March 27, 2020 / Volume 8, Issue 12
The Water Resource Research Center - a research unit of the  College of Agriculture and Life Sciences and an Extension unit in  UA Cooperative Extension  within the Division of   Agriculture,  Life & Veterinary Sciences & Cooperative Extension
WRRC Office Update

Although the WRRC building will be closed to the public until further notice, our staff continue to work and engage as much as possible. You can reach us via email as listed on our Directory. We wish you all the best - Stay safe and healthy!

UArizona Cooperative Extension COVID-19 info page   
In this issue:  Conference Videos  / UtilitiesAPW / Working Remotely
How Might Coronavirus Affect Arizona's Water?
At the WRRC, we have been fielding questions related to the safety of Arizona's water supply during coronavirus - specifically, is drinking water safe? To date, coronavirus has not been reported in municipal water supplies anywhere in the U.S. This is not surprising, given that modern drinking water treatment is specifically designed to inactivate viruses. Water municipalities, including Tucson Water, have been releasing information to the public on the safety of their water supplies. For a sampling, here is information from  Tucson Philadelphia , and  Boston . Similarly,  there have not been any reports of the novel coronavirus in groundwater, nor has the virus been shown to spread through treated wastewater. We do stress, however, that research into all of these areas is ongoing, and the WRRC will use the Weekly Wave to keep you updated.
 
We would also like to advise our readers to rely on reputable sources of information on coronavirus in water, as a few disreputable websites are already reporting erroneous information. Some websites of use to you would be the  Water Environment Federation  and the  U.S. Environmental Protection Agency .
 
All of us at the WRRC send our best wishes to our Weekly Wave readers, and hope that you are all safe and healthy.

WRRC EVENTS 
Brown Bag Webinar Only - Learning from the Colorado River Conversations
Brown Bag Webinar Only - Human-Environment Dynamics in the Sonoran Desert and Ae. aegypti, the Vector of Dengue, Zika and Chikungunya

Upcoming Brown Bag Webinars
  • April 16 - Student Research on Water Resource Science Monitoring and Methods
  • April 29 - Marie Pearthree, Mike McGuire, Book: Tucson Water Turnaround: Crisis to Success
WRRC NEWS
conference-videoPast WRRC Annual Conference Presentations Available Online
 
Our 2020 conference has been postponed, but don't let that stop you from heading to our website to check out the presentations from our previous annual conferences. The agendas for conferences held from 2015 to 2019 have links to videos and PowerPoint presentations. These conferences covered topics like scarcity, challenges, and community-based solutions; the business of water; Indigenous perspectives; and more.

Click on the links below to access the agendas.

utilitiesWater Utilities Prepare for Secure Operations

With local, state, and federal governments taking unprecedented actions in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, non-mission-critical employees are being asked to stay away from their places of work, working from home when possible. Water and wastewater utilities, however, must continue to have on-site operators to perform high-priority functions. As the pandemic progresses, it is natural to worry about the security of our vital water services. Tucson Water reassures its customers that its operational plan includes actions that make certain it has enough staff, including backup staff, to do what needs to be done, and other water utilities are putting out similar messages. The Claude "Bud" Lewis Carlsbad Desalination Plant in San Diego County has gone a step further. For the next three weeks, mission-critical employees will shelter in place, performing their duties without leaving the facility. As reported by San Diego and Los Angeles newspapers, these volunteers "will work 12-hour shifts, sleep in rented recreational vehicles in the parking lot, and be resupplied with fresh food left for them at the plant's gate. They will be furnished with washers and dryers to do their own laundry, and the desalination plant's kitchen and cafeteria are available to them." Like other facilities, they will be reassessing the situation as it develops.

APWSoap and Water Science for Home Learning Fun

Mandatory seclusion, forced isolation, social distancing, all part of our current reality. And, about now, a fast and furious flurry of online digital resources are coming at you. The Arizona Project WET team is sending you precisely the right home learning resource for the time! The Soap and Water Science module has students (your children) learning how soap works through a video and identifying "high touch" areas in your home, the areas that we're all trying to keep disinfected. Maybe your kids can take on a new daily chore! This module can be found at  www.discoverwater.org. Developed by the Project WET Foundation, the free online interactive Discover Water portal enables students to explore water topics from ocean science to water conservation. For students who might be missing out on critical water education in their science class during these weeks, the Water Cycle module brings the parts of the cycle and scientists who study them to life! Check it out and let us know what you think!

remote-workCaptains log, day 10 of working remotely...
 
Like many around the world, WRRC staff have been working from home to help mitigate the spread of COVID-19. While sheltering-in-place and practicing social distancing takes a toll on our social and work lives, the positive outcomes extend beyond spending quality time with our dogs. Virtual platforms have stepped up to fill the void left by the total shutdown of in-person meetings, conferences, and events. Not only is video-conferencing the new norm, but many events, from informative webinars to local band performances, are being streamed for public enrichment. In addition to the WRRC Brown Bag seminars, which are always available for free on our website, the American Water Works Association has a series of webinars on a range of water topics, many of which are also free. Several renowned museums have also made it possible to enjoy their collections virtually. CBS has put together an excellent list of virtual tours available to help get us through this strange time. This may your only opportunity to view the Mona Lisa without a horde of other museum-goers. Silver lining?
 
ANNOUNCEMENTS