In this episode Talking Under Water co-host Bob Crossen speaks with Natalie Sierra, technical market leader for wastewater utilities at Brown and Caldwell, and Manon Fisher, utility strategy and performance consultant at Brown and Caldwell, about the growing trend of regional water and wastewater authorities.

Utilities across the country are increasingly joining forces to tackle aging infrastructure, workforce shortages, and rising costs that are hard to solve alone. Sierra and Fisher explain how tightening regulations, PFAS-related limits on biosolids land application, and affordability concerns are pushing utilities to share costs and risks, and how a new regional authority can set its own rates and take on debt. They also highlight practical applications beyond infrastructure, from shared IT and cybersecurity staff to bulk chemical purchasing.

Then the conversation turns to the biggest hurdle: governance. As the guests explain, the engineering is often the easier part, while questions of who decides, who pays, and who carries risk are institutional and interpersonal. Regions with existing interlocal agreements, such as Northern Virginia, tend to have an easier time.

They also discuss how regionalization is changing the role of consulting firms and why they expect collaboration, not consolidation, to define the future as experienced professionals retire.

WWD State of the Industry survey

WW State of the Industry survey

Submit a Stormcon abstract

00:00 – Introduction 02:21 – Why regionalization is growing 05:37 – Why utilities want in 07:58 – Beyond infrastructure: IT, cybersecurity, and bulk buying 09:20 – The governance challenge 15:25 – Where regionalization goes next 19:49 – Housekeeping

About the Podcast

Talking Under Water is the premier podcast for the water industry, including municipal water and wastewater, residential water treatment, storm water management and erosion control. It is produced in coordination between Wastewater Digest (WWD), WaterWorld and Stormwater Solutions (SWS). The podcast covers topics under the One Water movement including the municipal and industrial water and wastewater, residential, stormwater and erosion control markets. Talking Under Water highlights news, trends, new technologies, industry discussions and interviews with experts across the municipal water industry. New episodes of the podcast are released every other week. Logo Images: Anatoly Tiplyashin / Romolo Tavani / stock.adobe.com.

Contact the Talking Under Water podcast editors by emailing talkingunderwater@endeavorb2b.com engaging with them on X @TUWpodcast. Join the conversation by commenting or using the hashtag #talkingunderwaterpod on social media.

Who should bear the burden of Colorado River water cuts? Sarah Kominek, Mandy Crispin and Bob Crossen unpack Arizona’s move to join Nevada’s lawsuit against the federal government, the tension between Upper and Lower Basin obligations, and why water providers need both flexible operating rules and long-term certainty.

The hosts also trace the Colorado River Compact’s history and discuss how allocations made a century ago shape today’s negotiations. Plus, hear updates on Southwest flooding, storm readiness, tribal discharge permitting and major wastewater projects.

• 01:34 — Remembering a Smith and Loveless wastewater industry leader

• 02:53 — Arizona joins Nevada’s Colorado River lawsuit

• 07:47 — Basin geography, the 1922 compact and water allocations

• 16:29 — Southwest flooding and Pasadena’s storm preparations

• 20:02 — The Navajo Nation’s NPDES permitting milestone

• 20:45 — New York City’s Port Richmond facility upgrades

• 21:10 — San Jose’s biosolids dewatering facility

• 21:44 — Industry surveys, cybersecurity resources and StormCon’s call for papers

• Take Wastewater Digest’s 2026 State of the Wastewater Industry survey

• Take WaterWorld’s 2026 State of the Drinking Water Industry survey

• Read "The When Is Now" cybersecurity ebook

• Submit an abstract for StormCon 2027 in Reno, Nevada

Follow Talking Underwater on your favorite podcast player, share the episode with a colleague and send your thoughts to talkingunderwater@endeavorb2b.com. Find the show on X at TUW Podcast.

In this episode Talking Under Water editors from other industry publications discuss how water serves as the invisible backbone of modern infrastructure, industry and technology, and what could happen if that resource suddenly disappeared. Featuring perspectives from across the Endeavor Business Media network, the conversation explores the critical role water plays in cooling data centers, supporting commercial buildings, and enabling manufacturing operations.

Data Center Frontier Editor-in-Chief Matt Vincent explains how water helps manage the enormous heat loads generated by AI and cloud computing infrastructure, and why water availability is becoming a major consideration for both operators and communities. Building Design+Construction Managing Editor Quinn Purcell highlights the dependence of hospitals, schools, multifamily housing, and other facilities on water for everything from sanitation to HVAC cooling systems. IndustryWeek Editor-in-Chief Tom Wilk details how manufacturing relies on water as a raw ingredient, a cleaning agent, a cooling medium, and a key component of production quality and safety.

