Table of Contents

• Summary

• President's Message & Events

• 2024 State Conference Recap
• Conference Summary
• Keynote Address
• 1 - Drinkable
• 2 - Fishable
• 3 - Swimmable
• 4 - Water Quality Solutions
• 5 - Agency Panel

• AWRA-WA Basin Sponsors

September to November 2024 Edition

Conference Summary

Summary by co-authors

Robin Nimmer – Senior Hydrogeologist, Alta Science and Engineering

Tom Ring – retired Hydrogeologist, Yakama Nation Water Resources Program

We had another amazing AWRA-WA annual state conference at the Mountaineers in Seattle on October 8, 2024! What made this year’s conference unique was the theme related to water quality: Drinkable, Fishable, Swimmable – Protecting Washington’s Waters. The conference sessions included speakers in each of these three areas as well as a session on water quality solutions. We heard from our Keynote speaker, Catherine O’Neill, who spoke on water quality issues and emphasized the attitude of “how can we” in finding solutions. This year’s AWRA-WA Outstanding Service Award was presented by Tom Ring virtually to Governor Jay Inslee for his outstanding contribution to Washington’s water resources. The Governor graciously accepted the award and shared a personal story of people working together to make a difference. The conference concluded with a panel session of speakers from Washington’s Department of Health and Department of Ecology as well Governor Jay Inslee’s office. The speakers brought interesting, current, and relevant information to the audience. The breaks were lively with much discussion, smiling faces, and good food.

Summary co-author Tom Ring also picked up on an interesting theme across two of the conference presentations. In the first session, Dr. Alan Kolok, University of Idaho, quoted Ben Franklin as recommending drinking beer instead of the poor quality drinking water of the late 1700’s that was a cause of much mortality. In the final session, Lisa Dennis-Perez, LOTT Clean Water Alliance, presented on current wastewater treatment practices that treat water to a quality suitable for making beer. Two hundred years of progress toward drinkable clean water!

Presentation by Dr. Alan Kolok, University of Idaho	Presentation by Lisa Dennis-Perez, LOTT Clean Water Alliance

Next - Keynote Address