Make Water Work Podcast

Data Centers Are Coming. Is Water Ready? | Make Water Work 037

One data center operator hired over 100 people just to solve their water problem. Another operator of equal size hired two.That gap tells you everything about where this industry is right now.Data centers are the hottest topic in water. And over the past several months, we've collected five perspectives from guests who are thinking about this differently — from community planners to state regulators to investors to infrastructure economists. In this special compilation episode, host Isaac Pellerin brings those voices together for the first time.Here's what's covered:• Why water reuse is one of the most practical responses to data center growth — and why climate makes it more urgent• How to design the stakeholder table before a data center breaks ground — and why economic development and water need to talk much earlier• Why not all data centers are created equal — and what that means for utilities negotiating leverage• The difference between direct and indirect water use — and why both matter for communities and utilities evaluating a new facility• Where standardization stands right now — and why 92% of last year's incremental GDP growth makes the answer criticalFive voices. Five angles. One of the most important conversations the water sector is having right now.Learn more about 120Water: https://120water.comFeatured voices:Bruno Pigott| Water Reuse AssociationMichelle Stockness | FreshwaterAnthony DeRosa | Association of State Drinking Water Administrators (ASDWA)Damian Georgino | DentonsPeter Yolles | Echo River Capital#MakeWaterWork #DataCenters #WaterIndustry #DrinkingWater #WaterInfrastructure #WaterTech #AIandWater #WaterPolicy #Sustainability #WaterInnovation

SWAN 16th Annual Conference: Make Water Work 036

This week's episode is a special on-location field report from the SWAN Conference — the Smart Water Networks Forum — held in Tampa, Florida. SWAN is a global annual event bringing together utility leaders, engineers, practitioners, and innovators to push the conversation on how the water sector adopts new technology.I had the chance to facilitate a two-hour roundtable with Anthony DeRosa of ASDWA, exploring one of the most important and underexplored tensions in the sector right now: how does regulation fit into digital transformation?Here's what we covered:Why the water sector's regulatory framework was built for a different eraHow governance lags are leaving utilities to modernize at their own riskThe funding misalignment that's blocking solution adoptionWhy solving the most common problem — not the hardest one — is the key to scaling innovationWhat it means to design tools for field workers, not just desk workersWhy deployment funding without sustainability is a dead endIf you work at a utility, an engineering firm, or anywhere in the water sector, these conversations matter. The decisions being made now about how we govern, fund, and adopt technology will shape the next decade of water infrastructure.

Adam Tank: Anti-Disruption: Selling Innovation to an Industry That Hates Risk | Make Water Work 035

The water industry doesn't want to be disrupted. And that's not a problem — it's the whole point.In this episode, Isaac sits down with Adam Tank, co-founder and Chief Communications Officer at Transcend, to talk about what it actually takes to build and sell technology in one of the most risk-averse industries in the world. Adam has spent his career at the intersection of water, startups, and design thinking — from GE's venture group to a water robotics company spun out of General Electric, to leading Suez's smart cities group, to co-founding Transcend in 2019.The conversation covers what the water industry still gets wrong about innovation, why the real opportunity might be in energy rather than water, and why the single most important word when selling to a utility isn't "efficiency" or "savings" — it's risk.Adam covers:→ How Ralph Exton and a GE internship started it all→ Why solving non-revenue water isn't about finding the leaks→ The single most important thing early-stage water entrepreneurs get wrong→ Why "disruption" is the worst word you can use with a water utility→ Risk mitigation as the real language of utility decision-making→ The toilet-to-tap PR failure and what it says about water communication→ Why over 50% of California's energy is water-related — and what data centers are forcing us to reckon with→ How AI is about to change who can innovate in the water sector→ Why Transcend is focused on the planning phase — and why 80% of project outcomes are decided thereThe technology exists. The talent is there. What's missing is the ability to communicate value in the language utilities actually speak.Connect with Adam Tank: linkedin.com/in/adamtank | adamtank.com | transcendinfra.comLearn more about 120Water: https://120water.com