Together, these perspectives reinforce the message behind Imagine a Day Without Water: water is far more than a utility. Whether powering digital services, maintaining comfortable buildings, or keeping factories running, its absence would create immediate and far-reaching consequences for businesses, communities, and everyday life.

Submit your Day Without Water story by emailing a voice memo to talkingunderwater@endeavorb2b.com.

00:00 – Introduction

00:52 – AI growth puts water and cooling in the spotlight

02:05 – Data centers, AI infrastructure, and the cost of losing cooling water

05:26 – How commercial buildings depend on water beyond the obvious uses

07:44 – What happens when buildings face a day without water

08:49 – Manufacturing's dependence on water for production, sanitation, and cooling

11:31 – Housekeeping

Talking Under Water is the premier podcast for the water industry, including municipal water and wastewater, residential water treatment, storm water management and erosion control. It is produced in coordination between Wastewater Digest (WWD), WaterWorld and Stormwater Solutions (SWS). The podcast covers topics under the One Water movement including the municipal and industrial water and wastewater, residential, stormwater and erosion control markets. Talking Under Water highlights news, trends, new technologies, industry discussions and interviews with experts across the municipal water industry. New episodes of the podcast are released every other week. Logo Images: Anatoly Tiplyashin / Romolo Tavani / stock.adobe.com.

Contact the Talking Under Water podcast editors by emailing talkingunderwater@endeavorb2b.com engaging with them on X @TUWpodcast. Join the conversation by commenting or using the hashtag #talkingunderwaterpod on social media.

In this episode Talking Under Water co-hosts discuss key takeaways from WEFTEC 2026, including the growing influence of artificial intelligence in the water sector, cybersecurity preparedness, utility financing, potable reuse, and the innovative technologies generating buzz on the show floor.

Recorded live from WEFTEC, Mandy Crispin and Bob Crossen reflect on the conference theme of innovation and curiosity, highlighting an inspiring keynote presentation focused on reframing challenges and embracing new ways of thinking. Much of the conversation centers on artificial intelligence, which emerged as one of the dominant topics of the event. The hosts discuss practical AI use cases, workforce concerns, governance strategies, and the importance of keeping humans and subject matter experts at the center of decision-making. They also explore how AI is shaping conversations around data centers, water demand, and utility operations.

Beyond AI, the episode covers lessons from sessions on utility bond ratings and financing, including strategies for maintaining strong financial health and accessing federal funding opportunities. Mandy shares updates from EPA sessions on cybersecurity, water workforce grants, and a new pilot initiative using AI-driven security testing. The hosts also spotlight emerging technologies, including a novel wastewater pump design and creative public outreach efforts supporting potable reuse projects. The episode concludes with a discussion on AI-generated public records requests and what they could mean for utilities moving forward.

WEFTEC 2026 Show Coverage

00:00 – Introduction

00:45 – WEFTEC keynote highlights: innovation, curiosity, and rethinking workplace challenges

05:02 – AI takes center stage at WEFTEC: opportunities, risks, and utility adoption

09:46 – Data centers, water demand, and the need for transparency in AI infrastructure

15:01 – Utility financing lessons: bond ratings, rate strategies, and WIFIA funding opportunities

20:06 – EPA update: cybersecurity, workforce grants, and Project Watershed 250

24:49 – New technologies and innovations from the show floor, including pumps and potable reuse outreach

34:25 – Housekeeping

About the Podcast

Talking Under Water is the premier podcast for the water industry, including municipal water and wastewater, residential water treatment, storm water management and erosion control. It is produced in coordination between Wastewater Digest (WWD), WaterWorld and Stormwater Solutions (SWS). The podcast covers topics under the One Water movement including the municipal and industrial water and wastewater, residential, stormwater and erosion control markets. Talking Under Water highlights news, trends, new technologies, industry discussions and interviews with experts across the municipal water industry. New episodes of the podcast are released every other week. Logo Images: Anatoly Tiplyashin / Romolo Tavani / stock.adobe.com.

Contact the Talking Under Water podcast editors by emailing talkingunderwater@endeavorb2b.com engaging with them on X @TUWpodcast. Join the conversation by commenting or using the hashtag #talkingunderwaterpod on social media.

In this episode Talking Under Water host Mandy Crispin discusses the upcoming water reuse regulatory guide, an effort led by the Water Reuse Association to help states develop or modernize water reuse regulations. Joined by Bruno Pigott, executive director of the association, and Tricia Kilgore of Beaufort Jasper Water and Sewer Authority, the conversation explores why the guide was created and how it can help states navigate the often complex process of adopting reuse regulations.

