Panel 1: Water and Wastewater Asset Management in The US
Moderator: Heather Himmelberger, Panelists: Irene F McSweeney, Calvin Clifton, John Tuggle
The panel discussion focused on asset management practices in the United States. The moderator, Heather, introduced the topic, noting that asset management has been a passion of hers since the early 2000s, when the EPA first brought the concept from Australia and New Zealand to the US.
John Tuggle, an engineer from West Virginia, discussed his role in a regional entity that facilitates and develops fiscal management of publicly funded infrastructure projects. Irene McSweeney, from the Boston Water and Sewer Commission, shared her experience transitioning from civil engineering to overseeing large sewer separation projects and operations. Calvin Clifton, a consultant from East Tennessee, spoke about his work in water loss reduction and business development.
A key focus of the discussion was the use of asset management in disaster recovery. Calvin Clifton described the devastating impact of recent hurricanes in North Carolina and Tennessee, emphasizing the importance of having asset management plans in place to identify system vulnerabilities, conduct rapid assessments, and secure funding for recovery efforts. John Tuggle also shared his experience with a 2016 disaster in West Virginia, highlighting the need for detailed information to justify financial requests to FEMA.
The panel also addressed the challenges of lead service line inventories, a requirement for all drinking water systems in the US. Irene McSweeney detailed the strategies Boston used to investigate and remove lead services, including door-to-door visits and the use of interns. She also discussed the funding mechanisms, such as grants and principal forgiveness, that helped the city fully fund the lead service line replacements.
The discussion touched on the broader challenges and opportunities in asset management, such as the universal missing piece of data related to service lines. The panelists emphasized the importance of collecting inventory data as part of regular operations to prepare for future requirements. They also suggested that asset management should be a required part of the engineering curriculum to better prepare future professionals.
Throughout the discussion, the panelists shared their experiences, best practices, and the ongoing efforts to educate and prepare the next generation of engineers and infrastructure professionals in the field of asset management.
Bio
Heather Himmelberger, Director, Southwest Environmental Finance Center, University of New Mexico
Heather Himmelberger is a registered professional engineer with over 35 years of experience working with water and wastewater
utilities all across the U.S. She has a BS from Penn State University and an MS from Johns Hopkins University both in Environmental
Engineering. As Director of the SW EFC, Heather has been a staunch advocate and promoter of asset management practice for
over 20 years. She has provided hundreds of asset management trainings and directly assisted systems of all sizes and types with
understanding and implementing asset management. She has presented asset management presentations at regional, national, and
international conferences. She has created guidance materials and documents.
Irene McSweeney, PE, Director of Construction, Boston Water and Sewer Commission
Irene McSweeney has served the City of Boston for 34 years at the Boston Water and Sewer Commission as Director of
Construction, Chief of Operations and Chief of Special Operations. Prior to joining the BWSC, she worked at Allen and Major
Associates as a Senior Project Manager, overseeing site development projects and residential and commercial subdivisions. Irene
earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Civil Engineering from Wentworth Institute of Technology and a Master’s in Environmental
Engineering from Worcester Polytechnic Institute. Her work spans all types of major infrastructure, from cleaning and lining of water
mains, to major sewer separation projects to clean up Boston Harbor, as well as numerous trenchless projects. As COO, she oversaw
the Commission’s emergency response and maintenance of the Commission’s 1500 miles of Sanitary and Storm Sewers and 1008
miles of water mains.
Calvin Clifton, Business Development & Recruiting Manager， Mattern & Craig, Inc.
Calvin Clifton has over 30 years of experience in public works and utilities in the southeast. His business, Mattern & Craig, Inc.,
works with many small-medium municipalities, as well as rural utility districts.
Clifton has a very diverse background, in both the public and private sectors. He spent the early years of his career in the public
works field serving in management positions with both the cities of Kingsport and Athens, Tennessee. Since 2004, Clifton has
worked in the consulting engineering field in the role of project manager, asset management consultant, and business development
& recruiting manager. He works primarily in east TN, North & South Carolina, and southwest VA.
As a former utilities and public works director, he approaches clients and projects from the standpoint of the owner, manager, and
maintainer. His experience includes design oversight and management of water/wastewater, stormwater, streets, and traffic
signs/signals.
A graduate of East Tennessee State University and Northeast State Community College, Clifton received his Municipal Specialist
Certification in Public Works/Utilities from the University of Tennessee Center for Government and received his Professional Water
Asset Manager (PWAM) certification in 2017.
A native of the east Tennessee mountains, Clifton and his wife, Leslie, reside in Kingsport. They have two grown children and four
grandchildren.
John W. Tuggle PE PS, Executive Director, Region 4 Planning and Development Council, Summersville, WV
John joined the WV Regional Planning and Development Councils in Oct. 2013 after spending 27 yrs as a Consultant Engineer,
primarily in the water and wastewater infrastructure sector. He is a licensed PE in WV,OH, and VA. Virtually all of his prior years as
a consultant were spent working closely with State and local government entities to improve the infrastructure needed to support
the health and well being of the citizenry in West Virginia and surrounding States. He has experienced the creation and evolution
of existing State and Federal funding programs over the years and developed the relationships with those agencies necessary to
facilitate successful infrastructure improvements of all types. John has been a key player with GIS corporate decision-making
process in both Public and Private Sector scenarios for over 20 yrs. His focus has been to research and develop ways to improve
basic utility and government operations with the efficiencies and cost effectiveness that GIS means and methods bring to
bear.John manages a superb staff of project administration personnel at Region 4 as well as co-manage the Fayette Raleigh
Metropolitan Planning Organization.John is very proud to be a lifelong West Virginian. He has a wonderful wife, Romona, three
grown and very successful children, and five grandchildren he adores.