Rural Water - Quarter 1, 2009 - (Page 47)

Expectations were right on as each team began their training sessions. The decision was made early on to take the good ‘ole rural water approach. With that said, the dress code for the day was jeans, tennis shoes and very colorful Hawaiian style shirts. With the rural water trainers’ uncanny ability to relate to operators and managers and knowledge of the training topics, each session provided valuable information and discussion between attendees and the presenters. Attendance at the classes ranged from six to 39 participants, depending on the location and number of water systems in the area, with a total of over 400 water system professionals trained over the seven month period. Most of the water systems were groundwater, with a few surface water sources. Most had chlorine injection for disinfection, vertical turbine and submersible well systems, pumps, motors and safety issues. In other words, the same situations faced by water systems across the rest of the country. The water cycle and lithography of the islands make for a very unique recharge of the water supply. Terrain on the island changes within a very short period of time. Within three hours, you’ve gone from rainforest with up to 200 inches of yearly rainfall to deserts complete with cactus and minimal rainfall. Since the islands are volcanic and built from lava ﬂows, the rock formations are very porous. This provides good ﬁ ltration and recharge of the aquifers from rainfall in the higher elevations. Well systems on the islands can be very interesting. Some are accessed by traveling underground hundreds of feet in trolleys to the well-ﬁeld and wells can be thousands of feet deep. Ground tanks are used for water storage due to the higher ground elevations providing adequate water pressure to the distribution systems. Water mains are buried for the most part, with some running above ground in the lava ﬂow areas and where digging is prohibitive. Like all other water systems across the United States, Hawaii is unique in its own way when it comes to water supplies and water sources. When it comes down to training, operation, maintenance, safety, ﬁ nances and other water system issues, there is no difference. The water system operators and managers are dedicated to their profession and to providing safe quality drinking water to the customer. The EPA Training Specialist program was invaluable to the training needs of water systems in Hawaii, and was directly responsible for increasing their operator certiﬁcation rate from 25 percent to 50 percent, as well as a great learning experience for the trainers. The program was so successful that NRWA was asked by the operators and Hawaii State Department of Health to come back and repeat the program again in 2009. Once again, the rural water afﬁ liates jumped at the chance to provide trainers from their staff to supply professional training to the operators and systems of Hawaii. With continued support from Congress and EPA, NRWA looks forward to providing this valuable training opportunity to the water professionals in Hawaii assisting them with supplying safe and reliable drinking water to their customers for many years to come. Kaunakakai, Molokai, was the smallest of the five islands, but students were equally enthusiastic about the training. Lihue, Kauai, was one of six locations at five of the islands where classes were held. Basic Water Chemistry was one of 13 classes taught at Wailuku, Maui. Basic Water Chemistry class at Wailuku, Maui. The western shore of Hawaii near Kailua-Kona with its black lava flows and beautiful ocean vistas Classroom training at Pearl City, Oahu, on Storage, Distribution & Leak Detection. First Quarter 2009 • 47

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Rural Water - Quarter 1, 2009

Rural Water - Quarter 1, 2009 Contents From the President Question & Answer: Water Conservation in the Home Avoiding the Humpty Dumpty Approach to Data Backup From the CEO What the Future Holds Asset Management for Small Communities Understanding Your Surface Water Source: The Rivers Hydraulic Models Expeditionary Water Packaging System Graces Delta The Rural Water Rally in April Training in Hawaii Regulatory Update Rural Water Releases Report on Water Infrastructure Projects and Economic Stimulus Legislation Throwing My Loop Advertisers.com Index to Advertisers

Rural Water - Quarter 1, 2009

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