Jeffrey Samson decided to pursue a career in the water industry after reading about a project led by University of New Mexico professor, Dr. Bruce Thomson to bring reusable, potable water to a small community that previously lacked a reliable water supply. In the decades since, he has worked on a range of water-related engineering projects, from cleaning up groundwater to constructing pump stations and drinking water wells.
Today, Jeffrey is senior water resources engineer at WSP, helping his team manage and win projects while assisting junior staff in their development.
Tom Howell’s background in chemical engineering organically developed into an interest in the water sector. “My fascination with processes and chemistry led to my passion for the water industry. There’s just so much happening within a single drop of water.”
His work developing water treatment for power stations and gas turbine plants led to designing and building brackish water desalination facilities for the coal seam gas industry. Howell is now Vice President of Water Resources Engineering at WSP, where he leads a team of about 25 people focused on delivering water treatment projects.
Helping communities manage supply
Howell and Samson’s work share a common theme: helping communities in some of the most arid areas of the United States as they seek to improve their access to usable water.
Drawing from their years of experience working to solve these issues, Samson and Howell will be hosting the “Unlocking Hidden Water: Developing Sustainable Water Supplies in the Arid Southwest” expert presentation at the Water Environment Federation's Technical Exhibition and Conference (WEFTEC).
They will provide an overview of trends in groundwater supply and reuse in the southwestern United States, along with a run through of project case studies.
“There are significant water shortages in many parts of the U.S., despite some states having surplus,” explains Howell. “Sadly, these shortages go beyond simply the availability of water to shortages due to contractual arrangements.”
Supporting water resilience
Water is precious for southwestern states like New Mexico and Texas, which face restricted supplies and regular droughts.
“When you have a drier atmosphere, the soils are drier and it takes more rain to wet those soils,” says Samson. “Climate change is expected to intensify these conditions in many places. So, to me, adaptation looks like utilizing every single drop of water and not letting any go to waste. I expect that many utilities in the West will prioritize investing in reuse and conservation."
For several years now, Samson’s team has been working with the Navajo nation to drill new wells and construct pump houses to help strengthen water-supply resiliency in small communities across the southwest United States. This involves navigating project challenges and safety education with contractors to support efforts to address the community’s needs and deliver the contract effectively.
As a drought-prone state, this kind of work is especially important. “States like New Mexico, who we are currently working with to investigate and map brackish water resources, have a fantastic opportunity,” Howell notes. “I think they are at an ideal point to develop these finite resources in tandem with recycled water schemes and taking a long-term view to infrastructure.”
His team is currently looking into aquifer storage recovery, a form of water reuse focused on non-potable purposes, to assist drought-impacted states including New Mexico, Texas, Arizona and Utah.
