Two Trade Shows: One Trip & a Little Surfing

In the past few weeks I had the pleasure of attending two very different water industry events -- the annual meeting of the Water & Wastewater Equipment Manufacturers Association and the first ever water industry virtual tradeshow.

The WWEMA meetings are always interesting and informative. This year's event included a presentation by Dick Champion, Chairman of the Clean Water America Alliance, who talked about the need for an integrated national water policy. Champion, who also serves as the Director of the Independence, MO, Water Pollution Control Department, urged the equipment company executives and representatives to support the new Alliance, which was formed in 2008 to shape US water policy.

One of the group's long-term goals is to essentially combine the Safe Drinking Water and Clean Water acts into an integrated policy that deals with water as a single resource rather than dividing it into artificial silos of regulation.

For more information on the organization and to read its recent Call to Action "The Need for an Integrated National Water Policy," visit www.cleanwateramericaalliance.org.

WWEMA members also heard a report from EPA on the status of the federal stimulus program. Chuck Job, Chief of the Infrastructure Bank of the US EPA Office of Ground Water & Drinking Water, assured attendees that all states are on track to meet the February deadline to begin projects funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. When quizzed about the huge amount of stimulus money still uncommitted, Job predicted a wave of last-minute activity.

Thom Decker, a VP at CH2M Hill, also gave an informative talk on the market-based forces impacting the water and wastewater industry. He predicted the industry would see growth in construction activity next year, driven both by the stimulus program and the continuing need to repair or replace aging infrastructure.

For something completely different, I also attended the Water Experts Virtual Conference presented by Hach Company in cooperation with PennWell, the company that publishes WaterWorld. While we helped promote the event, staff at Hach organized the paper presentations and the "booths" at this on-line only event.

The one-day conference and exhibition, which was free to attendees, included all the features of a real trade show including a conference with paper presentations, booths manned by industry experts, and a virtual forum where attendees could chat and interact with their peers.

Papers presented at the conference included "Optimizing Nutrient Removal through Instrumentation," "Air vs. Dissolved Oxygen: Understanding How to Interpret Oxygen Measurements," and "From Source to Tap: Monitoring for Water Quality and Security." Other topics included comparison of on-line chlorine analysis methods, lab automation and papers on TOC and DO measurement, among others.

Virtual booths featured videos, application articles and information downloads. As an example, the Wastewater Booth included information on nutrient removal, aeration control, solids and sludge, plus sampling and lab solutions. Other booths were focused on drinking water, ultrapure, security and lab automation.

The virtual trade show attracted 2400 registrants from around the world. If you missed the live event, you still have the chance to participate. The event is archived on the Internet until Feb. 2, 2010. It is free to register and view the paper presentations or download information from the individual booths in the exhibit hall. Visit www.hachwaterexperts.com.