The Water Advisory Committee of Orange County (WACO) was formed in 1983 to facilitate the introduction, discussion, and debate of current and emerging water issues among Orange County policymakers and water professionals. It has also advocated the Orange County water community’s position on issues affecting the provision and management of our water supplies, with lawmakers, regulatory agencies, regional and state water organizations, and others. Topic: The Affordability of Water Meet Your Presenters Moderator and Speaker: Adan Ortega, CalMutuals  Speaker: Laurel Firestone, Member, State Water Resources Control Board  Speaker: Paul Jones, General Manager, Eastern Municipal Water District 

In December of 2015 and 2016, malicious cyber actors, unknown to the world at the time, launched a series of cyberattacks against civilian-owned and operated operational technology (OT) and industrial controls systems (ICS) in Ukraine’s critical infrastructure. These attacks disabled the electricity grid across the country, turning out the lights and heat in the middle of a Ukrainian winter for hundreds of thousands of men, women, and children. From there, the attack, leveraging NotPetya malware, spread across the globe, impacting companies' ability to provide critical public services such as transportation and health from Kyiv to Amsterdam to Heritage Valley, Pennsylvania. Much has been written about the hacking group we now call Sandworm (see Sandworm: A New Era of Cyberwar and the Hunt for the Kremlin's Most Dangerous Hackers by Andy Greenberg). Researchers, some of whom are joining for today's panel discussion, traced several other high-profile attacks to the Sandworm team going back several years. In this program, panelists will discuss Sandworm and the Russian governments' worldwide cyber-enabled campaign to destabilize and interfere with critical economic systems of other countries, the importance of government and critical infrastructure to work together to combat Sandworm and other APT actors, and how organizations can mitigate the […]

Unfortunately, water quality can sometimes change. Despite the efforts of water suppliers, problems with drinking water can and do occur. When problems arise, consumers have a right to know what happened and what they need to do to protect themselves. The public notice requirements of the Safe Drinking Water Act require water suppliers to provide this notice, and sets strict requirements on the form, manner, content, and frequency of public notices. EPA specifies three categories, or tiers, of public notification. The delivery timeframe depends on what tier a violation or situation falls into. Each tier has different required methods for delivery. Participants will learn: The 10 required elements of a public notice How to determine which tier your situation falls under Federal and state requirements pertaining to public communication and notification Resources and tools for complying with Federal and State requirements Why effective customer communication is vital for a small water system The recommended audience is water system operators and managers.   For registration questions, contact us at: registration@rcac.org • (916) 447-9832 ext. 1429

Unfortunately, water quality can sometimes change. Despite the efforts of water suppliers, problems with drinking water can and do occur. When problems arise, consumers have a right to know what happened and what they need to do to protect themselves. The public notice requirements of the Safe Drinking Water Act require water suppliers to provide this notice, and sets strict requirements on the form, manner, content, and frequency of public notices. EPA specifies three categories, or tiers, of public notification. The delivery timeframe depends on what tier a violation or situation falls into. Each tier has different required methods for delivery. Participants will learn: The 10 required elements of a public notice How to determine which tier your situation falls under Federal and state requirements pertaining to public communication and notification Resources and tools for complying with Federal and State requirements Why effective customer communication is vital for a small water system The recommended audience is water system operators and managers   2 CA (Drinking Water) Contact hours awarded. Certificates for Contact hours are available through your profile. Times listed are Pacific Time. Priority attendance will be given to those from smaller water systems. Contact hours have been approved for […]

As part of their Small Drinking Water Systems Webinar Series the United States EPA is holding a virtual conference on America's Water Infrastructure Act and creating resilient water utilities.  Every month the EPA gives a webinar to discuss challenges and treatment solutions for small drinking water and wastewater systems. In their next webinar the risk and resilience assessments and emergency response plan requirements for community water systems put in place by AWIA will be discussed.  The EPA's Creative Resilient Water Utilities Initiative (CRWU) provides drinking water, wastewater and storm water utilities with practical tools, training and technical assistance needed to increase resilience to extreme weather events. Through a comprehensive planning process, CRWU assists water utilizes in understanding potential long-term adaptation options for decision-making related to water utility infrastructure financing. The event will be presented by Charlene Kormondy, a physical scientist of the Water Security Division of USEPA as well as Curt Baranowski, the head of EPA's Resilient Water Utilities initiative.  Please navigate here to learn more or sign up!

This course Cen Cal NAWMA Workshop is now offered as an online two-part series, and is recommended to take both parts on same day.  Part 1 will take place from 10am to 12:00pm and Part 2 will take place from 1:00pm to 3:00pm.  Please follow the link below to register.  For questions on registration contact registration@rcac.org 

We spend 90% of our time indoors where we are exposed to a complex mixture of chemicals and diverse microbial communities. Both indoor chemistry and microbes are influenced by excess moisture in homes, and this dampness is associated with negative human health effects. The goal of this webinar is to elucidate how elevated relative humidity in housing can influence both indoor chemistry and microbiology. This work focuses on carpet and dust, which are important reservoirs for human exposure. You can register here now!

This course Cen Cal NAWMA Workshop is now offered as an online two-part series, and is recommended to take both parts on same day.  Part 1 will take place from 10am to 12:00pm and Part 2 will take place from 1:00pm to 3:00pm.  Please follow the link below to register.  For questions on registration contact registration@rcac.org 

2 CA Drinking Water Contact Hours awarded. This course Distribution System Essentials Workshop is now offered as an online two-part series, and is recommended to take both parts on the same day.  Part 1 will take place from 10:00am to 12:00pm and Part 2 will take place from 2:00pm to 4:00pm.  Please follow the link below to register.  Please click here if you would like to register for part 2. This class is designed to provide information and tools that operators of small water systems need for proper operation and management of distribution systems, with particular focus on maintaining water quality, avoiding water loss, and maintenance of critical components. Many maintenance activities require advanced knowledge of not only valve and piping operations but also proper scheduled preventative programs in order to dependably deliver safe drinking water. These activities, when practiced as part of a routine maintenance plan, will help small systems to optimize their water supply in a sustainable manner. Participants will learn:  • Leak detection & pipeline repair processes • Main flushing guidelines • Valve exercising and valve maintenance • Meter checking and replacement programs For registration questions, contact us at: registration@rcac.org• (916) 447-9832 ext. 1429

This course Disinfection By-Products Rule Workshop is now offered as an online two-part series, and is recommended to take both parts on the same day.  Part 1 will take place from 10:00am to 12:00pm and Part 2 will take place from 2:00pm to 4:00pm.  Please follow the link below to register.  Please click here if you would like to register for part 2. Certain commonly used drinking water disinfectants can react with naturally occurring materials in the water to form disinfection by-products (DBPs), which may pose long-term health risks. The Long-Term 2 Enhanced Surface Water Treatment Rule (LT2ESWTR) and the Stage 2 Disinfection By-Product Rule (DBPR) are the second phase of regulations meant to strengthen protection against microbial contaminants, and at the same time reduce the potential health risks of DBPs. This workshop will examine the factors and causes of DBP formation and the regulatory framework of the Stage 1 and Stage 2 DBPR. Participants will learn:  • The differences between the Stage 1 and Stage 2 rules • How to calculate Locational Running Annual Averages (LRAA) and flow-  weighted averaging for compliance reporting • How to identify a Combined Distribution System (CDS) and whether it applies to you • Alternative disinfectants and application practices that […]