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Hello and welcome to Make It Clear, a conversational podcast about all things related to water and wastewater. I'm your host, Shawn Rapp, and in each episode, I'll be joined by new guests and co-hosts as we tackle relevant wastewater industry topics with facts and expert opinions to make things clear.
Shawn: All right, welcome back to another episode of Make It Clear, Why You Can't Just Flush and Forget. I'm Shawn, I'm the host of the podcast, and joining me today are Jessy Tucker,
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Jessica Stiner and Ashley Donnelly, and we're gonna give them a chance to introduce themselves here in just a moment, but I wanted to say this is a great opportunity to explore the women who work in the wastewater industry. And I'm sure that these three ladies have a lot of great information to share. So let's jump in. Jessy, why don't you go ahead and start and introduce yourself, and then we'll just kind of go around the room as it were.
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Jessy: Yes. Thank you for the introduction, Shawn. My name is Jessy Tucker. I'm a senior systems engineer at Orenco and this is my second time on the podcast, but my first time helping with co-hosting.
Shawn: Awesome. I'm glad to have you here.
Jesse: Thanks for having me.
Shawn: Jessica?
Jessica: Thanks, Shawn. I am a senior engineering manager. I lead the whole team of engineers, including Jessy, on both the Infiltrator and Orenco side of the business to do all the design work
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for all of our advanced treatment products for commercial and large residential.
Shawn: Great. I'm glad you're here. And Ashley.
Ashley: Thank you, Shawn. Happy to be here. This is my first time on a podcast. So I am very excited. My role at Infiltrator is technical training and sales development manager. Myself and the team are the frontline for any technical inquiries that come into the company. So how do you design it,
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install it and why is it beeping? So we work with contractors, engineers, regulators, and industry professionals on their product questions. And it's honestly one of my favorite things.
Shawn: That's great. All right. Well, let's go ahead and jump into some questions here. And I think the way we want to do this is I'm just going to read the question. And then if somebody would like to volunteer and answer that, and then if somebody has some other things they would like to say about it, just jump right in and we will just
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go right through here. So the first question is what brought you first into the wastewater industry and what surprised you the most after you started?
Jessica: I could take a first stab. (Shawn: Sure.) So I actually started in college on doing acoustical engineering and music. It's a little different route for engineering. And I got involved with engineers without borders. And that really helped me fall in love with water and wastewater and helped me realize how much it impacts every single person.
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And every single community throughout the U S and around the world. And that helped me quickly switch over my major into civil environmental. And I haven't really looked back since. So I just love the passion that everybody has for people, for community, for the environment, clean water. It helps me be happy to wake up every day and go to work.
Shawn: That's great. Anybody else? Maybe what surprised you the most when you started working in the wastewater industry?
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Ashley: So I can share what brought me into the industry and what surprised me the most. And honestly, I have to say the industry found me. So early in my career, I came across Infiltrator Water Technologies and I knew right away that I wanted to be a part of the company. What surprised me most was the impact the industry has on everyday life, right? So most people never think about wastewater.
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until something goes wrong. But the work that we do is essential to protect public and environmental health and safeguarding our water resources. So more than 23 years later, I'm still excited by the people, the challenges, and the opportunity to make a difference every day.
Shawn: That's great.
Jesse: Yeah, that's incredible. So how did you first learn about Infiltrator? Like what brought you to the company?
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Ashley: Honestly, I started as a temp. So… (Jesse: wow!) Like I said, the industry, yes, the industry found me. started as a receptionist and I knew right away, like first week, I want to work here. I want to be a part of the work that the company is doing. So, it found me.
Jesse: That's incredible.
Shawn: Yeah. That's really neat. All right. So thinking back a little bit, what achievement would younger you be most impressed by?
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Ashley: So I could share similar to the podcast. I think Younger Me would be most impressed by the work I've done to help Infiltrator build their webinar program. And it also has a great story as well. If you know me, you know I'm passionate about industry training and education. And during COVID, when in-person events and training opportunities disappeared almost overnight,
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We saw an opportunity to connect with the industry in a new way. So we launched Infiltrators webinar series to provide education for engineers, contractors, regulators, and wastewater professionals. So six years later, the program has reached nearly 10,000 participants. So I would say looking back, it's incredibly rewarding to see the impact it's had and to know that we've helped so many people learn and grow and stay connected to the industry.
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Shawn: Yeah, that's wonderful. Jesse, how about you? Anything that you would be impressed by, younger you would be impressed by?
