by UNCEFC | Dec 12, 2019 | Utility Management, Workforce Development
Across the country, communities are dealing with a water and wastewater operator shortage within their treatment plants. This shortage – largely due to retirements occurring in an aging workforce – is leaving many municipalities in need of immediate replacements or...
by UNCEFC | Aug 1, 2018 | Partnerships
Did you know there are over 250 publicly owned small water systems serving less than 1,000 connections in North Carolina? In the case of water and wastewater utilities, bigger can often mean better. Below we explore an aging system that stands to benefit significantly...
by UNCEFC | Jul 19, 2018 | Communications and Outreach, Utility Management
At a recent conference, we asked utility managers and operators to tell us about their everyday communication challenges. Again and again, we heard that communicating with customers about the value of the service their utility provides was difficult, because too...
by UNCEFC | Nov 9, 2017 | Board/Elected Official Engagement, Communications and Outreach
For many small towns, websites are the main avenue of communication with residents. At the Environmental Finance Center at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, we use town websites to find contact information, water rates, and link towns around the...
by UNCEFC | Feb 16, 2017 | Affordability, Financial Management, Rates
Accurately identifying vulnerable groups and their commitment to pay, or incapacity to pay, is a timeless challenge in household water services. When consumers pay for household water service delivery, they are paying for the water, its delivery to their home, the...