With climate change threatening freshwater sources, water demand across the globe is likely to increase by 20 - 30% between now and 2050. In this episode, we’re looking at two promising solutions to create clean drinking water from surprising places: our sewers and our oceans.
We speak with General Manager of the Orange County Water District, Mike Markus, about debunking the “toilet to tap” fear and how turning our wastewater into clean drinking water can be a closed-loop solution to mounting water scarcity.
We also hear from Dr. William Tarpeh about new research at Stanford University that could make desalination a more viable solution; one that’s less costly and better for the environment.
Biographical Notes:
Michael (Mike) R. Markus is the general manager of the Orange County Water District (OCWD; the District), which manages the Orange County Groundwater Basin that supplies water to more than 2.5 million people in north and central Orange County, Calif.
With more than 40 years of experience, Mike is well known for his expertise in large project implementation and water resource management. In September 2007, he became only the sixth general manager in the District's history.
During his 33-year career at the District, Mike was responsible for managing the implementation of the $480 million Groundwater Replenishment System (GWRS) program. This project is the largest potable reuse project in the world and has won many awards including the 2008 Stockholm Industry Water Award, 2009 ASCE Outstanding Civil Engineering Achievement Award, 2014 U.S. Water Prize and the 2014 Lee Kuan Yew Prize. In 2015, Mike oversaw the completion of the 30 MGD GWRS Initial Expansion.
The expansion brought the total production capacity of the GWRS to 100 MGD of high-quality water, which is enough to serve 850,000 people annually.
Mike was named the 2017 Pioneer in Groundwater by the Environmental & Water Resources Institute, one of the Top 25 Industry Leaders of 2014 by Water & Wastewater International, he received the international 2009 Säid Khoury Award for Engineering Construction Excellence, the 2007 American Society of Civil Engineers’ Government Engineer of the Year award, and he was one of the Top 25 Newsmakers of 2007 by the Engineering News-Record.
Mike currently serves on the board of directors of the Water Research Foundation, the National Water Research Institute, American Water Works Association and the California Section of the WateReuse Association. He obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering from California State Polytechnic University, Pomona and a Master of Science degree in civil engineering from the University of Southern California. He is also a registered civil engineer in the state of California.
Dr. William Tarpeh
Dr. William Tarpeh is an assistant professor of chemical engineering at Stanford University. The Tarpeh Lab develops and evaluates novel approaches to resource recovery from “waste” waters at several synergistic scales: molecular mechanisms of chemical transport and transformation; novel unit processes that increase resource efficiency; and systems-level assessments that identify optimization opportunities.
Will completed his B.S. in chemical engineering at Stanford and his M.S. and Ph.D. in environmental engineering at UC Berkeley, supported by an NSF Graduate Research Fellowship, Ford Foundation Predoctoral Fellowship, and a UC Berkeley Chancellor's Fellowship.
He conducted postdoctoral training at University of Michigan in environmental engineering. Will is a member of the Bouchet Honor Society, NBCBLK's "28 Under 28" African-American Innovators, and Forbes' "30 Under 30" 2019 Science List. Tarpeh's CV is available here.
