News & Updates







Save the Date

Student Design Competition
May 2, 2022

I/A Septic System Funding & Financing Webinar
May 3, 2022

WEN Networking Evening
May 4, 2022

Funding Innovation Webinar
May 6, 2022

Pathway to Leadership Webinar
May 10, 2022

Spring Meeting
May 22-25, 2022

Effective Utility Management Workshop
June 9, 2022
As the Save the Date column in this email's sidebar would suggest, we have a busy month ahead of us at NEWEA, with several webinars and our 2022 Spring Meeting taking place.

This week, we have two Innovation webinars addressing funding and financing, and the following week, our Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee is hosting the Pathway to Leadership webinar. Many of these sessions are available at no cost. Links to register can be found below.

Later this month, we will be hosting our first in person Spring Meeting since 2019. This event is being held at the beautiful Mount Washington Resort May 22-25. Our full program offers eight technical sessions on a variety of water quality issues, a panel discussion featuring New Hampshire water industry leaders, the Operations Challenge, and much more.

In addition to our technical program, we will be providing evening entertainment on Monday and Tuesday at the Spring Meeting. Following the Welcome Reception/5S Induction on Monday, we will be hosting a Cornhole Tournament. Come with a team assembled or be placed in a randomized team. Food will be provided. As part of the Reception, Ops Challenge Awards, and Dinner on Tuesday evening, comedians Rob Steen and Joe Yannetty will be performing. We hope you'll join us for some fun and friendly competition with your friends and colleagues.

In addition to our upcoming events, we have some upcoming deadlines. Our Awards Committee is accepting NEWEA/WEF Award nominations until May 18, and nominations for NEWEA Officer positions are open until June 15. Submit award and officer nominations on behalf of deserving water professionals. Self nominations are also encouraged.

Check out the rest of the newsletter for more on committee news and details on upcoming events. Until next newsletter, we hope everyone has a great month and stays healthy.

As always, we invite you to contact Jordan Gosselin at jgosselin@newea.org with committee news and updates you would like to share in future editions.
Join us for a Free Innovation Webinar
The two biggest issues for permitting and adoption of the new generation of Enhanced I/A septic systems (OWTS) are management (RME) and funding. The former was addressed at a charrette held at the NEWEA Annual Conference in January. Funding and financing will be addressed via this webinar. There will be presentations with Q&A from State Revolving Fund (SRF), Federal and private investor perspectives.
Learn Insights from the Federal Infrastructure Funding Bill
This webinar will include a rebroadcast of the “Funding Innovation Panels” given at NEWEA’s Annual Conference & Exhibit in Boston, MA this past January. For those who didn’t make the session in person, this is a great chance to hear about the diversity of perspectives on funding water innovation and to ask the panelists questions to help your organization navigate the funding landscape.
Reserve your Spot for a Pathway to Leadership Webinar
Join us on May 10 to hear from panelists on how they got started in NEWEA and moved into leadership positions. NEWEA depends on strong leaders prepared to tackle strategic challenges today and in the future, and the best leadership teams are made up of professionals with different backgrounds and experiences who bring varied viewpoints to the table. As an organization, NEWEA continues to challenge ourselves to do better and to become more socially and racially just. Part of that work includes being more intentional about creating structures that allow all members, regardless of race or background, to become Association leaders.
Register to Attend the 2022 Spring Meeting
NEWEA's 2022 Spring Meeting will be taking place May 22-25 at the beautiful Mount Washington Resort. This event will offer opportunities to learn the latest industry trends in technical sessions, earn Training Contact Hours (TCH), play a round of golf in our annual Golf Tournament, support the operators competing in the Operations Challenge, and much more.
Reserve a Spring Meeting Exhibit Booth
NEWEA's Spring Meeting will offer limited exhibit tabletops for companies looking to display their products and services for the water quality industry. This event typically attracts about 300 professional engineers, licensed operators, consulting engineers, public officials, educators, students and other professionals in the water quality industry.
Enroll your Team for the Spring Meeting Golf Tournament
Join NEWEA for a friendly 18-hole Golf Tournament at the Mount Washington Golf Course in Bretton Woods, NH. The course, with New Hampshire's spectacular Presidential Mountain Range as a backdrop, was designed by the legendary Donald Ross and was voted Golfweek Magazine's Best Course You Can Play in NH from 2009 - 2020!
Register for a Joint NEWEA/EPA Workshop
Join NEWEA in partnership with EPA on June 9 in Framingham, MA to take a 360-degree look at your utility and set priorities that work for your utility and community. This workshop will help utilities address a full range of challenges and move toward sustainable management of their operations and infrastructure.
Nominate Deserving Water Professionals for a NEWEA/WEF Award
NEWEA is now accepting nominations for NEWEA and WEF Awards! Honor the work of a deserving water professional by submitting an award nomination on their behalf. Self nominations are encouraged.

