WateReuse Award Winners 2025
Award Recipients
See the winners and view submitted videos below.
Advocacy Achievement
Anselmo Collins, Los Angeles Department of Water and Power
Anselmo Collins, Senior Assistant General Manager of the Water System at the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP), is an innovative leader who not only oversees the entire water system for Los Angeles but has also significantly advanced water reuse in Los Angeles and beyond. With over three decades of experience, Anselmo has been instrumental in spearheading projects that set the standard for sustainable water management. His leadership has been pivotal in some of the largest water reuse projects in the County, including Pure Water Los Angeles, the LA Groundwater Replenishment Project, and other efforts related to Direct Potable Reuse.
In addition to developing these large-scale water reuse projects for Los Angeles, Anselmo’s recycled water advocacy extends beyond LADWP. Anselmo was instrumental through his role in the development of California’s DPR regulations, which resulted in a provision that supports complex, multi-agency projects. In 2024, Anselmo led LADWP’s development of the Los Angeles Groundwater Replenishment Project, which will deliver 22,000 acre-feet of potable water annually. He also worked on the Headworks Direct Potable Reuse Demonstration Project.
Anselmo’s role in advancing CalVal, which is a major WateReuse initiative for California, further demonstrates his commitment to water safety and innovation. His dedication to leadership, collaboration, and sustainable water solutions reflect his significant contributions to water reuse advocacy and innovation.
Shannon Spurlock, Pacific Institute
Shannon Spurlock entered the world of water reuse when she sought to find a reliable and sustainable irrigation source for food crops in Colorado. Unbeknownst to her at the time, this would introduce a new passion: water reuse. With a background in partnership and policy, Ms. Spurlock began working with Denver Water staff to update Colorado Regulation 84, Reclaimed Water Control Regulation.
Ms. Spurlock led a statewide effort to build a coalition of agricultural producers, and after more than seven years of effort that included legislative action and the passage of Colorado HB18-1093, this updated regulation went into effect in early 2020.
Ms. Spurlock has served as a Trustee, Secretary, and President for WateReuse Colorado and helped initiate the first statewide conference in nine years in 2023. She relishes the opportunity to advance reuse at the state and national level and is an active member of the Research, Membership, and Legislative and Regulatory Policy Committees of the WateReuse Association.
She has been part of teams and led multiple efforts to advance research that makes the case for these strategies, including projects with the U.S. EPA Water Reuse Action Plan (Actions 2.16, 5.5, 5.8, and 8.5), the Water Research Foundation (Projects WRRF 4775 and WRF Projects 5207, 5236, and 5250), and the Colorado Water Conservation Board.
Sharon Green, Los Angeles County Sanitation Districts
The Sanitation Districts operate one of the largest
recycled water programs in the nation, beneficially
reusing an average of over 100 MGD. For over 32
years at the Districts, Legislative and Regulatory
Manager Sharon Green has been an instrumental
advocate, significantly contributing to increasing water reuse across California and the United States.
Sharon serves as a leader on several trade association legislative committees, including Vice Chair for the WateReuse Legislative and Regulatory Policy Committee. For decades, Sharon has worked closely with Congresswoman Grace Napolitano and other members of the California Congressional delegation to invest in water recycling and was thrilled to see the Large-Scale Water Recycling Program enacted as part of the federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
Sharon has leveraged this new program to help secure almost $100 million in funding for Pure Water Southern California, one of the nation’s largest and most innovative water recycling projects.
Community Water Champions
Upper Occoquan Service Authority (UOSA)
Sterling Natural Resource Center (East Valley Water District, Balfour Beatty, Arcadis, Ruhnau Clarke Architects, Anaergia, AKD Consulting)
Excellence in Action
The French Valley Recycled Water Expansion Project (Eastern Municipal Water District, Temecula Valley Unified School District, The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, Valley-Wide Recreation and Park District)
Pure SoJo DPR Demonstration Facility (Ray Garrison, City of South Jordan)
The City of South Jordan, Utah, is leading the state’s first direct potable reuse (DPR) project with its Pure SoJo DPR Demonstration Facility. Facing growing population and drought concerns, South Jordan is working to develop a local, drought-resilient water supply. This innovative project, designed by Carollo Engineers, uses a non-reverse-osmosis treatment process to produce drinking water for demonstration and public outreach. The treatment includes ozone/biological filtration, ultrafiltration, granular activated carbon, and ultraviolet disinfection.
The City is actively engaging the public with educational campaigns, taste-testing events, and facility tours to build support for this sustainable water source. South Jordan’s efforts in DPR set a new standard for water management in Utah, with plans for a five-year pilot before full-scale implementation.
