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High school internships lure students into the industry
 Let’s face it: To the average high school junior, the thought of building submarines rates significantly higher on the coolness scale than the thought of operating a water resource recovery facility (WRRF). And Kevin Cini knew it.
That fact became even more abundantly clear 10 years ago when Cini looked around the WRRF he operates in Groton, Conn. Concerned about the city’s ability to recruit a new generation of wastewater professionals, Cini contacted the dean of students at the local technical high school to see about developing an internship program.
 In March, a group from Hickory Valley Christian School (Chattanooga, Tenn.) visited the Moccasin Bend Wastewater Treatment Plant in Chattanooga where sewer project coordinator Matthew Snyder gave a special presentation called “Mighty Microbes.” The presentation demonstrated the important role that microbes play in activated sludge and wastewater treatment.
 Water Works is a headline for the Water Environment Federation (WEF; Alexandria, Va.) water advocacy programs, the new catchphrase of the Value of Water Coalition, and a lesson from Infrastructure Week 2014. Like all good iconic themes, it conjures up multiple messages and meanings with just two words. WEF members are going to be hearing, and hopefully saying, those words a lot as WEF continues expanding programs to achieve one of its key strategic objectives — increase awareness for the value of water.
 The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) New England Region has honored Maine’s “Save Your Pipes: Don’t Flush Baby Wipes” campaign with its Environmental Merit Award. The award recognizes outstanding contributions on behalf of the region’s public health and natural environment. The objective of the $113,000 campaign, launched on Jan. 21, was to raise awareness through communications outreach about the environmental and economic effects of flushing baby wipes.
 The Valley of Mexico, a region surrounding Mexico City, has been experiencing an increased demand for a continually shrinking supply of water. On April 25, Ernesto Espino discussed the valley’s water problems and potential solutions during a luncheon of the U.S. chapter of the Inter-American Association of Sanitary & Environmental Engineering (Arlington, Va.) held at Water Environment Federation (Alexandria, Va.) headquarters.
U.S. EPA Announces 2013 Campus RainWorks Challenge Winners
 University students put their green infrastructure designs to the test for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Campus RainWorks Challenge. The challenge engages students and faculty members to reinvent water infrastructure and develop innovative green infrastructure systems to reduce stormwater pollution and build resilience to climate change.
 Treating wastewater and protecting aquatic environments have more in common than many people think. That is the lesson Clean Water Services (Hillsboro, Ore.) wants all ages to learn with its new The Plant and the Plant animated video.
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June 30, 2014
Monthly Digests