Jesse: Oh, man. I mean, probably all of it, you know, just to put it lightly. Wastewater, as we've echoed before, it's not really something you ever think about or consider until you get into the industry. And just being able to play a part in helping protect the environment and the world's water, like, it's pretty gratifying. I mean, you just even if you didn't have a passion for it when you start here,
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it, you get it and you just love what you do. So I think I would just be most impressed that not only did I end up working at a company that I interned for like on chance, but like I'm still here nine years later and I love it. I love coming to work.
Shawn: Yeah, for sure. All right. Let's see here. What's something you know now that you wish you had known earlier in your career?
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Jesse: If I could add to that, it could be maybe something you wish you knew when you were in college or to prep you for this or anything along those lines.
Ashley: I would say the impact of water and the importance of wastewater treatment and how it relates to our nation's infrastructure. So decentralized serves over 25 % of the U.S. population.
Shawn: Right. Yeah, that's certainly something I never knew when I got into this industry.
Jesse: Right?
Shawn: Yeah.
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I've learned an awful lot.
Jesse: It's not usually like common dinner table discussion unless you have family members in this industry. You know, I don't know about you guys, but when I get together with my family, you know, none of them know really what I do. They're like, oh yeah, you know, she works at a Orenco, and I know she does engineering work. But when I start to explain the impact that our advanced treatment has on communities or just bringing collection systems, it's, it's just wows them. Like I had no idea.
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Shawn: Yeah. You ever get anybody that says, yeah, they work in the septic tanks?
Jesse: Yeah, definitely. That's a common misconception. Like, oh, like I think she sells septic tanks or something. Like, yeah, something like that.
Shawn: All right.
Ashley: And that people are very curious. They want to know more.
Shawn: Yeah.
Jesse: Absolutely.
Shawn: I think it's because people know so little about it. So, thinking back, what's the best career advice you've ever received?
Jessica: For me, I
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I always come back to just doing your best with what you can in the time that you have and being proud of every day that you work. And when you do that and you live by that, you know, pieces do just kind of fall into place because not everybody is living by that same role. And you do stand out just by, you know, doing your best and putting forth your best foot every day. And some days that is a little bit more than other days, depending
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on how that day is going for you, but there's only so much you can do, but do the best that you can with the time and the effort that you have available to for sure.
Jesse: I agree.
Ashley: I would say for me, it's a few pieces of advice. Show up early. Don't be afraid to take chances. Be willing to do hard things. Growth usually happens outside of your comfort zone.
Shawn: Yeah.
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Jesse: I love the be willing to do hard things. That's so true. Cause you can't grow without something being maybe a little bit more difficult or challenging yourself. I think that's a really good one.
Shawn: Yup. sure.
Jessica: Being willing to raise your hand.
Ashley: Even you're a little nervous.
Shawn: Right? So if you were speaking to a group of young women and somebody in the audience was listening who had never considered wastewater as a career before,
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What would you want her to know?
Jessica: I think it's really cool to see the growth of women in this industry over time. And I think because it is so centered around selflessness in a way. And I think that women are inherently raised in that manner to be selfless and to care for others. And this industry is all about that. So I think it attracts women and I'd love to see
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The data, I don't have the stats in front of me, but you know, compared to other engineering fields, especially, you know, the environmental and water field, I think must have a much higher percentage of women. And it's only growing. You know, when I started with Infiltrator, I believe, correct me if I'm wrong, I should have been like, you and I were some of only technical people at the company. I was the only engineer that was a female at the company and
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To see it go from where it was then even to where it is now, like in my short career, really in the grand scheme of life. I haven't been here that long.
Ashley: It's incredible.
Jessica: 10 to 15 years, right? And the growth that we've seen with women in this industry and the leadership of women in this industry is really inspiring. So I really recommend that people go for it. It's a welcoming place. We're making it more and more welcome every day. And I think it's a
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great place to land.
Shawn: Yeah, that's wonderful.
Jesse: Yeah, absolutely. If I could just add to that, you know, wastewater, it's just so much more than what you might picture when you first just hear the word. I just believe it's this field where you have engineering, science, your problem solving, and just protecting the environment all coming together. So it's just, it's really rewarding. And the work we do, it just, has this real tangible impact on people. (Shawn: Yeah.)
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And just communities in their everyday life. So it's very rewarding.
Ashley: I would say that there's a lot of opportunity. I would tell her not to overlook it. As Jessica mentioned, there's been tremendous growth in the industry. It offers incredible career opportunities. You can make a difference in so many ways.