Outreach and Education
Be Water Positive Sailing Campaign
Arizona Water Innovation Initiative at Arizona State University (ASU)
Dr. Claire Lauer and the User Experience team from the Arizona Water Innovation Initiative at Arizona State University have developed two virtual reality experiences—one headset-based and one web-based—to provide engaging ways for Arizona residents to “tour” Advanced Water Purification plants virtually.
These Flow Forward experiences capitalize on the immersive affordances of virtual reality to transport residents directly into the inner workings of an AWP plant so they can learn about, and come to trust, the AWP process. The success of these experiences has relied on collaborations between water experts, technical communication professors, ASU’s Meteor Lab, ASU’s Ask A Biologist team, and teachers and students from ASU and local high schools who have play-tested the experiences as they’ve been developed.
Orange County Sanitation District
OC San is a vital resource recovery facility serving 2.6 million people in central and northwest Orange County, CA. Its mission centers on effective wastewater collection, treatment, and recycling, ensuring a sustainable future for the community. In a pioneering partnership with the Heritage Museum of Orange County (HMOC), they launched an innovative educational program aimed at elementary and middle school students. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, OC San developed a dynamic virtual curriculum that has since evolved into a hybrid model, allowing schools to access engaging content both online and in-person.
This information gives students knowledge about wastewater management and promotes “What 2 Flush” guidelines, which emphasize flushing only the three Ps: pee, poop, and paper. From July 2023 to June 2024, OC San’s collaboration has reached nearly 9,600 students across 167 schools, expanding its scope to demographics that traditionally lack exposure to environmental education. Through interactive activities, including scavenger hunts and hands-on crafts, students learn to become informed stewards of their environment.
With a commitment to providing free resources, OC San and HMOC are shaping the next generation’s understanding of sustainability and water management, fostering a sense of responsibility and inspiring future careers in the wastewater industry. This partnership exemplifies OC San’s dedication to environmental education and community engagement.
Up & Comer
Karthik Kumarasamy, CDM Smith
Karthik Kumarasamy has had a challenging task: to
organize, collaborate with, and in many cases challenge stakeholders across Arizona in the development of a key advanced water purification regulation. The new regulation will provide certainty in the development of DPR projects in the state. Karthik engaged deeply in many technical and operational aspects of potable reuse, helping to provide a solid foundation for the final set of rules. Karthik earned the respect of a wide range of stakeholders, engineers, and utilities as a
dedicated public servant for Arizona Department
of Environmental Quality. Karthik’s rigor has helped
lead Arizona toward a robust, reliable, and defensible approach to providing a much-needed water supply.
President’s Award
Brian K. Biesemeyer, Former Executive Director of Scottsdale Water
Brian Biesemeyer recently retired as the Executive Director of Scottsdale Water, a position he held since 2012. From June 2015 to January 2017, Brian had the additional duty of being the acting Scottsdale City Manager. Under Brian’s leadership, Scottsdale Water established the first Citizen Water Academy, earning the 2017 WateReuse Public Education Program of the Year Award. In 2019, the Scottsdale Water Campus became the first facility in Arizona to be permitted for direct potable reuse.
Prior to coming to Scottsdale in December 2012, Brian was the Deputy Public Works – Utilities Director for the city of Peoria, Arizona, and General Manager for Arizona American Water. Brian is a retired U.S. Army Lieutenant Colonel who served on active duty and in the Army Reserves for over 22 years. He is a registered professional Environmental Engineer and holds a Master of Science in Civil Engineering from the University of Arizona. He also holds Arizona Department of Environmental Quality Grade 4 Operator Certifications in Water Treatment, Wastewater Treatment, Water Distribution and Wastewater Collection.
Brian is the past president of WateReuse Arizona, a past board member of the WateReuse Association and past chair of the Arizona Municipal Water Users Association Management Board. In March 2021, Brian was appointed by Governor Ducey to the Arizona Water Protection Fund Commission. His awards include WateReuse Arizona Person of the Year, the AZWater Association’s Environmental Stewardship Award, the City of Scottsdale Bill Donaldson Award, and a Bronze Star for service in Southwest Asia.
John Enloe, Truckee Meadows Water Authority
John is an Environmental Engineering graduate of Humboldt State University with over 40 years of public and private sector water resource management experience in the greater Reno, Nevada area. His diverse project experience includes the first UV treatment facility in California using an unfiltered surface water source (Lake Tahoe), and a $100 million 8,000 AFA groundwater importation project. John also worked on the City of Reno MF-Ozone-BACF IPR pilot study from 2008-2010, a groundbreaking effort for inland communities considering IPR.
