We really enjoyed this short video - that stats are pretty amazing to think about! Do you have any social media profiles?

Thanks to Joe Dougherty from the Utah Division of Emergency Management for sharing this with us!

Last week President Obama announced that fourteen projects would be expedited through the review and permitting projects, as part of his jobs creation program. The Navajo-Gallop Water Supply project is on the list.

From Circle of Blue...
"The 280-mile pipeline network would deliver San Juan River water to the Navajo Nation, the Jicarilla-Apache Nation, and the city of Gallup, N.M., weaning those areas from unsustainable groundwater use."

In other news, the USDA Rural Utilities Service is moving forward on implementing of the Substantially Underserved Trust Area ("SUTA") provisions contained in the 2008 Farm bill. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack says this "will provide those located in Trust Areas with better access to infrastructure funding to serve tribal communities seeking to build modern utility infrastructure."

We talk a lot here on SmallWaterSupply.org and across the industry about how the public doesn't properly value their water and the vital services provided by water and wastewater systems. We also produce, as a community, a lot of publications on why that should change. The one thing we don't talk a lot about is how.

A few weeks ago we mentioned a do-it-yourself guide for talking to local officials about source water. That is a start. We also pointed out a great little article in Small Biz Survival on building cooperation within your community. These two resources have one thing in common: a leader, an initiator, a loud voice in the crowd that gets the ball rolling.

You know as well as I do that the important business in town gets done over morning coffee or an evening beer. The action happens one-on-one between people. If you're reading this blog, you're likely in a position to be the instigator in your community. You don't have to have all the answers, you just have to start the conversation.

Each week in our newsletter we often share great articles talking about the value of water and water operators. We hope we're preaching to the choir with these - but we see a great opportunity in putting excellent food for thought in your hands.

Last week, a friend of SmallWaterSupply.org shared a great article from Readers Digest that ranks the top 10 jobs that Americans cannot live without. Water and wastewater operators are ranked #2, behind registered nurses. This article and those like it can be the catalyst for that one conversation to launch changes in your community.

So what are YOU going to do? Who will you share an article with?

How To Run Your System Like A Business is a series at SmallWaterSupply.org, appearing on Mondays