The guests explain that water reuse regulations vary widely across the United States, creating challenges for communities looking to expand reuse programs. Drawing from lessons learned during rulemaking efforts across multiple states, the guide provides flexible pathways that can be adapted to existing legal and regulatory frameworks rather than prescribing a one-size-fits-all approach.

Kilgore shares South Carolina's experience pursuing expanded reuse opportunities and discusses how treated effluent should be viewed as a valuable resource rather than a waste product. The discussion also examines the importance of identifying local drivers for reuse, engaging regulators and stakeholders early, addressing fragmented regulatory authority, and building public understanding throughout the process.

The episode concludes with lessons from the guide's development involving more than 200 stakeholders, highlighting collaboration, public health protection, and long-term planning as essential ingredients for advancing water reuse projects and regulations nationwide.

WateReuse Symposium 2027

00:00 – Introduction

03:33 – Why the State Water Reuse Regulatory Guide was created

05:22 – Four regulatory pathways and how states can use the guide

06:56 – South Carolina's reuse challenges and treating effluent as a resource

11:09 – Starting with the “why” and engaging stakeholders early

12:24 – Major roadblocks to water reuse regulations and how to overcome them

16:31 – Building consensus through collaboration and public engagement

20:36 – Housekeeping

About the Podcast

Talking Under Water is the premier podcast for the water industry, including municipal water and wastewater, residential water treatment, storm water management and erosion control. It is produced in coordination between Wastewater Digest (WWD), WaterWorld and Stormwater Solutions (SWS). The podcast covers topics under the One Water movement including the municipal and industrial water and wastewater, residential, stormwater and erosion control markets. Talking Under Water highlights news, trends, new technologies, industry discussions and interviews with experts across the municipal water industry. New episodes of the podcast are released every other week. Logo Images: Anatoly Tiplyashin / Romolo Tavani / stock.adobe.com.

Contact the Talking Under Water podcast editors by emailing talkingunderwater@endeavorb2b.com engaging with them on X @TUWpodcast. Join the conversation by commenting or using the hashtag #talkingunderwaterpod on social media.

In this episode, Talking Under Water co-host Bob Crossen discusses advanced metering infrastructure (AMI), data management, utility modernization, stakeholder buy-in, and the future of smart water utilities with Kamstrup Solutions Engineer Jake Waidmann. The conversation explores how utilities exist across a wide spectrum of metering technology adoption, from manual meter reading to next-generation AMI systems, and why technology decisions should be driven by operational challenges rather than by features alone. Jake explains how utilities can identify the right data to collect, use metering information to reduce non-revenue water, improve leak detection, and justify investments through measurable return on investment.

The discussion also examines the growing volume of utility data and the importance of retaining, organizing, and applying that information to support rate studies, conservation initiatives, and long-term planning. Jake highlights the need to involve a broad range of stakeholders, including operators, customer service teams, managers, executives, consultants, and governing boards, when implementing new technologies. He emphasizes that successful adoption depends on building trust in both the data and the systems generating it.

Looking ahead, Jake shares his vision for the smart water utility of 2030, centered on three key pillars: proactive operations, data-driven decision-making, and continuous improvement. Together, these principles can help utilities maximize system performance, improve customer service, and make more informed infrastructure investments.

00:00 – Introduction

02:00 – Meeting utilities where they are on the AMR-to-AMI journey

05:02 – Why solving problems matters more than collecting more data

08:15 – Managing, storing, and using utility data effectively

13:40 – Building trust and managing organizational change during AMI adoption

19:18 – Gaining buy-in from operators, managers, executives, and boards

23:47 – The future of smart water utilities: proactive, data-driven, continuous improvement

28:48 – Housekeeping

Talking Under Water is the premier podcast for the water industry, including municipal water and wastewater, residential water treatment, storm water management and erosion control. It is produced in coordination between Wastewater Digest (WWD), WaterWorld and Stormwater Solutions (SWS). The podcast covers topics under the One Water movement including the municipal and industrial water and wastewater, residential, stormwater and erosion control markets. Talking Under Water highlights news, trends, new technologies, industry discussions and interviews with experts across the municipal water industry. New episodes of the podcast are released every other week. Logo Images: Anatoly Tiplyashin / Romolo Tavani / stock.adobe.com.

Contact the Talking Under Water podcast editors by emailing talkingunderwater@endeavorb2b.com engaging with them on X @TUWpodcast. Join the conversation by commenting or using the hashtag #talkingunderwaterpod on social media.

