PHILADELPHIA (Oct. 21, 2020) – The National Association of Water Companies (NAWC) announced Aqua Virginia Operations Manager Daniel Hingley, PE as the recipient of the 2020 NAWC Living Water Award at the NAWC Virtual Water Summit. The NAWC Living Water Award is presented annually to the regulated water industry professional who best demonstrates excellence in serving their community, colleagues, industry or environment.
“Dan’s innovative engineering feats serve as a perfect example of what the Living Water Award is all about,” said NAWC President and CEO Robert Powelson. “We seek to honor individuals who not only provide their communities with safe and reliable water and wastewater services, but also work hard to build more efficient and affordable practices into everyday operations.”
Dan was nominated by his colleagues for his demonstrated commitment to improving the Aqua customer experience through engineering smart, sustainable, and cost-saving solutions while overseeing vital upgrades to the Lake Monticello, Virginia wastewater treatment plant. Aqua wanted to improve the quality of the plant’s treated wastewater and minimize future rate increases for customers by reducing operating expenses and deferring the need for a more costly plant overhaul.
Dan modified the existing process and reconfigured the layout of the plant. He designed new aeration system controls to optimize treatment and ultimately implemented a solution to improve service, protect local waterways, and operate more efficiently for the community.
“Dan is an outstanding leader for Aqua Virginia and Essential Utilities,” said Aqua Virginia President John J. Aulbach II, PE “Dan’s ingenious in-house engineering design of the Lake Monticello wastewater treatment plant aeration improvements reduced Aqua’s dependency on nutrient credit purchases and reduced energy consumption, which results in lower expenses.”
The other four finalists, selected by a committee of judges representing five separate companies, were:
- Lorrie Ginegaw – Middlesex Water – Vice President, Human Resources
- Sharon Manker – American Water – Senior Diversity Program Lead
- Curt Rayer – San Jose Water – Vice President of Operations
- Gerald Simon – Cal Water – VP & Chief Safety, Security, and Emergency Preparedness Officer
Contact: Meredith Moore | meredith@nawc.com