Award recipients will be honored at the Awards Ceremony and Luncheon at NEWEA's 2023 Annual Conference.

Visit our site to see the full list of awards. Nomination submissions are due by May 18, 2022.
Submit a NEWEA Officer Nomination
Do you see yourself as a leader in NEWEA or do you know of someone who would be a perfect fit on our Executive Committee? Help us shape NEWEA's future by submitting a nomination for an Officer position.

The Nominating Committee and Executive Committee encourage you to give serious consideration to nominate a worthy colleague or yourself for one of the current Officer vacancies listed below. Click the links to view the position's description.


We encourage interested individuals to watch Past Nominating Committee Chair Janine Burke-Wells discuss the nominating process and time commitment needed to serve in an Officer position. The DE&I Committee also put together the Roadmap to Leadership to provide current and prospective NEWEA members with guidelines for getting involved in the association.

Officers are voting members of the Executive Committee and use their time and talents along with those of your colleagues to help direct and guide NEWEA into the future. NEWEA is a dynamic organization that relies heavily on its members to develop and implement its many policies and programs. By nominating a worthy colleague or yourself, you will become an important part of this vital Association that is so important across all sectors of the water environment.
Watch NEWEA's Latest Video
NEWEA's latest video, "Invest in Water", is now available!

This video, which was produced in partnership with our Government Affairs Committee, was released as part of Water Week 2022. The video features interviews with water industry leaders from throughout New England discussing the hardships facing water professionals, utilities, and infrastructure during the pandemic and beyond and encouraging elected officials to invest their time, support, and funding into the water industry.
Event Hosted in Memory of Kate Biedron
On April 22, a group of past and present CDM Smith employees met at Shaw Dairy Farm in Dracut, MA in honor of the second anniversary of Kate Biedron's passing. The group photographed in the picture to the right gathered to share memories of Kate, enjoy ice cream, visit the cows, and pay respects to Kate’s grave site.

Kate's family lives on the farm, where her Dad manages the herd of cows. Kate worked for the farm and their ice cream stand throughout high school.

Attendees raised $1,000 for the Kate Biedron Memorial Fund, which was founded in 2020 by NEWEA and CDM Smith to sustain initiatives that Kate supported and promoted throughout her career, including environmental education, mentoring young professionals, and enhancing diversity and inclusion in the water sector.

Donations in support of the Memorial Fund can be made on NEWEA's website.
In Memory of Benjamin Thompson
It is with great sadness that we inform the membership that we recently lost a member of our New England water industry, Benjamin Thompson.

Employed by Erving Paper Mill for over 40 years, Ben was the Chief Operator of the Erving Wastewater Treatment Plant and had just retired the end of February this year.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to The Shriner's Children's Hospital, 516 Carew Street, Springfield, MA 01104, or to the Friends of Athol Public Library, 568 Main St, Athol, MA 01331.
Third Annual Source Water Brewers Homebrewing Competition
With the goal of bringing NEWEA members even closer to the source waters that we strive to protect, NEWEA is seeking homebrewers for our third annual Source Water Brewers Homebrewing Competition.

This friendly competition will challenge each brewer to create an original beer using local water supplies for sharing at the NEWEA committee member volunteer appreciation event during the summer of 2022.


The Committee is requesting sponsors for this upcoming event. Companies can sponsor the event for $250. Event sponsors will be recognized on NEWEA’s Homebrew webpage, on event signage, and with a company logo printed on the back of the t-shirts that will be given to participants. 
Ways to give

  • Make a donation online.
  • When you shop online, use Amazon Smile and choose New England Water Environment Assoc as your charitable organization.
  • Take a moment to share how NEWEA has impacted your career, education, and/or community. 
  • Establish a legacy gift or memorial fund, or include NEWEA in your will. 
  • Designate NEWEA for a Qualified Charitable Distribution. (If you have to take a Required Minimum Distribution from your retirement funds in 2022, you may be able to offset the tax impacts. Contact your financial advisor/IRA custodian for more information.)
New England Water Environment Association newea.org