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Whether it's as a system designer, it could be a regulator, you could work for a manufacturer, you could be a contractor. It's a chance to build a rewarding career and protect public and environmental health.
Shawn: Yeah. I think some of those opportunities are, like you mentioned, are overlooked. And I think you're right. This is a wide open field for anybody who wants to get in.
Ashley: Right. And everybody poops.
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Shawn: Right?
Jesse: That's right.
Shawn: That's Not to too fine a point on it.
Jesse: And I think, you know, what's great is you don't have to have everything figured out. And I wish someone had really drove that home to me when I was a younger professional going through college. Like, you know what? You really don't have to have it all figured out from day one. Be curious. Ask those questions. And, you know, don't be afraid to step into a field that you might not know much about.
Shawn: For sure.
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Ashley: That's another very good piece of career advice, ask questions. (Shawn: Yes.) Be curious.
Shawn: Yeah, because I think that's the primary way of learning. If you're curious about something, ask those questions, learn something. For sure. So what industry challenges do you think the next generation is going to help solve?
Ashley: Oh, I think there's quite a few. So going back to being a very stable
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industry, right, public and environmental health. In wastewater, I would say that we have an aging workforce. So we need to find and attract, you know, new, new folks into the industry. I would also say Jessica and JessE, a lot of the designs incorporate nutrient reduction, PFAS. So that will
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continue in my opinion to be something that we're gonna have to solve.
Shawn: Yeah, PFAS and microplastics are the two that are coming up in lot of conversations and industry challenges and I think yeah we're gonna be seeing a lot more of that and how younger generations are gonna start tackling these issues.
Jesse: Yes, I just think this next generation is gonna have it a little tougher than we did. I just feel like they're gonna have to figure out how to do more with less.
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As Ashley mentioned, we have aging infrastructure. We have growing communities, changing regulations, giving you those stricter limits. And we have a bigger focus on things like water reuse and sustainability.
Shawn: Yup, for sure.
Jessica: Agreeing with what's already been said and dialing in on water reuse that Jessy just mentioned too. I think that's global challenge that's becoming more and more frequently implemented nationwide and globally.
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That I think is the future of wastewater is getting it in wastewater reuse and being able to reuse that water instead of losing it to saltwater or ocean water. (Shawn: Yeah.) And doing it in a way that's affordable enough that can be implemented in large scale.
Shawn: Yeah. I think we're actually seeing more and more projects that are things like gray water.
Jesse: Yes. They're becoming more prevalent.
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Yeah, and I think this next generation, there's definitely a lot of opportunity to look at the way we've always been doing things and ask, is there a better way to do this? And I just think the next generation is going to be really good at that.
Shawn: I think we've been really good at saying if it works, why do we have to fix it? (Jesse: Yes.) You know, we've been doing it this way for a long time.
Jesse: Exactly. But this newer generation, I mean, they're going to have a completely different perspective. They've grown up with more technology
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in a way that a lot of us didn't or didn't have access to. So I definitely think we're going to see new ideas around automation, efficiency, and just generally like how we can approach treatment.
Shawn: They understand AI a whole lot better than we do.
Jesse: Yeah, exactly.
Shawn: So is there anything we didn't cover today that you want to add to the conversation?
Ashley: Oh, I am dying for you to ask me what's the most underrated skill in the wastewater industry.
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Shawn: Well, please enlighten us.
Jesse: Yeah, what is the most underrated skill?
Ashley: So I'm going to go with pumpers and their ability to look into the septic tank and tell you what's going on in the home.
Shawn: That's a good one.
Jesse: That is a magic trick.
Ashley: I love to talk to pumpers. What do you see in the septic tank? What's the most interesting thing you've found? Tell me the story. What is the story? So...
Shawn: That was great, actually. Yeah, that's for sure.
Jesse: I was not prepared for that. That was great.
Shawn: I know.
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Ashley: So I'm curious, Jessica, Jessy, what do you think the most underrated skill is?
Jessica: This was kind of a cop out maybe, but I really think it is that listening and learning. And you mentioned the turning of the guard. Every year, we're losing so many wastewater professionals who've been doing it for so long. And trying to get that knowledge captured and
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pass along to the next generation. And I think that, I guess I'd say that underrated skill is just all those years of experience. And it's the little things that you don't encounter every day that come up every couple of years that, you know, what are we missing from getting out of that generation before they head out the door? And we need to make sure that we're capturing that before
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We lose it.
Jesse: Yes, absolutely. That is an underrated skill. I can say we have a few folks that are getting closer to retirement here locally in Orenco and I'm not looking forward to when they do because they're just, they have so much knowledge in this industry. I just, I want to remember everything they've taught me and I couldn't possibly.
Shawn: Really quick question that kind of plays off that, these ideas. Do you think it's getting more difficult to attract younger people to this industry or
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do you think there's something else that's maybe affecting that? Because I know we're seeing a lot of folks that are aging out of this industry. And I notice we often have jobs that may or may not go filled for quite a while in the industry as well. So do you think we're having a harder time getting folks to look at this industry as a viable career choice?
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Ashley: I think it's awareness. So when I'm out talking to different folks, I usually hear the most fascinating stories about how they found the wastewater industry. It's not necessarily something as common. So I think you need to have, have, have that awareness or have that introduction and in some in some way or another. So I think we need to, you know, bring more wastewater talk to
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technical colleges or to college campuses. What would you say, Jessica, Jessie?
Jessica: I totally agree. I think, you know, even younger and there's a good efforts by our industries. I know for sure with WEF and Ashley might be able to speak with NOWRA to try and get kids involved at a younger age. And, you know, just this Friday as part of WEF Tech, we've got water Palooza, which is an outreach event for kids.
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to teach them about wastewater and water and water cycles and just get them thinking about these topics. So just reaching out and like Asley said, at the college level, I have one class in an engineering degree if that around wastewater, even in a civil field. So just trying to
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bring more lectures and conversations to that so people know it's an option and don't even look for it.
Jesse: Exactly. I think we just need more awareness. mean, most folks, if they are in a septic tank, they might not realize it or the kids growing up, they don't know. And like Jessica said, there's maybe one course you take in your professional engineering school for water and wastewater. And like in my case, it conflicted with another class I needed for my degree. So I didn't even take it.
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And, you know, Orenco kind of found me, right? I was at Umpqua Community College and my engineering teacher at the time said, hey, my first year engineering class is having a speaker come in. It's a local company. I think you should come watch their presentation. And that's how I learned about Orenco. I had no idea, you know, they were in my backyard.
Shawn: Just in general, do you think it's harder to try to recruit younger women into this industry? Because I mean, historically there have been a lot more men in the industry than there have been women.
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I think that's been to our detriment, but do you think it's harder to recruit younger women into this industry than previously, or do think it's better now?
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Jessica: I don't necessarily think it's an issue of women in this industry. I think engineering in general, that women were blocked from for a long time. So I think you're seeing a rise of women in all engineering fields and technical fields in general. And with that, I kind of think that our field might be growing at a more rapid pace. So they don't have the facts to back that up. Maybe Shawn, you could look that up on the side and add it in, but I feel like, you know,
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The percentage of women that I work with in the water field is higher than other fields that I worked in previously. And so I don't necessarily know if it's an issue of attracting women in particular. I think it's maybe just overall attracting young people. And most of the young people that I see joining are actually heavily leaning towards women versus men. At least on the engineering design side. So it'd be interesting to see the statistics there, but.
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I do think it's just overall getting in front of people and letting them know that this is there and they should be thinking about it. And it's a real career option out there for them. So… (Shawn: sure.)
Ashley: We need to make wastewater dinner table conversation. So everyone tell everyone me too about wastewater.
Shawn: Right. Well, I think that's a good note to end on, but Ashley, Jessica and Jesse, thank you so much for joining me today.
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Really appreciate you sharing your stories. So, one thing I keep coming back to is that the wastewater or that wastewater industry is one industry that most people don't think about until you're actually in it. And once you're here, you realize how many different opportunities there are and how much impact this work really has. And hopefully today's conversation will give listeners a better idea of what the industry is all about. Maybe even inspire somebody who's never considered wastewater as a career path.
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So thanks to all three of you for helping me on this and helping move this industry forward. And thanks to everybody who's listening and for spending part of your day with us. So thanks again for joining us and we hope to see you again in another one of our episodes.
Ashley: I look forward to it. Thank you, Shawn.
Jessica: Thank you, Shawn.
Shawn: You bet.
Jesse: Thank you.
We want to thank you again for joining us today. Before you go, don't forget to subscribe where you listen to podcasts so you're notified when new episodes are posted.
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Also, if you have any comments or suggestions, you can leave us a message through the contact link on our website, www.orenco.com. Until next time, have a great day.