Tacoma Public Utilities

Thursday night was a splash as we joined local utilities and water purveyors in the South Sound Subsection PNWS-AWWA Annual Water Taste Test and Meter Challenge. The group submitted water samples to judges who conducted random taste tests to determine who had the best water in our area. Judging is based on three categories: scent, flavor, and aftertaste. Each category is scored on a 10-point scale from low (1) to high (10), the highest possible total score being 30 points. Good luck to the winner, Lake Josephine Riviera Water, who moves on to compete for the title of “Best in the Northwest.” In the Meter Challenge, Carlos emerged as the winner and will advance. Tacoma Water will also represent the South Sound in Boise with a Men’s Tapping Team and Women’s Hydrant Team. We're incredibly proud of all the contestants and wish the best of luck to the winners as they move forward. Participating in events like these signifies our commitment to supplying clean, reliable water and the outstanding employees who contribute to our mission.?

Happy World Water Day! Today, we're celebrating the lifeblood of our community: water. For over 100 years, we've taken great pride in delivering you clean, reliable water directly from the Green River Watershed in the majestic Cascade Mountains, all while providing ecological benefits to the environment. https://bit.ly/3Y3cGrU

Every day for 100 years, Tacoma Water staff have measured precipitation in the Green River Watershed. Current practice requires them to head to the weather station (circled in the first photo taken in the 1960s) at midnight, gather the precipitation that fell the day prior, and measure the total. Sometimes they have to melt snow to get the actual amount of water! In years past, the data was simply added to notebooks for analysis, now it’s entered into an online database that tracks averages, along with monthly and annual totals. The Green River has been Tacoma Water’s primary drinking water supply since 1913 so it’s vital we monitor precipitation to track historical shifts. The data helps us identify trends to forecast future water availability, especially for the dry summer months. MyTPU.org/WaterSupply. #TBT

“Tacoma Water has a long history of looking decades down the road to ensure good stewardship of this vital, public resource- water. Our agreement with Cascade provides benefit for today’s customers and for generations yet to come,” said Tacoma Public Utilities Board Chair John O’Loughlin.

The Public Utility Board is meeting tonight at 6:30 p.m. Real-time public comment will be available at the start of the meeting. Attend virtually: https://bit.ly/39kOvNs

By day, she’s operations manager at Tacoma Water, and now she is also the newly elected chair of the Pacific Northwest Section (PNWS) of the American Water Works Association (AWWA). Meet Jolene Gibson, who has volunteered for the nonprofit organization for over 15 years. The AWWA is an international, scientific, and educational association dedicated to a better world through better water. As Chair-Elect of the PNWS, she will help set direction, ensure necessary resources, and provide oversight to the Pacific Northwest Section (PNWS). The Chair-Elect is a position held on the PNWS-AWWA Board of Trustees for one year, then will become the Chair of the Board for one year, and finally, Past Chair for one year. Her goal in this role is to work more collaboratively with all the AWWA committees and subsections to provide great trainings, networking opportunities, and resources to set up new volunteers for success. Being involved with the PNWS allowed Jolene to gain leadership skills that helped her career development, along with great connections to water professionals throughout the Pacific Northwest. Congratulations to Jolene whose hard work and passion contributed to this honor. We are proud to have her on our team.

Deep in the Green River Watershed, snow blankets the fields. As our mountain snowpack melts, it releases water into streams and fills our lakes and reservoirs. To measure and track our water levels, our Watershed Services team travels by snowmobile to the Upper Green River Watershed to elevations at about 3000 feet to conduct a snow survey. They measure snow depths and weights to determine how much water is available in the snow. This data helps determine water supply forecasts for our community and the entire region. When surveyed earlier this month, the snow depth was about 32 inches, and normally at this time of year, it's around 80 inches. Multiple recent storms brought significant snow to the Cascades, delivering the higher-elevations of the Watershed much-needed refills.

This week, we're shining a spotlight on the sharp minds working behind the scenes here at TPU, our engineers! If you rarely think about your power or water, you can thank an engineer for that. They are the bright creators behind the innovative solutions that keep our community running strong 24/7. Let’s give a big shout-out to the folks who work in the background to make it all happen!

Our lobby and Customer Services phone lines are closed during Presidents' Day. Emergency phone lines remain open. We will return to regular business hours on Tuesday, February 18.

The Public Utility Board is meeting tonight at 6:30 p.m. Real-time public comment will be available at the start of the meeting. Attend virtually: https://bit.ly/39kOvNs