Episode 62: Diversity, equity & inclusion in the water sector

In this month’s episode, the hosts discuss The Norfolk Southern East Palestine train derailment, new funding for emerging contaminants and share an interview on DE&I in the water industry.   In this month’s episode of Talking Under Water co-hosts Bob Crossen and Katie Johns share an update on the The Norfolk Southern East Palestine train derailment’s impact on surface and groundwater in Eastern Ohio and Western Pennsylvania and touch on new funding for emerging contaminants in drinking water through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.  Additionally, this month’s interview dives into diversity, equity and inclusion in the water sector with W&T Contracting Corporation co-owners and brothers Wiley and Terrell Richards. The Richardses talked with Johns about their careers, goals, advice and more.   Show Notes:   Ohio EPA asserts low contamination risk from train derailment   EPA announces $2B available for emerging contaminants in drinking water  Talking Under Water Episode 49: The Importance of DE&I to the Water Industry     Timestamps:   Cold open | 0:00  Episode summary | :057  The Norfolk Southern East Palestine Train derailment | 1:51  Emerging contaminant funding | 8:48  Interview intro | 11:06  Interview starts | 11:25  Wiley & Terrell Richards’ career paths | 12:10  About W&T Contracting Corporation |14:42  The importance of mentorship programs | 18:20  MBE requirements | 20:13  DE&I evolution | 22:18  Addressing the staffing shortage | 24:52  Advice | 26:36  Subcontract at Ford Blue Oval Plant | 27:55  Final thoughts | 29:58  Interview ends | 31:05  Housekeeping | 31:22  End | 33:45  Award Programs:  Stormwater Solutions Young Pros  Stormwater Solutions Industry Icon  Wastewater Digest Young Pros    StormCon Discount:  Talking Under Water listeners have access to a special discount code to register for this year's StormCon. When registering, use the code ONEWATER10 to receive a 10% discount on your conference registration. Visit bit.ly/stormconreg2023 to register and use the code.      About the Podcast   Talking Under Water is the premier podcast for the water industry, including municipal and industrial water and wastewater, residential water treatment, storm water management and erosion control. It is produced in coordination between Water & Wastes Digest (WWD), Water Quality Products (WQP) and Storm Water Solutions (SWS). The podcast covers topics under the One Water movement including the municipal and industrial water and wastewater, point of use, point of entry, residential, storm water and erosion control markets. Talking Under Water highlights news, trends, new technologies, industry discussions and on-site interviews with experts for WWD, WQP and SWS. New episodes of the podcast are released on the third Friday of every month. Logo Images: Anatoly Tiplyashin / Romolo Tavani / stock.adobe.com.      Contact the Talking Under Water podcast editors by emailing [email protected] or engaging with them on Twitter @TUWpodcast. Join the conversation by commenting or using the hashtag #talkingunderwaterpod on social media.