On the same day I am writing this, the U.S. Department of Commerce and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) announced $60 million in funding to strengthen a climate-ready workforce as part of the White House’s Investing in America agenda under the Inflation Reduction Act.
According to a NOAA press release, “these funds, part of NOAA’s Climate-Ready Workforce initiative, will allow NOAA’s National Sea Grant College Program, Climate Program Office and Office for Coastal Management to fund sectoral partnerships that will develop and implement job training programs. These programs will include wraparound services to help make training opportunities more accessible.”
Nine projects across the U.S. were chosen for grants, and the initiative is focused on placing people in jobs that will advance climate resilience nationwide.
This news should be uplifting to many throughout the industry. I constantly hear that stormwater professionals are facing workforce struggles, not only in retaining their people and talent but in finding enough workers. All nine of the chosen projects focus on training and educating individuals on various topics including climate resilience, green infrastructure, wastewater treatment and more.
And while nine projects were chosen, there were more than 90 submitted for consideration. This signifies that there is an urge for more funding to help prepare the water workforce, but this is a step in the right direction. There will be a video interview on the Stormwater Solutions’ website soon with a representative from NOAA to discuss this, along with a general workforce discussion, so stay tuned.
As for this issue of Stormwater Solutions, we are previewing our annual StormCon show, which is quickly approaching. On page 8, read all about the exciting sessions, panels, tours and more we have planned for this year’s StormCon, which will take place from August 27-29, in Reno, Nevada. On page 10, you can see a sample of some of the companies exhibiting at StormCon 2024. It is sure to be a busy and fun show. If you would like more information, visit stormcon.com.
Additionally, in this issue, we cover watershed and wetland management, along with green infrastructure. As always, my inbox is open. Enjoy!
