PHC News and Plumbing Engineer are proud to be a media sponsor for the seventh Emerging Water Technology Symposium (EWTS). The EWTS, a biennial symposium co-convened by the Alliance for Water Efficiency (AWE), American Society of Plumbing Engineers (ASPE), International Association of Plumbing and Mechanical Officials (IAPMO), and Plumbing Manufacturers International (PMI), continues to provide critical insight into the future of our water-related industries. Join with your colleagues May 10-11 in San Antonio at this must-attend event. The speaker lineup this year is the strongest ever!

Two keynote speakers
Robert Puente, CEO of San Antonio Water Systems, will discuss how San Antonio Water Systems is cultivating a culture of technology to address water scarcity. The second keynote will be provided by Don Johnston, senior operations director, Indonesia, at Water.org.

Attendees will also hear from Sun Gil Kim, program officer at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation; Edward Osann, senior policy analyst at the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC); C.J. Lagan, product testing and compliance leader at LIXIL; and Clement Cid, PhD, senior research engineer at Linde+Robinson Lab, as they discuss the safety and performance requirements, and the likely regulatory framework, for the Reinvent the Toilet project.

Natascha Milesi-Ferretti, mechanical engineer, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), will discuss several new research efforts that NIST will be addressing in the premise plumbing area — including a newly installed laboratory to characterize the pressure-flow relationship of plumbing fittings, a facility to study the growth of opportunistic pathogens in hot water systems as a function of temperature, water usage patterns and other factors, and other initiatives.

Learn the latest on keeping building water systems safe. Janet E. Stout, PhD, president and director, Special Pathogens Laboratory, will discuss new approaches for the control and spread of Legionella and other waterborne pathogens such as non-tuberculous mycobacteria. Kurt Steenhook, international representative, and Robert Viches, training specialist for the United Association, detail a compliance pathway for facility managers, contractors, and craftsmen to operationalize an appropriate response to the exposure of metals, chemicals, and bacteria to building occupants.

Dr. Markus Lenger, principal at Clean Blu Inc., will be back at the EWTS to discuss advancements in the design and monitoring of water reuse systems, and the need for new standards that will result in more affordable and reliable applications that can help to make direct potable reuse a consumer product!

Hear from academia 
Professor Michael Gormley of Herriot Watt University will discuss virus presence, prevalence and fate within building wastewater sanitary systems; Professor Andrew Whelton of Purdue University will provide a presentation on predicting faucet water quality and predicting plumbing system contamination and recovery; and Professor Steve Buchburger of the University of Cincinnati will discuss the application and potential of the Water Demand Calculator.  

Both days at the EWTS will include an informative panel discussion with today’s most notable subject matter experts. Day one’s panel will address the Effective Risk Management of Building Water Systems and Pathogen Control and day two’s panel will provide a discussion on the Implications of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act on Drinking and Wastewater Systems.

Finally, the EWTS will again feature a Young Water Specialists presentation. This year, “Team HydroPuris” will present remotely from Washington, D.C., on their eCybermisson competition project, Enabling Access to Clean Water Using a Portable Water Purification and Testing System. Hearing from the water experts of the future is a fun and great way to conclude the symposium.

There’s so much more. See the full program at www.ewts.org, and register for the EWTS at https://www.aspe.org/2022-ewts-registration/.

We hope to see you in San Antonio!