Houston’s wetlands are disappearing—fast. Ayanna Jolivet Mccloud of Bayou City Waterkeeper says unchecked development and weak regulation are erasing vital habitat. Her team mapped the five critical wetlands still left in the city—large, connected tracts that support biodiversity—and launched community campaigns to protect them before it’s too late. Episode at…
Ever wonder which foods guzzle the most water? In the latest Water Street Questions, people shared their guesses on which foods require the most water to produce, sparking a lively conversation about water’s hidden role in our diets. Many pointed to vegetables, with answers like “to grow any vegetable” and…
Houston’s bayous are sparking a bold new vision for unity in water advocacy. Ayanna Jolivet Mccloud, Executive Director of Bayou City Waterkeeper, calls for conservation and environmental justice organizations to bridge their divide, centering communities for a more equitable approach to water protection. By fostering collaboration and leaning into environmental…
Pittsburgh has transformed a 2016 lead water crisis into a national model, replacing over 13,000 lead service lines with an innovative trenchless method that swaps them for copper, minimizing disruption to homes. Funded by State Revolving Fund loans and infrastructure grants at no cost to homeowners, Pittsburgh Water is over…
Imagine wastewater from four distinct sources—municipal, stormwater, industrial, and agriculture—transformed into a lifeline for thriving crops and aquifers. Monterey One Water’s pioneering project, recycling 6 billion gallons since 2020, does just that, blending these diverse streams into a sustainable resource that fuels the Salinas Valley’s agricultural economy and protects Monterey…
Imagine Houston’s bayous thriving as the heart of a vibrant, water-focused city. Ayanna Jolivet Mccloud, Executive Director of Bayou City Waterkeeper, is sparking a movement to reclaim Houston as the Bayou City, moving beyond its petrochemical identity by embracing “waterscapes” over landscapes. By celebrating the bayous crisscrossing the watershed and…
Subscribe to catch every video:https://www.youtube.com/@waterloop 💧H2O INTRO 🤝 Meet Nomble Lee-Watson of AECOM Nomble Lee-Watson is a water and wastewater engineer who stepped out from behind the computer and into neighborhoods—knocking on doors to help identify and replace unsafe water pipes. Through lead service line inventory work, Nomble connects directly…
💧H2O INTRO 🤝 Meet Nicole Brown of the Black Water Professionals Alliance As vice president and co-founder, Nicole Brown is helping to build a nationwide community for Black professionals in the water sector—along with allies and sponsors ready to join the movement. From monthly virtual meetups for Black women in…
Houston is known as the energy capital—but it’s also the Bayou City, where water flows not just through the environment, but through culture, memory, justice, and resilience. In this episode from the Color of Water series, Ayanna Jolivet Mccloud, Executive Director of Bayou City Waterkeeper, shares how her background in…
Can a river recover from a toxic flood of 3 million gallons of wastewater? In 2015, the Gold King Mine spill turned Colorado’s Animas River bright gold with arsenic and lead, devastating tourism, rafting, and farming in Durango. Yet, through resilience and restoration, the Animas has bounced back, now fueling…
What if wastewater could keep iconic golf courses lush while saving a river? In California’s Pebble Beach, a 115-million-gallon reservoir of recycled water irrigates seven golf courses, including the famed Pebble Beach. Launched in the 1980s to ease pressure on the Carmel River, this project’s advanced reverse osmosis treatment ensures…
💧H2O INTRO 🤝 Meet Dante Payne of the Philadelphia Water Department Dante Payne used to wake up at 3 a.m. to collect water samples across Philadelphia. Now, he leads the team that tests every drop of new and repaired water infrastructure in the city. As a Water Quality Control Manager,…
A landmark Texas Supreme Court ruling affirming the constitutionality of groundwater regulation has transformed legislative priorities, sparking a surge in water-related bills. With growing interest in key water committees and new groundwater districts shaping policy, Texas is seeing unprecedented legislative action to address water challenges, reports Todd Votteler of the…
Pittsburgh’s Point marks the convergence of the Allegheny, Monongahela, and Ohio rivers. These waterways once fueled the city’s steel empire. They carried commerce deep into America’s heartland. Today, they sustain 30 million people downstream. Smokestacks have given way to waterfront parks. Water-focused recreation now thrives. Over 440 bridges, more than…
Texas is tackling its water challenges head-on with cutting-edge solutions like seawater and brackish groundwater desalination, including a major plant under construction in Corpus Christi. Meanwhile, El Paso’s groundbreaking water reuse facility, which will put purified wastewater back into the drinking water system, sets a model for sustainable urban water…
💧H2O INTRO 🤝 Meet Lyndon DeSalvo of The Nature Conservancy How do we advance green infrastructure that benefits both people and nature? Lyndon DeSalvo, Urban Conservation Program Manager at The Nature Conservancy, is focused on scaling nature-based solutions by tackling barriers in policy, financing, and data. He's working with partners…
Texas is poised to transform its water future with a $20 billion fund, approved by the legislature, to be allocated over 20 years for water security. The plan splits funding equally between developing new water supplies and upgrading aging infrastructure, addressing critical needs across the state, explains Todd Votteler of…
Texas is tackling its booming population’s water demands with a bold $20 billion investment plan to secure sustainable supplies and infrastructure by 2050. In this episode of In The Newsroom, Todd Votteler, a veteran water expert and editor of the Texas Water Journal, joins the podcast to discuss the state’s…
Water sparks joy and connection, and the latest Water Street Questions episode captures this magic through people's heartfelt stories. From nostalgic childhood beach trips to thrilling waterpark rides, serene yoga on a dock, kayaking with friends, and lifeguarding by the pool, residents shared memories that celebrate water’s role in shaping…
Dive into AI or fall behind, warns digital transformation expert Shama Hyder, emphasizing that tools like ChatGPT and Claude are essential for staying competitive. Embrace the learning curve—mistakes are just steps toward mastering AI’s potential in today’s workplace. Episode at https://bit.ly/AIreshapeComms waterloop is a nonprofit news outlet exploring solutions for…
Picture yourself diving into a virtual aquifer or watching rain fall onto a model of the city of Los Angeles. That's what happens at the Albert Robles Center, where cutting-edge exhibits reveal the magic of water and visitors can see the process of purification through ultrafiltration, reverse osmosis, and ultraviolet…
Los Angeles is blazing a trail to a water-secure future by planning to transform 230 million gallons of wastewater daily into clean drinking water at the Hyperion Water Reclamation Plant through the ambitious Pure Water Los Angeles program. A pilot project already supplying purified water to LAX proves this game-changing…
AI is elevating the importance of soft skills like empathy and curiosity, according to digital transformation expert Shama Hyder. Asking insightful questions is becoming a vital skill for thriving in an AI-driven workplace. Episode at https://bit.ly/AIreshapeComms waterloop is a nonprofit news outlet exploring solutions for water sustainability. Visit https://www.waterloop.org/ Subscribe…
💧H2O INTRO 🤝 Meet Andrew King of American Water How do we prepare for a changing climate? By evolving our risk assessments. Andrew King is a long-term planner for American Water, focusing on the impacts of natural disasters on our water and wastewater systems. By analyzing historical data and adopting…