by Sami Stroud | Mar 3, 2026 | Communications and Outreach, Community Engagement, Decentralized Wastewater Systems, Wastewater
Above 1. Image under license from VectorMine/Shutterstock.com For many small and rural communities, moving from private septic systems to public sewer is one of the biggest infrastructure changes residents will ever experience. The environmental and public health...
by Sami Stroud | Feb 25, 2026 | Energy Management, Utility Management, Wastewater
As many of us have noticed, the cost of energy continues to rise. Several factors are driving this increase, including the rapid expansion of data centers to support AI technologies and aging utility infrastructure. For wastewater systems, these trends matter a great...
by Sami Stroud | Feb 12, 2026 | Utility Management, Wastewater, Workforce Development
Shannon Hazelton, at work in Winterset, IA and Point Hope, AK. When Shannon Hazelton entered the workforce, he never expected to spend nearly twenty years in wastewater. Yet his path—shaped by unexpected opportunities, tough environments, and a drive to keep...
by AJ Barney | Feb 6, 2026 | Conservation, Energy Management, Renewable Energy, Solar Energy, Utility Management, Wastewater
The Solar Calculator is a beginner-friendly Excel tool developed by the University of Maryland Environmental Finance Center to help drinking water and wastewater utilities explore the feasibility of on-site solar energy. Using facility location, available space,...
by Sami Stroud | Jan 7, 2026 | Utility Management, Wastewater, Workforce Development
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a rapidly growing technology that is increasingly integrated into modern software. AI systems are trained on vast amounts of data using algorithms designed to mimic human reasoning. One of the most familiar examples is chatbots, which...
by Sami Stroud | Dec 1, 2025 | Asset Management, Capital Improvement Planning, Wastewater
One of the biggest challenges many wastewater utilities—especially small systems—face is striking the right balance between responding to urgent, unexpected issues and planning for long-term needs. Without a clear strategy, resources often get consumed by emergencies,...