In this episode of Talking Under Water, Mandy Crispin, head of content for WaterWorld, shares how local news outlets in four Colorado River Basin states, Nevada, Arizona, Colorado and Utah, are framing Nevada's lawsuit against the federal government over Colorado River management. Sarah Kominek, head of content for Stormwater Solutions covers flash flooding at the Grand Canyon and in Utah, a corruption investigation into flood control projects in the Philippines, and a stormwater project breaking ground in Pittsburgh. Alex Cossin, associate editor for the Water Group follows with cybersecurity developments in the water sector, including new EPA funding, a federal pilot program in Texas, and a joint agency warning on PLC vulnerabilities. The episode closes with Alex and Sarah recapping StormCon 2026 in Minneapolis.

Nevada Sues Federal Government Over Colorado River Water Cuts

Arizona's water future: Colorado River cuts

The Colorado River: Lawfare and economic uncertainty

Utah and the future of the Colorado River (webinar)

Stormwater Solutions: Southwest monsoon fuels flash floods, road and utility damage in Arizona, Utah

Stormwater Solutions: Record flooding exposes gaps in Philippines' flood control system amid fraud investigation

Stormwater Solutions: Pittsburgh breaks ground on $6.8M stormwater project

Wastewater Digest: Federal agencies warn of active cyber threat to Siemens PLCs

• 0:00 – Introduction
• 0:59 – How news outlets are covering the Colorado river lawsuit
• 15:36 – Flooding news and stormwater project funding
• 18:05 – Cybersecurity for water utilities
• 19:58 – StormCon highlights
• 24:55 – Housekeeping

Talking Under Water is the premier podcast for the water industry, including municipal water and wastewater, residential water treatment, storm water management and erosion control. It is produced in coordination between Wastewater Digest (WWD), WaterWorld and Stormwater Solutions (SWS). The podcast covers topics under the One Water movement including the municipal and industrial water and wastewater, residential, stormwater and erosion control markets. Talking Under Water highlights news, trends, new technologies, industry discussions and interviews with experts across the municipal water industry. New episodes of the podcast are released every other week. Logo Images: Anatoly Tiplyashin / Romolo Tavani / stock.adobe.com.

Contact the Talking Under Water podcast editors by emailing talkingunderwater@endeavorb2b.com engaging with them on X @TUWpodcast. Join the conversation by commenting or using the hashtag #talkingunderwaterpod on social media.

In this episode Talking Under Water co-host Mandy Crispin speaks with Brent Alspach, Vice President and Director of Applied Research at Arcadis, about the evolving science of microplastics in drinking water and the challenges facing future regulation. Recorded at ACE26, the conversation explores what has changed over the past year in the industry's understanding of microplastics and why policymakers, utilities, and researchers are still searching for answers.

Brent explains why defining microplastics for regulatory purposes is far more complex than defining traditional contaminants, given the wide range of particle sizes, polymer types, and characteristics involved. He also discusses concerns that public and political pressure could outpace the scientific research needed to support effective regulations.

The discussion covers the many hurdles that remain before any federal drinking water standard could be developed, including the lack of standardized sampling methods, testing protocols, and health effects data. Mandy and Brent also examine how regulators might determine whether drinking water is a significant source of human exposure compared to food or air.

Finally, Brent shares insights into how existing treatment processes perform, where knowledge gaps still exist, and what utility leaders should be doing today to prepare for a future in which microplastics receive greater regulatory attention.

WaterWorld AWWA ACE26 Show Coverage

• 00:00 – Introduction
• 01:41 – What qualifies as a microplastic and why terminology matters
• 02:24 – Why science must catch up before regulation advances
• 04:03 – The challenge of defining microplastics for regulatory purposes
• 07:47 – Determining whether drinking water is a meaningful exposure source
• 09:38 – How far away meaningful regulation may be and the hurdles that remain
• 11:30 – Can current drinking water treatment processes remove microplastics?
• 15:51 – Housekeeping

About the Podcast

Talking Under Water is the premier podcast for the water industry, including municipal water and wastewater, residential water treatment, storm water management and erosion control. It is produced in coordination between Wastewater Digest (WWD), WaterWorld and Stormwater Solutions (SWS). The podcast covers topics under the One Water movement including the municipal and industrial water and wastewater, residential, stormwater and erosion control markets. Talking Under Water highlights news, trends, new technologies, industry discussions and interviews with experts across the municipal water industry. New episodes of the podcast are released every other week. Logo Images: Anatoly Tiplyashin / Romolo Tavani / stock.adobe.com.

Contact the Talking Under Water podcast editors by emailing talkingunderwater@endeavorb2b.com engaging with them on X @TUWpodcast. Join the conversation by commenting or using the hashtag #talkingunderwaterpod on social media.