John began attending the WateReuse Symposium in the early 2000s, learning everything he could about water recycling and potable reuse. He rejoined TMWA in 2014, bringing his regional perspective and passion for “one water” solutions. Through open and transparent efforts, John was instrumental in bringing IPR regulations to Nevada in 2016 and implemented complex multi-stakeholder/government agency agreements that accelerated economic development in northern Nevada by providing 4,000 AF of recycled water to the Tahoe Reno Industrial Center (Tesla, Google, Switch).
John continues to contribute part-time to TMWA while enjoying time with his family and 22-month-old granddaughter in southwest Montana. Currently, he is overseeing planning, permitting and final design of the $200 million American Flat Advanced Purified Water Facility, a collaborative effort of TMWA and the City of Reno. John is also helping lead Nevada’s DPR regulation development. John’s ongoing work reflects his dedication to safeguarding the region’s water future.
John Shearer, Florida Water Reuse Leader
Prior to his retirement, John Shearer dedicated his career to a wide array of water supply, wastewater treatment, stormwater management, and related environmental programs and projects. He approached these complex challenges as opportunities to improve outcomes, addressing their solutions comprehensively at the watershed level.
For most of his career, he managed a national engineering and science firm and later worked independently in Florida. Early in his career with the City of Tampa, he participated in developing the concept of reusing effluent from a new advanced wastewater treatment plant by redirecting it to the headwaters of the Hillsborough River. Later, as Assistant Secretary of the Florida Department of Environmental Regulation, he drafted legislation and rules to incorporate reclaimed water into Florida’s long-term public water supply planning programs.
John graduated from the University of South Florida in 1973 with a Bachelor of Science in Engineering (BSE). He is a retired Professional Engineer and a Board Certified Environmental Engineer with the American Academy of Environmental Engineers. He holds honorary membership with the Florida Stormwater Association and received the Engineer of the Year award from the Florida Engineering Society, Central FL Chapter. He has held various notable positions including Trustee at WMFE Public TV & Radio, Delegate at Florida Water Congress, and Chair of the Florida Center for Solid & Hazardous Waste. He served on the Board of Directors of the WateReuse Association from 2003 to 2012, during which he held the position of President from 2009 to 2010.
John also served as President of the Florida Section of the American Society of Civil Engineers and was a Trustee for Keep Florida Beautiful. Additionally, he was a member of the Florida Task Force on Wetland Mitigation Banking, the U.S. EPA Policy Review Board for the Gulf of Mexico Program, the Governor’s Suwannee River Task Force, Chair of the Policy Advisory Board of the Indian River Lagoon National Estuary Program, and a member of the Florida Foundation for Future Scientists.
Wilton Simpson, Florida Commissioner of Agriculture
Wilton Simpson, Florida’s 13th Commissioner of Agriculture, is a fifth-generation Floridian. A lifelong Florida farmer and entrepreneur, Commissioner Simpson has deep personal and professional roots grounded in agriculture. For over four decades, he owned and managed a large-scale egg-laying operation that supplied families across the state. During his first legislative session as Commissioner of Agriculture, Simpson made great strides to support Florida’s farmers, consumers, and those who work each day to protect them. Securing the future of water for Florida agriculture and defining agriculture as a national security issue were among his top priorities upon taking office. His legislative service and history of community involvement also position him to guide the department’s other equally important functions, such as in protecting the environment, ensuring the availability, affordability, and safety of our food supply, and advocating for Florida consumers.
Lynn Spivey, Plant City, Florida
Lynn Spivey is the Director of Utilities for the City of Plant City, Florida, with over 30 years of experience in the treatment and management of water, wastewater, and reuse systems. Ms. Spivey holds a BS degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of South Florida and has worked in the public and private sectors. Ms. Spivey is a Past President of WateReuse Florida (2019, 2020), served as the Florida Potable Reuse Commission Chair (PRC), and a past Florida Water Environment Association Director at Large. As Chair of the Florida PRC, Ms. Spivey oversaw the efforts to publish The Framework for the Implementation of Potable Reuse in Florida, which WateReuse published in January 2020.
Student Art Contest
High School Category
First Place
Addelyn Conway
Water Reuse
Rivers and streams run through earth, like veins
Carrying water through the forests and plains.
An eternal cycle, a life-giving thread yet wasted too often, these veins are bled
Faucets drip; sewers drain
Careless hearts let waste remain instead of waste we should restore
Give water purpose and waste it no more
Every drop saved is a gift back to earth
Maybe then we’ll understand its worth
Water flows off roofs into fields it allows the land to yield rivers and streams, earth’s living veins
Flow stronger now and add to our gains
In our hearts we honor their grace we strive to make sure there’s water in every place
Second Place
Natalie Thomas
Third Place
Bryanna Harris
Middle School Category
First Place
Suah Kim
Second Place
Evelyn Law
