DOH + ECY Water System Plan Memorandum of Understanding
Thursday, July 9, 2026
12:15 to 1:15 PM PT | Virtual Meeting
Please join us for an informational session about how water system planning helps provide safe and reliable drinking water to the people of WA. Attendees will learn how two state agencies work together to achieve this common goal while fulfilling their different missions. DOH and Ecology have updated their agreement to create a more efficient water system planning review process for public water systems. The agreement specifies the different authorities and roles in the water system planning review process that help ensure safe and reliable drinking water while protecting senior water rights and the environment.
Presenters:
John Freitag
Policy Planning Lead
Office of Drinking Water, Environmental Public Health
Washington State Department of Health
John Freitag helps with statewide Water Policy and Planning issues for the Office of Drinking Water at the Department of Health. He is the Department of Health’s interagency coordination liaison and works alongside Austin Melcher in this role. He has a Geohydrology degree from Montana State University and draws experience from working for water resources agencies in Minnesota, Idaho, and Washington.
Austin Melcher
Policy Support Section
Washington State Department of Ecology | Water Resources Program
Austin Melcher works in the Policy Support Section of the Department of Ecology’s Water Resources Program as the statewide policy and municipal water law lead. He is Ecology’s interagency coordination liaison and worked to revamp the MOU and Joint Review Procedures with DOH. He has a master’s degree from the Bren School at U.C. Santa Barbara focused on water resource management and water right transactions.
George Onwumere, Ph.D.
Engineering, Planning, and Inspections Manager
Office of Drinking Water, Environmental Public Health
Washington State Department of Health
George Onwumere is the Engineering, Planning, and Inspections Manager for the Office of Drinking Water (ODW) and is responsible for managing the Engineering, Planning, Administrative, Sanitary Survey and Water Facilities Inventory Teams. These teams implement portions of the state’s drinking water program, with responsibility of approximately 4,200 Group A and 13,600 Group B public water systems statewide. He has a Ph.D. in Civil Engineering from the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, BC, Canada, and more than 30 years of experience in water resources management, including almost 3 years with the Washington State Department of Health.
Participation Details:
You will receive a link to participate via a Microsoft Teams meeting the day before the event.
Registration Fees:
Registration is free with a suggested donation of $10. We are non-profit, and your donation helps us provide events and programming. Thank you for supporting AWRA-WA!
Thank you to Green Economics for sponsoring the event!
