MWRD Receives Excellence in Management Award

Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago (MWRD) Executive Director David St. Pierre accepted the highest award level offered by the National Association of Clean Water Agencies (NACWA) on behalf of the MWRD during NACWA’s summer conference and 44th annual meeting in Portland, Ore.

According to Kelly Brocato, NACWA’s director of membership development, the award represents “outstanding dedication to the implementation of sustainable, successful programs that exemplify the attributes of an effectively managed utility.”

Launched in 2003, the Excellence in Management Program (EIM) acknowledges the significant achievements of NACWA member agencies in the utility management arena. This program honors member agencies that have implemented and sustained, for a continuous three-year period, successful programs that address the range of management challenges faced by public clean water utilities in today’s competitive environment.

In 2012, NACWA’s EIM Program was enhanced with the incorporation of Platinum, Gold and Silver recognition, reflective of the number of attributes an agency meets or exceeds. The MWRD’s work met or exceeded the following attributes of utility excellence: product quality, financial viability, customer satisfaction, employee and leadership development, operational optimization, infrastructure stability, operational resiliency, community sustainability, water resource adequacy, stakeholder understanding and support; water resources recycling and storm water management, pretreatment program, biosolids and water quality protection on a watershed basis.

Director St. Pierre also served as a featured speaker during the “Collaboration, Partnerships and the Future of Clean Water” session. He discussed how it is important for utilities to look to traditional and non-traditional partners to address water management in the future.

Source: Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago