The Challenge for CleanTech

PROTEUS Consulting is very involved in CleanTech and we are pleased to see the innovation happening in recycling, renewable energy (wind, solar, hydro, biofuels, biomass), energy efficiency, water efficiency, gray water, lighting, electric motors, information technology, and green transportation. The aim of these technologies are to create a smaller environmental footprint and reduce pollution. This indeed great that it's happening, it was needed.

The concern that we have, however, is about sustainability. Sustainability is about incorporating all the three aspects - economic, environmental, and people, and to look at viability of a technology / project on a long-tern life-cycle scale. This is best shown in this graphic by Water Corporation.

Most CleanTech projects we are finding these days are predominantly in the second Economic slice (i.e. "Find Efficiencies"). Most technologies deal with "Prevent Harm" in Environmental slice with very few actually looking at "Conserve Environmental Value". As for the Social aspect, most of these technologies are also in the first slice - "Protect Health & Wellbeing".

We feel that the push has to be towards "Create Value, Enhance Ecological Resilience, and Enhance Communities". For that life cycle analysis of the proposed technologies is essential and imperative. As an end-user, owners should ask for a comprehensive assessment of the entire technology and evaluate it's complete impact. As a clean technology provider, one should also look at presenting this information to the client. How else can a technology really be proclaimed as a 'CleanTech'? What are the metrics?

Another post on this issue can be found here.

Strategies for Managers to Achieve Excellence in the Workplace

Below is the second of the two presentations I gave this morning at the 2011 AWWA Education Extravaganza. This talk actually flows from the first one. You cannot fix the problems in your organization or the greater society if you have not fixed yourself first. Working on yourself is the first step.

To be an effective manager you have to do two things - set forth a clear set of values and performance (results) expectations, and have a rigorous appraisal system. Additionally, you also have to earn the trust from your team members in order to be able to energize and activate them. That requires two things - be candid all the time, and do what you say (no matter how hard it is!)

Enjoy the presentation below. If you want a copy, please email me at consultproteus at gmail dot com.'

This presentation was also full house, standing room only! I was very happy.  Here too, I look forward to your reactions and input - What do you think? What has been your experience? What are your challenges? Please share your stories or issues with me, I will love to hear them.

I gave two presentations today. Find the first presentation here.

How to improve your work and life - be Happy!

Below is the first of the two presentations I gave this morning at the 2011 AWWA Education Extravaganza  I picked an unusual topic to talk about at a Water Industry event - Happiness and how we can achieve it. It is a topic that no one wants to talk about but everyone seems to be curious about!

As I said during the talk and I repeat here: I am no expert. Most people in the audience and who are reading this are most probably older than me and had life experiences more profound than mine. I do not claim to be any 'guru' in this field or in anything else, I am human. I have my frustrations, my struggles, my fears, and my anxieties; I also have my goals, my dreams and my hopes - just like everyone else out there. I have made some fabulous choices in life, and some really terrible ones. I am in no position to dispel any profound wisdom - what I share here is knowledge that I have gathered during my life experiences. I am just sharing my 'Aha- moments' with everyone - in the hope that it may help someone out there who is looking for an answer.
I have "miles to go before I sleep".....

If you want a copy of this presentation, please email me: consultproteus at gmail dot com.

We had a full house this morning! Standing room only! I was very pleased. I hope I made some connections today, and was able to plant some seeds that will make my audience take the path towards peace in their lives.

I will VERY interested to hear from you - What do you think? What is your perspective? What has been your life experiences? What has been your lessons learned? What are the issues you are working on? What do you struggle with? What do need help on? Can I help you?


I gave two presentations today. Find the next presentation here.

Three Recommendation Letters for PROTEUS

I am very pleased to share with you three recommendation letters for the projects we performed this year.

Quality Assurance and Quality Control

I have noticed that many professionals, and even very accomplished managers, tend to lump 'quality assurance and quality control' together as if they occur together and mean the same. In reality, QA and QC are two as different a concept as can be! I hope I will be able to dispel a bit of that confusion.

Every organization seeks to achieve higher quality in their work, whether it is a product or a service they offer. These organizations seek to maximize the ability to meet its goals with a minimum of mistakes, inefficiency, and waste. And why not, this endeavor has many long-term benefits: reduction of costs, a delighted client, good future business prospects, etc. The process to achieve this continuous improvement has several steps and is, however, usually mistakenly termed QAQC.

