Conrad Keyes Jr.’s Post

🌐🌊 Navigating Water Quality Management Together 🌊🌐 We are excited to announce the release of the updated standard, "Comprehensive Transboundary Water Quality Management Agreement with Guidelines for Development of a Management Plan, Standards, and Criteria, ANSI/ASCE/EWRI 33‐23." This critical standard provides a robust framework for governments and stakeholders, empowering them with the tools to guide the sustainable management of shared water resources. Drawing from the success of the Delaware River Basin Compact, it offers practical solutions and adaptable strategies for environmental engineers, infrastructure engineers, and professionals in water governance and geopolitics. It is an essential tool for addressing the complexities of transboundary waters and fostering collaborative water resource management across borders. 🙏 We sincerely thank the Border International Water Quality Standards Committee members for their hard work on this publication. Special appreciation goes to Chair Luzma Fabiola Nava, Vice-Chair Percival Miller, Treasurer Bernardino Olague, P.E., PMP, and Past Chair Steve Niemeyer. Get your copy today and lead the way in shared water quality management!  📘 https://lnkd.in/eM_RpAhe #WaterQuality #TransboundaryManagement #EnvironmentalEngineering #Infrastructure #Sustainability #Geopolitics #WaterGovernance #CivilEngineering #ASCEStandards

We and the Environment Agency have responsibilities for regulating the water industry - and to do this effectively relies on cooperation, shared information and consistent decision-making by both organisations. A couple of weeks ago, we had the pleasure of hosting EA colleagues at our Birmingham office for a workshop focusing on the Water Quality Regulation Cycle. Over the past few months, we have been working together to create more opportunities for closer collaboration - with a clear ambition to better understand each other's roles and responsibilities, share priorities, and agree on how we can provide greater transparency, visibility and trust in our work within the water industry and the general public.

Interested in learning more about how system level risk management planning can inform emergency management and increase disaster resilience for community OneWater systems? Come join Virginie Brunetaud from Engineers and Geoscientists BC and I at the Canadian Emergency Preparedness and Climate Adaptation Convention in Ottawa this September. This convention on Sept. 24-26, 2024, in Ottawa is geared towards all levels of government, NGOs, academia, and private industry, to:   - Foster national collaboration within the sector - Learn about the latest topics and technologies - Take away actionable steps for emergency planning and climate adaptation   Register to attend! https://lnkd.in/g5q_6ge9 #CEPCA2024 #EmergencyExpo #EmergencyManagement #ClimateAdaptation #Adaptation #ClimateChange #DiasterManagement #EmergencyPreparedness #EmergencyResponse #Innovation #Collaboration #Sustainability #ResilientCommunities #PublicSafety #OneWater

Yesterday the Information Commissioner's Office published a blog regarding the publication of Environmental Information and the lack of transparency from the water industry as a whole. The article discussed 6 decision notices which used the "course of justice exception" to withhold spill data and that only 2 water companies (Yorkshire Water and South West Water) were publishing monthly spill data. This article does not reflect Thames Waters approach. Thames Water have never used the "course of justice" exception to withhold spill data and have always made spill information available via EIR. We were the first company to create a map publishing near real time storm discharges and the date, time and duration of the latest spill. This has been live for the last 2 years - long before we received any contact from the ICO. In addition, we have an API portal which contains published historical spill data for all 350 sewage treatment works at near real time (Access currently being expanded) I'm proud to say that Thames Water have always been open and transparent , with a broad approach to interpreting the legislation and proactively make the most useful and requested information available. This approach has always been supported by senior managers and our Data Protection Officer. Information publicly available includes: - Total daily volume of wastewater treated at our STW since 2019. - Information of our Infrastructure/upgrade projects (updated regularly) - Information on how sewage is treated, what "storm discharge" is and how we monitor it - Statistical information on how many EIR's we respond to going back to April 2023 (in the process of being updated!) - Information on the Thames Tideway Tunnel Project - As well as information regarding performance, governance, regulation and our improvement programs. - Since April 2024 we have responded to1600+questions included within 450+ requests. From a professional point of view it is personally very disappointing to see the Commissioner's response having spent a lot of time (alongside others in the business) making Environmental information available which I hope can be seen from the above. I truly believe that we are taking the right approach and I hope we can work with our regulator in 2025 to acknowledge the excellent work that has been happening. Perhaps a good topic for the next ICO Conference? #environmentalinformationregulations #waterindustry #Informationcommissionersoffice #dataprotection #informationrights Link in the Comments

Are you interested in discussing successful management of complex issues in transboundary water resources? I have the link an article below that discusses the performance of transboundary water management. https://lnkd.in/dhbeR39R

Great update by Rick van Dam in his post on Aust/NZ Water Quality Guidelines Improvement Program. Read his post below and access the latest on the program from the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water here: https://lnkd.in/eB4sYW3B Thanks for sharing this update Rick!

Have your say on the draft ACT Water Strategy to better guide future actions on water in Canberra 💧🌏 Consultation is now open on the draft ACT Water Strategy 2024-2044: Striking the Balance. The draft builds on the existing plan which commenced in 2014 as part of the 10-year review period. The ACT Water Strategy provides high-level strategic guidance for water management in the Territory. Key changes of the draft includes: 💙 Focusing more on the strategic direction and aspirations 💙 Improving the monitoring and evaluation framework 💙 Changing reporting requirements to support information sharing 💙 Adding a new outcome area that focuses on the water interests and values of Traditional Custodians Consultation closes on 28 June 2024. To read the draft and find out how to have your say visit: https://bit.ly/4ekRztp.

Water management is certainly full of acronyms and jargon, and monitoring programs are no exception. You might be forgiven for thinking that ‘MD-WERP', ‘TLM’ and ‘Flow-MER' are names of 80’s DJ’s. They are in fact various programs of water delivery, monitoring and research which operate within the Murray-Darling Basin. This article provides an introduction to these programs, while also sharing case studies on the role Flow-MER has in water management in the Murray Darling Basin. #ewater #cewh

Managing urban water systems is a complex task that requires a holistic approach. From providing clean drinking water, treating wastewater to managing stormwater, these systems are interconnected and impact our ecosystems. Engineers and Geoscientists BC BC, in collaboration with the BC Ministry of Health, is leading a One Water System Risk Management approach to help communities assess and prioritize system-level risks.       WSP has been collaborating with EGBC and the Ministry over the past several years to author a new Professional Practice Guideline, encouraging participation from engineering and geoscientists across BC to develop innovative solutions for effective water management.      Read our latest article to learn more about the benefits of applying systems thinking to risk management through a One Water approach: https://lnkd.in/eRHgdsnT