Addressing California’s Next Water Challenge—A Shrinking Water Workforce

Sacramento, Calif.― Storms have replenished California’s snowpack and reservoirs. The next big water challenge for California is a shrinking water workforce as highly specialized workers have reached retirement age and are leaving the profession. California water and wastewater agencies have seen significant turnover in recent years. According to California’s water associations, more than half of our water workforce is retiring in large waves, a trend some call the ‘silver tsunami.’

Water careers are stable, well-paid, high-quality, and inclusive career opportunities, and no one seems to know about them. Help share the secrets about these hidden careers, overflowing with opportunity.

Available for stories or live shots:

Opportunity 1: Sacramento Area Sewer District’s (SacSewer) EchoWater Resource Recovery Facility

8521 Laguna Station Road, Elk Grove, CA 95758

Wednesday April 10 – Friday, April 12, times will vary.

Media Contact: Paige Bedegrew, cell (916) 204-5864

• • Choice of career experts for interviewing options:

• • • Chief Plant Operator
    • Instrumentation technician/wastewater operator/mechanic
    • Or Senior executive
  • About the EchoWater Facility: SacSewer owns and operates the second largest water resource recovery facility of its kind in the nation. Here, an average of 135 million gallons of sewage is treated each day.
  • Sample backdrops at the EchoWater Facility.

Opportunity 2: California Water Environment Association’s (CWEA) Annual Conference

Sacramento Convention Center

Thursday, April 11, Noon – 6:00 p.m. is ideal day/time for live shots

Onsite media contact: Alec Mackie, CWEA, cell (818) 261-3399

• • Choice of career experts for interviewing options:
    • SacSewer representative
    • CWEA President
    • Trainer, professor, or expert in careers in water
  • About this conference: Annual training meeting for California’s clean water professionals, attracting 1,600 professionals to Sacramento for this year’s conference. There’s a highly visual technical expo with 200 exhibit booths/pieces of equipment across 72,000 square feet of the Sacramento Convention Center.
  • Live shots in front of large water machinery is possible between Noon-6 p.m. on Wednesday, April 10. After 6 p.m. the expo is very loud and crowded with 1000+ people in the hall. Expo hall photo examples:
    • Machinery example 1. Machinery example 2. Machinery example 3.

What Water Has to Offer

• • Family sustaining wages and benefits.
  • Job stability – everyone needs water.
  • Fast way to lucrative income without a college degree.
  • There are over 6,000 water job openings per year.
  • Big projects. Critical responsibilities. Our mission is to protect public health and the environment for all Californians.
  • Opportunities for on-the-job training, tuition reimbursement, and rapid promotions.
  • Work as part of a great big team.

These Specific Roles are in High-Demand, Applicants Needed Right Now

• • Instrumentation and Cybersecurity technicians
  • Electricians
  • Mechanics
  • Heavy equipment operators
  • Water treatment operators
  • Wastewater treatment operators
  • Engineers (environmental, mechanical, and/or electrical)

Water is Hiring

Find career paths, salary info, job openings, and local training info at:

www.sacsewer.com/careers

www.CAWaterJobs.org

Fach sheet here with details.