QA (Quality Assurance) is a set of activities (e.g. a quality audit) that are aimed to ensure that the processes followed in the organization are actually happening properly and meeting the objectives. For example, a document control audit to check if all correspondence is being filed properly at the right place for easy access and future retrieval is a QA exercise. QA also works to develop processes to better handle issues. For example, when a problem has been identified in the project execution, say drawings are being issued for construction without a mechanical engineer's review, the QA manager will then modify the project execution process to include a step that includes a review of drawings by a mechanical engineer. So, the bottom line definition is that QA is that it is process focused, that is, development of methodology and standards. The goal of QA is to find a problem in the processes and make sure the checks are implemented at the right level of detail.

QC (Quality Control), on the other hand, is the set of activities that evaluate the product. So, in the above mentioned example, the mechanical engineer checking the drawings is a QC activity. This activity is focused on finding defects in particular deliverables. In a production line, inspection and testing of a sample would be QC. Here the task is to find if the deliverable / product meets the stated level of detail and specification requirements. To stress the point - this is a fault finding activity.

Now, the confusion arises, I think, is because organizations are not sure about assigning responsibility for these two activities. More often than not, these activities are assigned to the same individual - the project manager. This is not the right approach, and I have seen many cases in my career where the final quality of the project suffers due to this.

In my opinion, the project manager should be only responsible for QA and not for QC. Of course, it also depends on scope of projects. For a $5M or less construction projects, the resources are usually strapped and the PM is forced to do both, and usually manages to do a good job. But, in projects, especially $50M+ construction projects, it will be near impossible for a PM to do both QA and QC and produce good results. There are too many details to consider and the focus shifts away from QA thereby compromising the project. For such projects, the PM should focus on QA and QA only. He/She should have the lead engineer or a third technically savvy engineer deal with the QC part of the project. When setting up the project the PM will need to put sufficient QC check points in his/her project execution strategy to ensure the 'fault finding' is adequately happening on the project and the quality of the final deliverables going out of the door meets (or exceeds) the quality standards promised to the client. His/her job is to constantly monitor the operations to make sure the QC checks and the recification is happening. On projects greater than $150M, there should be dedicated QA manager.

Incubator for Promising New Technologies

Proteus acts as an Incubator for promising new technologies that have the potential to benefit the water and wastewater industry. Right now, Proteus has one client in this arena and is having initial talks with four other clients.

As an incubator for a new technology, Proteus provides the following services:

• Marketing. Introduce the business to water and wastewater clients who need the new technology.
• Strategic Partners. Help network with other businesses with complementary services to create a strong team.
• Funding. Review technology and find Federal / State/ Other funding opportunities for project implementation.
• Training. Train the business leaders on the 'way-to-do-business' with the water and wastewater agencies, municipal organizations, State and Federal government.
• Business Development. Help with regulatory compliance and permitting. Help chart out the path to future in the water and wastewater industry.
• Mentor. Help with presentations targeted to clients' needs, help with business basics, technology commercialization advice.

Why does Proteus do this? At Proteus we believe that "You do not invent the transistor while trying to perfect the vacuum tube". Our water and wastewater industry has been too slow to adopt new ideas and technologies. Most of the development in this industry over the last three decades has been trying to perfect what we already have. We have almost as many associations as there are people in the industry and in most of these meetings you find the same kind of presentations and thoughts. We are spinning our wheels! 

With the CleanTech and Social Connectivity revolution sweeping the planet right now, our industry has a lot to benefit from it. There are innovative technologies being developed and some of them have great promise. Proteus wants to introduce these new and fresh ideas to our industry and help the industry and the entrepreneurs find a perfect match. Yes, we are a kind of 'match-making' service!

How do we do this? Proteus is here to help both the entrepreneur with the new idea and the municipal client. We understand and appreciate the issues from both sides. Our core philosophy in operating our business is to help create a win-win situation - the municipal client gets their need resolved with a fit-for-purpose solution, while the entrepreneur gets established as a credible technology provider in the water and wastewater industry. We do not push or peddle a technology where there is no need for it, we are not a sales representative. Rather we are a business consultant to both parties, enabling a perfect fit between 'the need' and 'the solution'. This is how we do it:

• We will need to know details about your technology, it's promise and it's limitations. We will gladly sign an NDA. Please be very frank with us on the details. We are not here to steal your intellectual property, we are here to help you build a successful product and business.
• We work with you as a consultant on retainer.
• We will be your guide and be on a constant look out for opportunities for you. We will be your support for marketing, finding strategic partners, help you look for funding, chart your course through permitting, etc. We will be your friend, through thick and thin.

At Proteus, we have a penchant for sustainable solutions - economic, environmental, and social. The technologies that we support need to be environmentally viable, provide a measurable benefit to the water / wastewater industry, and have a way to ease the life of everyone using the technology.

Technology Spotlight: Energy from Stormwater

Over the years regulations have targeted point sources of pollution and treatment has been focused on discharges from such sources. Almost 40 years since the Clean Water Act, we have started looking at watershed approach to deal with non-point sources of pollution.  EPA now recognizes that stormwater management is of prime importance and regulatory interest is being focused at treating stormwater. This will eventually lead to cleaner water bodies - streams, rivers, lakes, and oceans. Dealing with these non-point sources is a daunting task, not only because of the size and scope of the issues involved, but also due to the wide variation of regulatory and permitting structures that have developed all over the country since the 70s. It will be interesting to see how this works out in the coming decade and a regional approach with national oversight will be very welcome.

SmartSponge by AbTech Industries

As a part of Proteus Consulting's Technology Exchange, we would like to highlight SmartSponge by AbTech Industries. This 'sponge' has tremendous porosity and soaks up hydrocarbons while allowing the flow of water. What we find interesting is that the collected hydrocarbons can be harvested for energy in waste-to-energy facilities, cement kilns, asphalt plants, etc. Of course, the 'sponge' also works at decreasing the suspended solids by limited pore size, and possibly also coliform bacteria by impregnating the 'sponge' with antibacterial agents. We are a bit skeptic about the antibacterial 'sponge' because bacteria will soon develop resistance to the agent - it is after all the law of evolution! However, we are quite impressed by the ability of this 'sponge' to absorb hydrocarbons and possibility of using it as a fuel.

--------------------------------------------------
By Technology Exchange, Proteus Consulting brings forth new ideas and innovative products to our clients. These products have been researched and vetted for the water industry by us and have been recommended only after we have been convinced that they have a potential to help our clients achieve their goals to provide a clean sustainable world.

PROTEUS - What's in the name?

A lot of people have asked me - Why did you name your company Proteus Consulting? What do you mean by Proteus?

In Greek Mythology, Proteus a primordial figure who represents water-god. He is often referred to as the "Old Man of the Sea" who never lies, who sounds the deep in all its depths. At Proteus Consulting, we deal with everything that has to do with water, hence the connection to the water-god.

The water-god Proteus can foretell the future for those who he loves and cares for. Similarly, here at Proteus Consulting, we are abreast and adept with emerging technologies and advanced systems thinking and can advice our clients on strategies to adapt to keep in pace with the rapidly changing world.

Being Protean implies being versatile, flexible, and adaptable. These are the underlying qualities of Proteus Consulting. We are extremely adept in understanding our clients needs, we focus on recognizing opportunities, and work to transform those opportunities into successful outcomes.

At Proteus Consulting, we are a passionate bunch - we are driven by creating fit-for-purpose solutions for our clients.Our success stems from our ability to quickly and effectively understand the unique physical, cultural, and economic opportunities of each assignment. We specialize in building creative solutions that honor each project's distinct features and are committed to integrating design, engineering, and community in a manner that conserves resources – human and material capital.

What will Proteus look like in few years?

It is May 2011, nine months since Proteus Consulting opened shop. It's still just me and a collection of very talented sub consultants working on projects. The journey thus far has been very rewarding with great projects and connections.

So what is the vision forward?
Proteus Consulting is poised to grow. And as we grow, we will seek new partners to join us. These partners will enjoy the energy of this young company and will want to grow with it. The template for Proteus in the coming years is as follows:

Culture
Culture is everything. Proteus will be an open organization with a penchant for new ideas. We stand for energy and vigor. Everyone on board will recognize that we are building something significant, an enterprise that will be valuable long-term and every partner will be a part of this future. Our goals will be aligned for creating a great company and with the eagerness to invest every effort to get there. No one will confused about the vision and where the company is headed. Every thought and concern will be heard, analysed for merit and appreciated. It will be fun to work at Proteus Consulting and whiners need not apply!

Client Obsessed

Proteus Consulting is and will always be manically focused on understanding who our client is, what the client wants/needs, and what the client will value as fit-for-purpose. This research and analysis starts well before we even put a project proposal to the client. We talk with our clients and know the people and the organization inside out - from the Board member / General Manager to the operator who greases the pumps. Every person in the client organization is valuable and their thoughts and concerns are valuable. Client feedback will be a key part of the process to produce deliverables. We will never be surprised by client issues because we will be proactive and process-oriented about understanding everything we can about our clients.

Organization
Being with Proteus Consulting will be psychologically stimulating and rewarding for partners. There will be no place for mediocrity and for people who live and work by the least common denominator - only the best and the brightest will be on our team. Our partners will feel exalted by the fact that they are surrounded by colleagues who are as good or, at times better than they are. Meetings will be short and to the point, everyone will be engaged and energized. Vigorous debates will be encouraged and the best idea will win. There is no "Easy Button" in Proteus Consulting.

Atmosphere
Our office will be an open space, like a large loft apartment with no walls or private offices. One wall will be a giant white board. The other walls will be library of books, projects, papers, and references. All our work will be on cloud servers and we will have wireless access to the project sites.  Of course, there will be an enclosed area for meetings when a quiet space is required. But in general, we will all work together and across from each other. There will be sit-down tables, stand-up tables, and even a treadmill table. We will have 'play area' and there will be premium coffee served from state-of-art espresso machine. Bring your bikes to work, and dogs are very welcome!

Communication
Transparent communication will be the bottom line for our organization - open and free-flowing. Difficult issues are addressed upfront and directly. As it happens in every other company, our company will also go through ups and downs and every partner will be aware of the not-so-fun news. At any moment of time, the partners will be aware of the financials - it will be open book.

Thought Leadership and Knowledge Sharing
At Proteus sharing knowledge and caring for each other is a part of our DNA. We will be the ones who are adept with every innovation happening in our industry and around the world. Every Monday we will have a 30-minute "What's New" session where one of us will showcase a development from an industry completely unknown to us. We will bring lessons learned from not only our industry but from other professions so that our work processes and minds are sharp and pick up the latest innovation.

Cost Conscious
At Proteus Consulting, we will make every dollar count. Our offices will be sparse and only limited to utilitarian equipment and furniture. We are going to use as little paper as we can and be extremely efficient in our use of resources. Every dollar saved from our overhead will be a credit to our operations.

Integrity

Proteus Consulting will never cut corners when it comes to the way we treat clients, handle partner issues, deliver projects, and do business.  There will be no compromise with integrity, under any circumstance.   

Our challenges: Yes, there will be plenty. Proteus Consulting works in an industry where new ideas and new ways of doing things is quite foreign. Our industry is wrought with 'tradition' and it will be difficult to create a path that is so 'new'. But then, that is why the industry needs a Proteus!

We only seek partners who will feel comfortable working in such a challenging environment. Partners who will treat Proteus not as a job, but as a mission - a mission to create something really worthy and bring about a change that is so needed in our industry. If this kind of environment matches your goals, please contact me.

Alternative Selection - How to incorporate Sustainability

Most alternative selection is currently based on NPV (net present worth) analysis of capital and O&M costs. While that is still required, incorporating sustainability is almost required these days to have a viable fit-for-purpose asset selection. Most agencies and engineers are confused with how to incorporate sustainability principles into their decision making process. Enclosed is a presentation where Water Corporation made a proactive approach to start incorporating sustainability principles into design decisions.

I was involved in this project while working for W2W Alliance.

Design Build Project Delivery

This is the presentation I gave at CWEA 2011, Ontario.  I believe that Design-Build is where our water and wastewater industry should and will head in the future, especially now that many other industries (Transportation, Energy, Oil & Gas, Buildings, Federal, etc.) have gone that direction. This project delivery method is particularly suited for small projects (capital cost <= $5M) and very large projects (capital cost >= $500M). For projects in between, owners should look at combining few projects in a package and issue them as design-build.

Proteus Consulting has developed a comprehensive training program for consulting engineering firms desiring to enter the design-build arena and partner with construction firms. Most of these firms are traditional consulting engineers who find it very difficult to adjust to the pace and culture of design build, particularly adjusting with contractors and their priorities and pace of work. We have four, three hour modules, designed specifically to address these challenges and help with the culture transition. These modules address the lessons learned from design-build project delivery and will help the engineering firms effectively plan the deliverables, streamlining design management, and thereby maximizing the profit potential.

For the Owners, Proteus Consulting is very pleased to assist as Owner's Representative / Program Manager.

Half Yearly Report - Proteus Consulting

Proteus Consulting is six months old this week. It has been a really good experience and future prospects look bright. While we have some nice projects to work on, more importantly, we met some fantastic people and built relationships that will yield great results ahead. Listed below is a brief overview of our company's progress since October 2010.

Proteus Consulting has six major offerings:

• Traditional Engineering
• Design-Build Engineering and Consulting
• Management Consulting
• Regulatory Compliance and Grants
• Operations and Maintenance Consulting
• Sustainability Frontiers

Traditional Engineering. We worked on four projects in the last six months and details on these projects can be found here. Into the future, we are looking at some very promising projects, three such projects are in the contracting phase and there are seven more on the horizon in the next six months.

Design-Build Engineering and Consulting. Over the last six months Proteus Consulting has developed very good relationships with the following contractors Filanc, Stanek Constructors Inc., TC Construction Company, Neal Electric, Meruelo Construction, Doty Brothers Construction Company, and PCL. We have reviewed few design-build projects together and proposed on one such venture. In the coming six months this service offering will develop further. Soma is also presenting at CWEA this April on Design Build Project Delivery.

Management Consulting. Proteus Consulting believes in continuous improvement and striving to achieve the most efficient and effective organization. To this effect Proteus Consulting has assembled a group of experts to help our clients achieve excellence. Our major teaming partners are DestinHaus, BHIConsulting, FCS Group, and TMG Communications, Inc. Proteus had one project in this arena in the last six months and other assignments are in the works.

Regulatory Compliance and Grants. Most projects in the public utility arena cannot happen without grants. Proteus Consulting has partnered with two experts who help us find the best grants for our clients and also to write applications. Proteus Consulting is also committed to help our clients achieve regulatory compliance. There is a plethora of regulations and stipulations that our clients have to deal with everyday, we are their extension of staff - we work through the cumbersome reporting requirements and help them achieve compliance. We helped the City of Oceanside with a critical issue.

Operations and Maintenance Consulting. Proteus Consulting provides this unique service to our clients where we have On-call Operations & Maintenance experts to troubleshoot issues and provide solutions - we provide an O&M SWAT Team.  We have a team of very talented and experienced professionals that can help our clients resolve issues at their facilities - be it water, wastewater, recycled water, membrane plants, etc. Proteus Consulting also creates custom O&M manuals tailored to the needs of operators, supervisors, engineers, managers, and leadership. In addition, we provide customized training program - basic system training, site specific system training, detailed system data monitoring and data interpretation training.

Sustainability Frontiers. This is the most exciting prospect for Proteus Consulting. We are interested in and very active in every aspect of sustainable solutions including but not limited to  Rainwater Harvesting, Graywater Systems, LEED Certification and Design, CleanTech, Green Solutions, and  Water-Energy Nexus.  We have several partners that we work with and this space will be something to watch for in the future.

Invited Talks. Proteus Consulting was invited to give the following talks:

• Strategies for Improving Professional Life and Workplace, Society Of Women Engineers (SWE), Nov 2010
• Singapore and Australia: How are they dealing with water problems?, Council of Water Utilities (COWU), October 2010

There are two more talks planned in the upcoming six months. Soma is very happy to speak at public events on variety of topics related to the water and wastewater industry, sustainability, and personal/professional development. Feel free to contact us to schedule a talk on a topic that interests you.

Conference Presentations. Proteus Consulting has the following papers / presentations scheduled this year :

• Design Build Project Delivery: Myth & Reality, Thursday April 14th, at 10:00AM, CWEA 2011
• Alternative Selection – a multi-faceted approach to meet the needs of the future, Friday April 15th, at 10:00AM,  CWEA 2011
• Vacuum Sewers – a viable alternative for wastewater collection and transport in coastal areas, COPRI 2011

There are few abstracts submitted and under review for upcoming conferences. Proteus Consulting is very pleased to be able present technology papers that help define the future of the water and wastewater industry.

In The News. Proteus Consulting has been quoted in two articles in the last six months: 

• Proactive, multipronged approach needed to secure water sources, experts say, The Daily Transcript, March 2011
• Purple-Colored Conservation - Decentralized reclamation and reuse for water savings, Water Efficiency, December 2010

Proteus Consulting has been interviewed by KPBS for a piece on water management in the San Diego area. This will be aired in the coming months as a part of their plan to start a conversation on effective water use and management of water in our desert county.

Volunteer Work. Soma Bhadra, Proteus Consulting's CEO strongly believes in giving back and helping our water and wastewater community to grow. With this is mind, she holds the following positions as volunteer.

• Vice Chair II - CWEA Training and Certification Executive Committee
• Vice Chair - San Diego Water For People
• Training and Certification Chair - CWEA San Diego Section
• Awards Committee - CWEA San Diego Section

Regulatory Compliance and Grants - Half Yearly Report

Proteus Consulting offers the following services to our clients: Grant and Loan Analysis and Applications, NPDES / WDR Permit Applications, Title 22 Engineering Reports, Water Recycling Permit Applications, Groundwater Recharge Permits, State and Federal Regulatory Approvals,   California DPH Regulatory Approvals, Permit Management Plans, Regulatory Compliance Reports, Annual Reports, Assistance with encroachment permits and planning approvals. In the last six months we have worked on the following project:

Haymar Avenue Discharge Technical Report and Response, City of Oceanside, CA. Proteus Consulting assisted the City of Oceanside to prepare a formal response to Investigative Order No. R9-2011-0035 issued by the California Regional Water Quality Control Board, San Diego Region, to the City of Oceanside. The response letter and accompanying 1,200+ page Technical Report furnished all the requested information on the nature, circumstances, extent, and impacts related to the discharge of untreated sewage to Buena Vista Creek, Buena Vista Lagoon and the Pacific Ocean from a 15-inch gravity sewer line near North Haymar Drive from December 23 – 28, 2010. This discharge occurred when an existing 50+ year old VCP pipeline failed during a heavy storm event. While relocation plans for this critical pipeline was ready for implementation for over four years, the project was unfortunately held up in the permitting process.

Management Consulting - Half Yearly Report

Proteus Consulting offers the following Management Consulting services to our clients: Project Diagnostics, Project Planning, SWOT and PESTLE Analysis, Organizational Transformation, On-call to address unforeseen issues, Crisis management, Project Process Audits, Long-range Risk Analysis and Scenario Planning.  Proteus Consulting is committed to strengthen our client's organizational and operational structure to enable them address challenges in the future - whatever they may be.


Risk Assessment and Scenario Planning, Encina Wastewater Authority, Carlsbad CA. Proteus Consulting was been invited by Encina Wastewater Authority (EWA) to participate in a series of risk assessment workshops to enable long-range scenario planning for EWA. This exercise was conducted with BHI Management Consulting and was aimed to prepare EWA for emerging risks; test the organization’s long-term strategy and resilience; expand and enrich the planning discussion; create a successful implementation plan; understand and apply change management and motivation principles; apply attention to detail in the risk matrix/risk register; maintain the quality and rigor of the risk assessment process to select the best policy option, implement multiple risk assessments, and resolve contradictory stakeholder agendas.

Traditional Engineering - Half Yearly Report

Proteus can expertly perform any projects in the water-wastewater arena from project inception to final completion and handover. We are proficient in Feasibility Reports, Alternatives Development & Evaluation,  Preliminary Design, Project Implementation Plans, Construction Plans, Specifications, and Estimates, Budget and Schedule Management, Bid Phase Assistance, Shop Drawing Submittal Review, Field Engineering, Construction Inspection, Contract Administration & Scheduling. Apart from that we also offer Quality Management Programs and Technical Evaluation and Support.

In the last six months (October 2010 through March 2011) we have worked on the following projects:

• Aquifer Study and Preliminary Design at MCAGCC, 29 Palms, CA. Proteus Consulting had teamed with Rore Inc. to conduct a hydrogeological/aquifer study and engineering feasibility study for potable water supply at the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center at 29 Palms, CA. The project included a detailed review of the aquifer and groundwater well field design, demarcation of the aquifer boundaries and water quality profile, followed by preliminary design of water storage, blending facility/treatment, and water delivery infrastructure. Proteus Consulting evaluated feasible blending alternatives from varied groundwater sources to meet potable water quality objectives. This involved the conceptual design of water storage tanks, including number, size, and location, mechanical blending process configurations, and treatment options.
• Wastewater Treatment Alternative Study, SERE Camp, San Diego, CA. Proteus Consulting has teamed with Thomas/Wright, Inc. to conduct a preliminary engineering study for the wastewater treatment options at the Survival, Evasion, Resistance, and Escape (SERE) training facility at the U.S. Navy's Training Site in Warner Springs, CA located in the Cleveland National Forest. It is in a remote area near the community of Warner Springs in the northeastern San Diego County, at an elevation of about 3,200 feet. The Camp consists of a headquarters area with an administrative building, several staff barracks building, a wastewater treatment plant, and a training compound. All west coast Navy/Marine Corps personnel who risk capture during wartime (e.g. aviators) undergo SERE training at this facility. The Warner Springs SERE Facility covers 6,100 acres and trains over 1,500 students each year. The project includes a detailed review of the existing treatment plant, followed by preliminary design of proposed new facilities/ upgrades. Proteus Consulting will evaluate feasible alternatives to ensure that the new plant will consistently meet the NPDES permit.
• Mt. Israel Pipeline Replacement, Olivenhain Municipal Water District, Carlsbad, CA. Proteus Consulting is contracted by OMWD for a project to design the replacement of an 8-inch potable water pipeline on Mt. Israel Road. The key elements include location of the main in County road and right-of-way, easement analysis, design of pipeline in rock, traffic issues, and community assurance. 
• Rancho La Cima/Aliso Canyon Pipeline Relocation, Olivenhain Municipal Water District, Carlsbad, CA. Proteus Consulting is contracted by OMWD for a project to design the relocation of an 8-inch PVC water pipeline at the intersection of Aliso Canyon Road and Rancho La Cima. This relocation is necessary due to a conflict with the proposed new 60-inch County storm water pipeline along Aliso Canyon Road. The intent of this project is to lower the current water main to clear the proposed storm drain.

Proteus Consulting on San Diego Daily Transcript: "Proactive, multipronged approach needed to secure water sources, experts say"

Enclosed is the link to the article where we were quoted. We sincerely hope that articles like this will generate public awareness and enthusiasm in developing Value Based Water Management solutions for San Diego and pave the path towards Water Security. Economic sustainability and prosperity can be achieved and maintained in San Diego by treating energy, water, and land use as prime security issues.

