WWEMA Window: It's Not Too Late To Innovate

By Dawn Kristof Champney, President, Water and Wastewater Equipment Manufacturers Association

At the risk of dating myself, it was 30 years ago when I attended a three-day workshop sponsored by the American Public Works Association Research Foundation to define the role of the federal government and the private sector in solving municipal environmental challenges.

While the deliberations focused primarily on the need for the private sector to step up investments in the necessary R&D, given waning support at the federal level, participants generally agreed that numerous factors made that unlikely to happen: regulatory uncertainty, lack of real market demand, “low bid” mentality on the part of the public sector, an inadequate reward system for risk taking, and long payback periods, to name a few.

Thirty years later, the players may have changed (with the exception of a few diehards) but the conversation lingers on with little progress in overcoming the barriers to introducing new technologies in the water and wastewater industry.

It is not that we have failed to progress as an industry. We have made great strides in our ability to identify and remove threats to public health and the water environment since passage of the Clean Water Act and Safe Drinking Water Act in the 1970s. What remains frustrating, though, is our inability to address the constraining factors cited above, among others, which have meant missed opportunities for bringing even greater technological advancements to tackle the emerging challenges that lie before us.

Do I sound cynical or defeated?  Trust me, working with our nation’s policymakers on Capitol Hill and in the Administration, one comes to measure progress in miniscule steps, with patience, tenacity, and steadfast optimism being one’s saving grace.  Such is the case with our industry today.

There appears to be a revival in the demand for innovation within our industry, from EPA’s call to catalyze sustainable technology innovation in its latest strategic plan and its newest approach toward integrated planning, to the creation of the Water Environment Federation’s World Water Center to accelerate adoption of innovative practices. 

Will we embrace the call for change in how we review and approve new technologies, establish mechanisms to reward risk-taking, and employ value-based procurement practices that offer long-term savings? Or will we continue to conduct business as usual and miss the opportunity to embrace the next generation of technologies that offer needed advancements to better protect and preserve our water environment?

These are among the questions we plan to address at two upcoming industry events. 

WWEMA and the U.S. Water Alliance are hosting a roundtable discussion March 4 in Washington, D.C., on “Innovating for Water’s Future.” We’ll bring together key policy makers, regulators, and industry leaders to explore how we can work together to accelerate the launch of collaborative and innovative approaches and technologies to meet the increasing demands for sustainable water resources.

Next, on June 10, at the American Water Works Association’s Annual Conference and Exhibition, WWEMA will take part in a technical session on “Overcoming Challenges to Innovation in the Water Industry.” This panel presentation will focus on the challenges and barriers to innovation and will present options for minimizing or eliminating these hurdles without adverse impact to public health.

We can’t afford to wait another 30 years to embrace change. Let’s work together to forge a new direction that rewards innovation and moves us toward a more sustainable future.