ch2m-hill

81. The Retirement Cliff Is Here. Your Analyzers Shouldn't Need A 30-Year Operator. 7/17/2026

    Widespread industry retirements and staffing shortages threaten operational continuity. Adopting low-maintenance, self-calibrating monitoring technology reduces reliance on specialized manual upkeep while establishing automated digital historical records that protect critical operational knowledge through workforce transitions.

82. The Sites You Gave Up On: Monitoring Where There's No Drain 7/17/2026

    Drainage constraints often prevent continuous water quality monitoring at remote tanks, dead-end mains, and critical distribution junctions. Adopting waste-free sensing technology removes plumbing barriers, enabling utilities to close coverage gaps and protect water quality across isolated network sites.

83. Stop Flushing Blind: Using Residual Data To Cut Flushing Volumes 7/17/2026

    Calendar-based flushing programs dump treated water unnecessarily across entire distribution systems. Integrating continuous residual monitoring at vulnerable locations enables data-driven flushing, allowing operators to target only low-residual segments, reduce water loss, and create clear compliance records.

84. Compliance Monitoring Without The Lab Runs: The EPA Method 334.0 Math 7/17/2026

    Manual grab sampling for chlorine residual compliance burdens operators with excessive drive time and laboratory costs. Adopting continuous, certified online monitoring satisfies regulatory reporting requirements while freeing technical staff for higher-priority operational tasks.

85. Kill The Service Contract: What Happens When A Sensor Maintains Itself 7/17/2026

    Annual equipment service contracts are often treated as fixed costs, yet they largely exist to support high-maintenance hardware. Adopting self-maintaining technology allows utilities to eliminate routine service agreements and pivot to a cost-effective shelf-spare strategy.

86. Modernizing Water Distribution Systems With Advanced Metering Infrastructure 7/17/2026

    The use of smart water meter systems or AMI has emerged as the vital element in a water network upgrade program, using two-way communications to relay near-real-time information on water usage, pressure variations, leak events, and usage patterns between smart meters and the utility.

87. Building The Augmented Operator: A Manager's Guide To Training For AI-Powered Utility 7/15/2026
    As water and wastewater utilities expand SCADA, advanced analytics, and AI, managers must prepare operators to turn those signals into reliable operational decisions. The goal is not to replace certified professionals but to build an augmented workforce that can supervise automation, question model outputs, and protect treatment performance under changing plant conditions.
88. How Municipalities Can Modernize Aging Wastewater Infrastructure Without Disrupting Service 7/15/2026
    Municipal wastewater systems age under constant pressure, yet communities still need and expect reliable service every hour of the day. With careful planning, phased work, trenchless methods, smart monitoring, and stronger asset management, municipalities can upgrade critical infrastructure while keeping homes, businesses, and public facilities running safely, efficiently, and predictably throughout the process.
89. America's Water Infrastructure Reckoning Has Arrived 7/14/2026

    Local governments across the country are confronting a reality that can no longer be ignored: a significant portion of America’s water infrastructure has reached or exceeded its intended lifespan.

90. Geomembrane Liner Selection For Municipal Wastewater Lagoons: HDPE vs. LLDPE vs. RPP — A Field Installer's Perspective 7/14/2026

    High-density polyethylene (HDPE), linear low-density polyethylene (LLDPE), and reinforced polypropylene (RPP), among other materials, all show up on municipal wastewater and manure lagoon liner projects. Each of these lagoon liners has a place, and the differences aren't just chemistry on a datasheet; they show up physically on site.