Proactive, multipronged approach needed to secure water sources, experts say (San Diego Daily Transcript)
(If this link does not work, you can email me to request a copy.)

Sustainability is to this decade as what Quality was in the 70s

The 60s saw the birth of The Quality Revolution and it took couple decades to get into the mainstream thought. Companies like Toyota and Motorola had embraced it in the 70s. They treated quality as an opportunity for process improvements rather than cost and benefited dramatically. They shot way ahead of their competitors and the latter are still playing catch-up requiring costly bail-outs from the government every now and then.

Today we are at the threshold of the Sustainability Revolution. The infancy decade for Sustainability is past, we are now on the second phase. Those who embrace it now will shoot ahead, and those who do not will fade to the background. Lip service will not be enough, this is a revolution and it calls for action, measurable action.

Companies who will derive competitive advantages from their sustainability programs will have to treat these programs as an opportunity and not simply an added cost to absorb, another risk to manage or one more regulation with which to comply with. Commitment is the key with action to follow.

Ambiguity still surrounds the term sustainability. We are bombarded with several terms - greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, carbon footprint, global warming, water footprint, cleantech, bio mimicry, eco-engineering, etc. Most companies now have vision statements that encompass Sustainability, but the leaders of these companies are usually a bit concerned and confused on how to implement these initiatives. Here are a few pointers:

• We need a strong determined CEO to champion this cause and be highly visible to the company. He/ She sets the tone and promotes a change of thinking.
• Next he/ she needs to install carefully selected leaders in the organization who will lead and bring about continuous improvement towards sustainability - these leaders will have to come from all sectors in the company organization.
• Multi-disciplinary teams will have to be inspired to come up with sustainable operation ideas not only in products but also in processes.
• Focus on integrating sustainable processes deep into the work culture of the company. 
• Link sustainability performance indicators directly with professional growth and encourage innovation.

Sustainability is not a buzz word anymore, it's time for action. If we do not act now we only have ourselves to blame when  we lose the competitive advantage in the coming years. Proteus Consulting is committed to helping our clients achieve the next break through and surge ahead by embracing Sustainability.

Rainwater Harvesting

When San Diegans hear of Rainwater Harvesting eyebrows go up. The speaker is first labeled a left-leaning-extreme-thinker. Then the reasons why we cannot do rainwater harvesting start popping up - usually talk of perceived safety concerns of unclean water and reduction of quality of life.

Well here is how the ancient people made it work and cities lived comfortably as a result.



Note the following theme:

1. Desert civilization - dry climate similar and at times worse than San Diego
2. Respect - water was treated not as a commodity, but with respect
3. Local solution - water not shipped from thousands of miles away
4. Conservation - people used very less water per capita so everyone can use the precious resource
5. Common purpose - everyone abides by the watershed boundaries and invests sweat equity

Yes, we can do Value Based Water Management in San Diego too. We need to will it. Rainwater Harvesting is just one such option. We can do this on a house to house level as well as on a community and regional  level. We just have to think outside the box. The water insecurity in San Diego right now is appalling with more than 80% of our water coming from outside the county. We have to move towards water security if we really want to see economic prosperity and quality of life.

On a house-to-house level, we have to install rain barrels to meet our irrigation needs. Contact your local entrepreneur for ideas and solutions.  Rainthanks is one such local micro business and they do a fantastic job. Of course, moving to attractive colorful xeriscape is a good option as well.

On a community level, we need to ask the policy makers to issue programs like this one in Oakland, CA. San Diego has a program, but it's not promoted at this time. In Brisbane, I have seen how effective these programs were. It's surely worth copying. And after this starts working, we need to start looking at harvesting stormwater in our local watersheds on a regional level to enhance our water security.

Water-Energy Nexus – It’s not a pie-in-the sky anymore – It’s happening!

Proteus Consulting is implementing the Water-Energy Nexus! We have teamed with Viridity Energy to identify avenues of energy savings at water and wastewater facilities. Our team undertakes a thorough evaluation of the use of energy resources at water and wastewater facilities and develops a management algorithm to optimally schedule energy management a day-ahead and real-time energy markets. This is called Dynamic Energy Optimization.

There are many energy auditors who review facilities and identify capital improvement projects to reduce energy usage, for example, implementing VFDs on pumps and fans, or adding efficient blowers. Usually these measures have a return on investment of two to four years with subsidies from the energy companies and the government.  Then what? Well, the Proteus-Viridity Team goes a step ahead. We help create a continuous revenue stream back to the utility by real time monitoring and management of energy use and then working the energy market.