Laura Vidal: Rural Water Always Finds a Way | Make Water Work 034

85% of water systems in the United States operate with three or fewer employees.
They manage treatment, distribution, compliance, reporting, and public communication — often while also handling parks, snow removal, and everything else a small community needs. They are rarely celebrated. And when everything is working, they are almost invisible.
This episode is for them.
Make Water Work is launching a new series dedicated entirely to rural water — the small systems, the circuit riders, the association staff, and the utility operators who make clean water happen for millions of Americans every day.
And there is no better person to kick it off than Laura Vidal, Association Partnership Director at 120 Water and a 17-year veteran of the Alliance of Indiana Rural Water.
In this episode, Isaac sits down with his new co-host to hear her story, understand how rural water associations actually work, and set the stage for the conversations ahead.
In this episode:
• How Laura went from an investment brokerage firm to 17 years in rural water
• What makes rural water utility professionals genuinely different from anyone else in the industry
• How the National Rural Water Association and state associations support small systems
• What circuit riders actually do and where that term comes from
• The real challenge of the Lead and Copper Rule Revisions for systems with three or fewer employees
• Why rural water associations are the connective tissue between utilities, regulators, and solution providers
• What it looks like when utilities, associations, state agencies, and technology partners all work from the same data
• What's coming next in the Make Water Work Rural Water Series
These are the unsung heroes of the water industry. It's time to tell their stories.
Learn more about 120 Water: https://120water.com
#MakeWaterWork #RuralWater #WaterIndustry #DrinkingWater #WaterUtility #SmallSystems #WaterInnovation #SafeDrinkingWater #WaterPolicy #PublicHealth

Rodney Clemente: Water Bankruptcy & The Cost of Doing Nothing | Make Water Work 033

75% of the world's population lives in water-insecure countries. The amount of fresh water on the planet is fixed. And we are spending it faster than nature can replenish it.The UN calls it global water bankruptcy. And according to Rodney Clemente, Senior Vice President of Water at Energy Recovery, the bill is coming due.In this episode, Rodney breaks down what desalination actually is, why it costs 5-10x more to build a plant in the US than in Saudi Arabia, and why the real question isn't "can we solve the water crisis" — it's "what's the cost of doing nothing?"From a small garage startup in Virginia Beach to a dominant global player with 40,000+ devices deployed worldwide, Energy Recovery has spent 30 years making desalination more affordable and more efficient. Rodney brings that perspective to one of the most important conversations in water today.In this episode:• What the UN's Global Water Bankruptcy report actually means• How reverse osmosis desalination works — and why energy is its Achilles heel• Why a desalination plant in the US costs 3-5x more than one in the Middle East• The case for a diversified water portfolio: desal, reuse, recycling, and conservation• Why companies keep paying fines instead of building treatment plants• What Singapore's water strategy can teach the rest of the world• Brine valorization and the circular economy of desalination• Where the global desal market is headed in the next 5-10 years#MakeWaterWork #Desalination #WaterScarcity #WaterInnovation #CleanWater #WaterTech #Sustainability #ClimateTech #Infrastructure #WaterCrisis

Damian Georgino: Rethinking Water | Make Water Work 032

Water is the one infrastructure you cannot live without — and it got a D-minus rating from the American Society of Civil Engineers. In this episode, we sit down with Damian Georgino, Partner at global law firm Dentons and a 30-year veteran of the water industry, to talk about why everything you think you know about water is wrong — starting with the tap.Damian shares his journey from selling water businesses for Alcoa under Paul O'Neill to joining the early days of US Filter, and how water captured him for good. We explore the trillion-dollar global water market, the shift from centralized to decentralized water systems (and what that means for your business), the massive water demands of AI data centers and chip plants, and why private capital may be the only path forward for America's crumbling water infrastructure.Whether you're an investor, a water professional, or just someone who turns on a faucet every day — this conversation will change how you see water forever.Topics covered:Why any business is a water businessThe energy-water nexus (75% of water costs are energy)Decentralized water: learning from energy deregulationAI, data centers & the looming water crisisThe $800B infrastructure gap — and why $55B isn't enoughPrivate capital, infrastructure investing, and mid-teens IRRsWhy municipalities resist innovation — and what might change thatWhat water looks like if we rethink it from scratch📋 Show NotesGuest: Damian Georgino, Partner, Dentons LLPHost: Isaac PellerinCo-Host: Megan Glover, Founder, 120 WaterAbout Damian GeorginoDamian Georgino is a Partner at Dentons, one of the world's largest law firms, where he focuses on water infrastructure, capital transactions, and economic development. His water career began at Alcoa, where he led the sale of five water businesses to the then-upstart US Filter, founded by Dick Heckman. He has served on the President's National Infrastructure Advisory Council and is a frequent speaker on water finance, infrastructure policy, and the energy-water nexus. Dentons sponsors the Rethinking Water Conference and runs an infrastructure think tank focused on reimagining water systems.

