That\u2019s the phrase coined by the industry to illustrate the fact that much of the workforce \u2014 largely baby boomers \u2014 that keeps our water flowing and safe are getting ready to retire.<\/p>\n
Nationwide, about a third of the nation\u2019s water workforce is eligible for retirement within the next decade, \u201cthe majority being workers with trade jobs in mission critical positions,\u201d the Environmental Protection Agency wrote in a 2024 report<\/a>.<\/p>\n Climate resilience needs a workforce<\/p>\n To deal with how pollution in our atmosphere is driving longer, hotter droughts, as well as increasingly intense rain when it does come, water agencies across Southern California are working to boost aging infrastructure and invest in more diverse water supplies, such as recycled water.<\/p>\n Keep up with LAist.<\/p>\n If you’re enjoying this article, you’ll love our daily newsletter, The LA Report. Each weekday, catch up on the 5 most pressing stories to start your morning in 3 minutes or less. <\/p>\n The lack of people to staff those changes is a problem for pretty much every water agency, urban and rural.<\/p>\n L.A. is the second-largest city in the nation and is spending billions on water recycling<\/a> and stormwater capture<\/a>, for example, but it has been struggling to fill needed positions at its four wastewater treatment plants.<\/p>\n The city of L.A. plans to clean all wastewater that flows to the Hyperion plant.<\/p>\n (<\/p>\n Eric Garcetti via Flickr<\/p>\n )<\/p>\n The city plans to treat nearly all of the Hyperion wastewater facility\u2019s water to drinkable standards in the coming decades<\/a>. To support that massive expansion, Hi-Sang Kim, the operations director at Hyperion, told LAist in 2022<\/a> the facility will need to boost its workforce by at least 30%.<\/p>\n For less urban water agencies, the challenge is even greater. The Eastern Municipal Water District serves close to 1 million people (and growing), as well as agricultural customers in western Riverside County and northern San Diego County.<\/p>\n They estimate as much as half of their workforce could retire within five years.<\/p>\n “We are in dire need of technical skill sets.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n \u2014 Joe Mouawad, general manger, Eastern Municipal Water District<\/p>\n \u201cNot only are we investing in new infrastructure, but we have aging infrastructure, so we are in dire need of technical skill sets to operate, maintain everything from treatment plants to pipelines, to pump stations,\u201d said Joe Mouawad, the water district’s general manager.<\/p>\n Jobs in the water industry \u2014 potable water and wastewater treatment<\/a> operators, engineers, managers, skilled maintenance, public relations and more \u2014 are well paid and secure, Mouawad said, but it\u2019s hard to fill the needed positions.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are finding it more challenging to backfill retirees,\u201d he said. \u201cIt’s not so much a lack of interest \u2014 I think it’s a lack of awareness.\u201d<\/p>\n Building a pipeline for water jobs<\/p>\n Those job gaps are why Eastern Municipal has become a leader in building the water workforce pipeline. For decades, the water district partnered with local schools to provide education about water conservation and what they do. But over the last decade, as the retirement forecast grew more dire, the agency has shifted to prioritize skills-based programming and partnerships with local high schools.<\/p>\n Local high school students tour Eastern Municipal Water District facilities in Perris. <\/p>\n (<\/p>\n Courtesy Eastern Municipal Water District <\/p>\n )<\/p>\n![\"An](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/1770652451_287_.jpeg\")
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