OCWD), and Water Environment & Reuse Foundation (WE&RF) are pleased to announce that Jeffrey J. Mosher, Chief Research Officer at WE&RF, was selected as the 2017 WateReuse Person of the Year for his outstanding leadership in advancing vital research and addressing significant challenges in the field of water reuse, particularly potable reuse. Mosher received the award on September 12, 2017, at the 32^nd Annual WateReuse Symposium in Phoenix, Arizona.

“Receiving the WateReuse Person of the Year Award is a significant honor,” said Mosher. “It is only possible because I have had the great fortune of working with some of the most dedicated colleagues and coworkers in the water reuse community and some of the most inspired and impactful projects to provide safe, sustainable sources of water.”

At WE&RF, Mosher manages a multi-million-dollar portfolio of trailblazing research on water supply, resource recovery, and the beneficial use of wastewater, recycled water, and stormwater. Recently, he helped WE&RF secure a $4.5-million grant from the California State Water Resources Control Board (State Water Board) to support research in water reuse. This grant will be leveraged with additional funding to focus on research that will help communities nationwide interested in developing potable reuse regulations or implementing such projects.

Prior to joining WE&RF in 2016, Mosher served as Executive Director of NWRI for 11 years. During that time, he worked with innovative projects on potable reuse all across the country, including projects in California, Texas, Washington, Virginia, Arizona, Nevada, and New Mexico. He also took the lead in developing the Framework for Direct Potable Reuse, a first-of-its-kind publication designed to help state regulators and utilities implement projects for safely converting wastewater into drinking water through potable reuse. 

A high point of Mosher’s career at NWRI – and the reason he was nominated for the WateReuse Award – was his extraordinary leadership in managing a multi-year effort to oversee an expert panel that provided advice to the State of California on developing regulations for potable reuse. The final product, a 380-page document titled Expert Panel Final Report: Evaluation of the Feasibility of Developing Uniform Water Recycling Criteria for Direct Potable Reuse, was submitted to the State Water Board in 2016. This effort received unprecedented support from the water reuse industry, including a $24-million research program initiated by WE&RF and WateReuse California to investigate approaches and challenges related to potable reuse. The outcome was the initiation of a process to develop regulations in California in tandem with investigating research areas identified by the expert panel as imperative to address.

Mosher was nominated for the award by NWRI, OCWD, and George Tchobanoglous, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus of the University of California, Davis. “Jeff has played a key role in the implementation of the most progressive, forward-thinking water reuse projects and activities throughout the nation,” said Tchobanoglous, a water reuse expert and author of numerous publications on potable reuse. “He embodies the spirit of the WateReuse Person of the Year Award.”

“OCWD uses two NWRI panels to guide the water quality monitoring program for the Santa Ana River water and review the operations of a large potable reuse project,” said OCWD Assistant General Manager Mike Wehner. “Under Jeff’s leadership, information from these panels helped foster global support and credibility for water reuse projects.”

More information about the WateReuse Person of the Year award can be found at https://watereuse.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/2017-Award-Descriptions.pdf.

The National Water Research Institute (NWRI) was founded in 1991 by a group of Southern California water agencies to promote the protection, maintenance, and restoration of water supplies and to protect the freshwater and marine environments through the development of cooperative research work. NWRI’s member agencies include Inland Empire Utilities Agency, Irvine Ranch Water District, Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, Orange County Sanitation District, Orange County Water District, and West Basin Municipal Water District.  Please visit www.nwri-usa.org for more information.

The Orange County Water District is committed to enhancing Orange County’s groundwater quality and reliability in an environmentally friendly and economical manner. The following cities rely on the groundwater basin, managed by OCWD, to provide 75 percent of their water demands: Anaheim, Buena Park, Costa Mesa, Cypress, Fountain Valley, Fullerton, Garden Grove, Huntington Beach, Irvine, La Palma, Los Alamitos, Newport Beach, Orange, Placentia, Santa Ana, Seal Beach, Stanton, Tustin, Villa Park, Westminster and Yorba Linda.

The Water Environment & Reuse Foundation, a 501c3 non-profit organization, funds research, pilot projects, and technology demonstrations that maximize the value of water, including wastewater, stormwater, and other water sources. WE&RF is recognized worldwide as a trusted source of innovation and peer-reviewed research in wastewater, water reuse, and resource recovery.