Currently, the Proteus-Viridity Team is assisting New York City Department of Environmental Protection (NYC DEP) to enable energy optimization at their wastewater treatment facilities that treat 1.3 billion gallons of wastewater in the five boroughs of the great city.

Value Based Water Management

Value based water management is a topic that I think of often. I believe that there is an intrinsic link between human values and what humans do to the water scape. Science and technological advances have enabled us to be better manipulators of our natural environment and made our lives more comfortable. We no longer have to walk five miles everyday to get a bucket of water and enjoy acres of lush green lawns and rain forest recreation in the middle of a dessert. We have indeed come a long way from how our ancestors lived. While we have devised new ways to secure a cocooned life, we have lost our symbiotic relationship with nature. That hurts us now in more ways than we can comprehend. In some ways, I think, in spite of all the technological advances, we have become 'stupider'!

Man is a part of nature, not above it. All ancient cultures recognized this. Be it Native Americans, the Tribes in Africa and Asia, or the Aboriginals in Australia... All these cultures had the same underlying principle (or philosophy) - "Respect nature". It was this respect that also allowed them to manipulate the environment, BUT with the emphasis on not doing any harm. Living in those days meant understanding and existing in harmony with the environment rather than dominating it. Nature was not the enemy, nor was it a commodity that can be exploited for wealth and power. Nature had a value of it's own in day to day life where every living thing (and sometimes non living thing as well) were interconnected and had a special function. Plants nourished animals, animals were then hunted for food, and then when humans expired, it became food for the pants. It was the circle of life. Yes, every ancient culture truly believed in this philosophy and practiced it diligently.  Yes, they all sought to "improve" their natural world all the time, but they limited such improvements to what was necessary. The operative words here are "as necessary", and not the indiscriminate slaughter and wasteful gathering. This material life was abhorred by ancient cultures through spiritual tenets, and these tenets were very sensitive to the balances in delicate ecosystems. They recognized that adverse interference in ecosystems threatened their own existence as wells as the natural world on which they depended and of which they were an integral part.

Where are we now? We are sitting in a big luxury motor home, cruising along a highway with no destination in sight. We are not in the driver's seat, we are just a passenger. We do not know where we are going, we don't even care. We love the comfort of this padded home and as long as the truck is moving, the scenery is good, there is fuel, water, and air conditioning, why do we have to care about anything else? Well, we have lost touch with the fundamental concept that no matter how much we think we have 'grown up', our umbilical cord is still attached with nature. There is no escape, and you cannot cut it off.

A friend put it another way: "We are like a bunch of youngsters, who got high on alcohol and drugs one night and decided to rent a boat and take a ride up and down the river. We pushed the boat into the water and started paddling away. We were drunk and drugged, mind you. We passed out after a while - it was a lot of work to just keep paddling! Dawn broke, we woke up.  We realized that we had not gone more than couple yards from the shore. What? How? Well, we forgot to lift the anchor! So there we were, paddling through the night, all drunk and drugged up and imagining a beautiful scenery go by."

Every decision and choice we make comes at a cost. We have been seasoned to not look at "total solutions" but only to put the brackets where it seems to fit us the best right now. This conditioning did not happen overnight. We all have evolved from the nature-loving ancient cultures very slowly, over 6,000 years. First we started looking at nature as a resource to be exploited, primarily for community, and hence for nation building. We justified it by saying that the common good and mutual benefits ranked higher than individual self-interest. Then, slowly that cause got morphed to a spirited individualism and an appetite for a perceived profit that heightened the exploitation of nature to new levels. Land, energy, and water got colonized in political and legal institutions generating colossal conflicts and social turmoil.

Oh well, we are where we are! What can we do now? We have to reverse engineer our way back to nature-loving humans again. The first thing we need is the will to do so. That will has to come from within each individual. The pendulum has to swing back from individualism to harmony with nature. And this swing can be accelerated by the terrific brains we already have. The brackets have to move further out, from individuals to community, and then to the whole world encompassing the entire life cycle of each element. For water, we will have to look at total water management - effectively manage every drop we have and use it most efficiently while not exploiting the natural resources. We have to become more creative on how to capture, use, and reuse water with zero discharge and waste. We also have to move away from central facilities to micro / community level facilities. We have to learn to appreciate the rhythms of nature and work with it to create opportunities, not fight it.

In subsequent blogs I will lay out my vision and plan of sustainable water management that will be synchronous with the values learned from ancient cultures. It will by no means be easy, and I am not saying that you have to go to a primitive hunter-gatherer lifestyle. We have to respect nature for what she is, and not fight her, but harmonize with her. We have the brains to do it, we just don't seem to find the will.