WEF Past President Receives Honorary Member Status

December 19, 2012

Achievements, Featured

James Clark presents the 2007 Stockholm Water Prize during the awards ceremony at Stockholm City Hall. Photo courtesy of Cecilia Österberg, Exray.

James Clark presents the 2007 Stockholm Water Prize during the awards ceremony at Stockholm City Hall. Photo courtesy of Cecilia Österberg, Exray.

Water Environment Federation (WEF; Alexandria, Va.) Past President James H. Clark has added WEF Honorary Membership to a long list of achievements.

Clark, a senior vice president at Black & Veatch (Overland Park, Kan.), served as WEF president from 2001 to 2002. He received the WEF Emerson Medal for outstanding service in 2006 and the WEF Englebrecht International Achievement Award for sustained, significant contributions in the global water sector in 2009.

This year, WEF recognized Clark’s commitment to WEF, the water profession, his community, and his WEF Member Association by presenting him with a lifetime honorary membership to WEF. Clark joins a short list of 136 other honorary members selected starting in 1941.

Clark volunteers at the WEFTEC 2012 service project to build a bioswale in New Orleans. Photo courtesy of Haley Falconer, WEF Students and Young Professionals Committee vice chair.

Clark volunteers at the WEFTEC 2012 service project to build a bioswale in New Orleans. Photo courtesy of Haley Falconer, WEF Students and Young Professionals Committee vice chair.

“WEF has been a wonderful compliment to my career,” Clark said. “It has allowed me the opportunity to meet and network with so many water industry professionals, and has provided many personal growth experiences.” He added, “Honorary Membership is a true highlight of my career.  Recognition by my peers from such an outstanding organization is very humbling and is something for which I will always be grateful.”

Clark is a senior client services director with 36 years of experience. During his career, he has provided planning, design, and construction services for many projects, including the Hyperion Treatment Plant (Los Angeles), several Metro Vancouver (British Columbia) utilities projects, the Encina Wastewater Authority (Carlsbad, Calif.) biosolids management facilities, the East Bay Municipal Utility District (Oakland, Calif.) Richmond Advanced Recycled Expansion Water Project, Orange County (Calif.) Sanitation District’s Secondary Activated Sludge Facility 2 at Plant No. 1, Irvine Ranch (Calif.) Water District’s Michelson Water Recycling Plant Biosolids and Energy Management Facilities, and Orange County Water District’s Groundwater Replenishment System.

In addition to extensive career experience, Clark belongs to many associations and volunteers at several organizations. He is an American Society of Civil Engineers (Reston, Va.) fellow, American Public Works Association (Kansas City, Mo.) member, American Water Works Association (Denver) member. He is a board member of the US Water Alliance (Washington D.C.) and holds International Water Academy (Oslo, Norway) chair No. 176. He also serves on the Civil and Environmental Engineering Advisory Board for Washington State University (Pullman), where he also is a president’s associate and received the University’s Alumni Achievement Award.

Clark reviews construction drawings with design staff. Photo courtesy of Clark.

Clark reviews construction drawings with design staff. Photo courtesy of Clark.

Clark said one of his most memorable experiences comes from participating on the Stockholm Water Prize Nominating Committee. He served two terms as a member of the Stockholm Water Prize Nominating Committee and as a member of the Stockholm Water Prize Founders’ Council.  In 2007, he presented the prize to Perry McCarty, professor at Stanford University (Calif.). Clark gave a speech acknowledging the McCarty’s accomplishments and presented the award to him during the ceremony attended by the King and Queen of Sweden and approximately 800 dignitaries from around the world, Clark explained. “This was one of those life experiences which I will never forget,” he said.

In addition, Clark is a former board member and still participates as an ambassador for Water For People (Denver), is a former board member of the Water Environment Research Foundation (Alexandria, Va.), and has authored approximately 100 presentations and publications on wastewater treatment technologies and facilities.

For WEF, Clark currently mentors the Students and Young Professionals Committee to promote leadership training and community involvement. He also has been a contributing author for Design of Municipal Wastewater Treatment Plants (Manual of Practice 8) and Control of Odors and Emissions From Wastewater Treatment Plants (Manual of Practice 25).

WEF accepts nominations for Honorary Membership every year. The deadline to submit a nomination is March 1.

Jennifer Fulcher, WEF Highlights

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