Anne Mushow: How Subeca’s IoT Platform is Transforming Water Management | Make Water Work 031

In this episode of Make Water Work, Isaac Pellerin and Megan Glover sit down with Anne Mushow, CEO of Subeca, to explore how smart metering, IoT, and new business models are transforming water utilities.Anne shares her journey from electrical engineering to leading one of the most innovative startups in water tech, and breaks down how Subeca is helping utilities modernize without massive capital investment. The conversation dives into Amazon Sidewalk, metering-as-a-service, and why flexibility and interoperability are key to unlocking digital transformation across 40,000+ small utilities in the U.S.What you’ll learn:• Why most water utilities still rely on decades-old technology• How Subeca is making legacy infrastructure “smart” with plug-and-play IoT• The role of Amazon Sidewalk in reducing infrastructure costs• What “metering as a service” means for utilities and ratepayers• Why small and rural utilities are the biggest opportunity in water• How better data can improve efficiency, leak detection, and sustainability• The importance of interoperability and partnerships in water innovationKey moments:00:00 The future of metering and disruption in water03:00 Anne’s journey into the water industry05:30 What Subeca does and the problem it solves10:00 Amazon Sidewalk and the power of existing infrastructure15:00 How Subeca is different from traditional smart metering21:00 Metering as a service and new utility business models24:00 Building a startup in the water sector31:00 The future of water data and global expansionAbout the guest:Anne Mushow is the CEO of Subeca, a smart water metering company focused on making digital transformation accessible for utilities of all sizes. With experience at Sensus and Amazon Web Services, she brings deep expertise in metering, infrastructure, and scalable technology solutions.Subscribe for more conversations with leaders shaping the future of water, climate, and infrastructure.#WaterTech #SmartCities #IoT #ClimateTech #Infrastructure #MakeWaterWork #WaterInnovation

Simon Olivier: How Cycle H2O is Accelerating Water Innovation | Make Water Work 030

What does it take to actually scale innovation in water?
In this episode of Make Water Work, Isaac Pellerin and Megan Glover sit down with Simon Olivier, leader of Cycle H2O, an impact fund focused on accelerating water technology.
Simon shares the personal moment that pulled him into the water space...and how it led to building a venture fund designed to solve one of the industry’s biggest challenges: getting real solutions to scale.
The conversation dives into what makes water different from other industries, why progress can feel slow, and how the right combination of capital, partnerships, and strategy can unlock faster adoption.
 
They also explore:
 
• Why Simon invests in “aspirin, not vitamins” — solving urgent, critical problems
• The role of strategic investors in helping startups scale beyond just funding
• Why water innovation is lagging — and how other industries offer a roadmap forward
• The growing importance of water security, reuse, and decentralized systems
• How data centers, energy, and manufacturing are quietly reshaping water demand
• What separates successful founders — and the mistakes to avoid early
 
Simon also highlights emerging technologies in areas like real-time water monitoring and PFAS treatment, and shares why Canada is becoming a global hub for water innovation.

Glenn Barnes: Unlocking Water Infrastructure Funding | Make Water Work 029

In this episode of Make Water Work, Isaac Pellerin and Megan Glover sit down with Glenn Barnes to unpack one of the biggest challenges facing the water industry today: affordability.Glenn brings deep expertise from his work helping utilities navigate funding, rates, and long-term infrastructure planning. This conversation goes beyond the headlines to explain why water rates are rising, why small communities face outsized challenges, and what needs to change to build resilient systems for the future.What you’ll learn:• Why water utilities are not funded by taxes and how the “enterprise fund” model works• The hidden history of federal grants that kept rates artificially low for decades• Why small and rural communities face the toughest financial challenges• The real reason water rates are rising faster than other utilities• How programs like SRF and USDA loans actually work (and where they fall short)• The growing infrastructure funding gap and what it means for public health• Why asset management, regionalization, and consolidation are becoming critical

Chris Miller: Chemistry, Compliance, and Scale | Make Water Work 028

In this episode of Make Water Work, Isaac Pellerin and Megan Glover sit down with Chris Miller, Vice President of Digital Services at USALCO and founder of Fontus Blue, to unpack the journey from academic research to startup success and acquisition.
 
Chris shares how a job in a university water lab led to a PhD, a company, and ultimately a platform helping utilities navigate one of the toughest challenges in water: balancing compliance, chemistry, and operational complexity.
 
In this episode, we cover:
 
• The origin story of Fontus Blue and why it matters
• How water utilities balance disinfection and harmful byproducts
• Why “optimization” really means managing trade-offs
• Lessons learned from building and scaling a water tech startup
• What founders need to know about partnerships and acquisition timing
• The growing complexity of water regulations and what comes next
• Why supporting operators is critical to the future of water
 
Whether you're a water professional, entrepreneur, or simply curious about how safe drinking water actually gets delivered, this episode breaks down the science, strategy, and human side of the industry.