Wastewater treatment gets no respect in America, and the biggest problem is that we keep on treating it as a matter for the environment. It's not. The only thing that matters is public health.

1. Forget the Environment: We're in the Public Health Business
Brian Gongol
DJ Gongol & Associates, Inc.
February 18, 2020
DMACC
Ankeny, Iowa

2. "What do you do for a living?"

3. Evil wingman: "He sells s#!+ pumps"

4. Proud parent: "He works in public health"

5. Do you really like working in waste treatment?

6. Framing matters

7. The Ned Flanders approach
<falling off ladder>
"Oh, blood!"

8. The Ned Flanders approach
"She's full of Pepsi and vinegar!"

9. The Ned Flanders approach
"That salesman is full of motor oil."

10. Conclusion of the Ned Flanders test?
We are in perhaps the only business
where people talk about the inputs every day,
but nobody ever stops to think about the product

11. The mission matters: Read "Built to Last"

12. The great misdirection

13. "Environment" sells us short

14. It's nice, but nobody really pays for it
$

15. Nature adapts to nutrients

16. The environment isn't our client
The public is.

17. If people matter most, we're in public health

18. What brought down the "Occupy" movement?

19. What brought down the "Occupy" movement?
Toilets and showers
(or, rather, the lack thereof)

20. Don't know what you got till you go abroad

21. What did you bring home from your trip?

22. Our rivals aren't who we think they are

23. Rival #1: Complacency

24. Rival #2: "Roads and bridges"

25. Rival #3: Government get-rich-quick schemes

26. Rival #4: Cheap and dirty
The throwaway solution is
usually a trap set for those
who don't realize they're really
buying a long-term contract
with an abusive supplier

27. Rival #5: Bottled water

28. The paradox of bottled water
The public values water quite highly
until they get it almost for free

29. Time and opportunity are both running out

30. Worry about: Interest rates

31. Worry about: Shrinking communities

32. Worry about: Deteriorating infrastructure

33. When to speak up

34. When to show up and be seen

35. From wastewater treatment to public health

36. It's like three 747s crashing every day

37. It's like three 747s crashing every day
"Poor sanitation, which is widely accepted
as a chief contributor to waterborne diseases,
is the cause of more than 1,200 deaths
of children under five-years-old per day,
more than AIDS, measles, and tuberculosis
combined."
- Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

38. Don't want no scrubs

39. Don't want no scrubs
Blood stain
on a pair of scrubs

Perception: Doctor,
nurse, surgeon, PA, EMT,
paramedic

Reaction: Instant respect

"They might have saved a
life today"

40. Don't want no scrubs
Blood stain
on a pair of scrubs

Perception: Doctor,
nurse, surgeon, PA, EMT,
paramedic

Reaction: Instant respect

"They might have saved a
life today"
Grease stain
on a pair of coveralls

Perception: Dirty, hands-
on work

Reaction: Indifference

Actually prevented
typhoid, cholera,
dysentery, gastroenteritis,
and hepatitis today

41. Don't want no scrubs
Water and wastewater operators
should wear scrubs to work

42. Changing minds one-on-one

43. Reaching out to the public

44. Changing our self-talk

45. Do words matter?

46. You've seen this message before

47. Did you notice the hidden message?

48. How does the alcohol business frame it now?

49. Now that's really spinning it

50. We don't need more euphemisms

51. But we do need a sense of mission

52. The great WWTP vs WRF debate

53. What if we went further?
Waste Water Treatment Plant

54. WWTP v.2.0
Waste Water Treatment Park

55. WWTP v.2.1
Waste Water Technology Park

56. WWTP v.2.2
Waste Water Transformation Park

57. WWTP v.2.3
Water Wellness Transformation Park

58. "Helping the environment"

59. "Helping the environment"
No, you're not.
You're protecting people.

60. Protecting public health
Protecting public health
so you can enjoy the
privilege of civilization

61. Questions?
Thank you for your time and
attention!
Call, email, or follow up
anytime with questions or
comments.

Brian Gongol
DJ Gongol & Associates

515-223-4144

info@gongol.net

@djgongol on Facebook,
Twitter, Instagram, and
LinkedIn

62. Sources

Unless otherwise noted, all images are original work of the author and copyright is reserved

Cover art for "Built to Last" utilized under fair use. Obtained from
https://www.harpercollins.com/9780062119087/built-to-last/

WEF mission statement retrieved from homepage on Sept. 3, 2019: https://wef.org/

Vehicle sales graph from Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis "FRED" Economic Data:
https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/ALTSALES

Federal funds rate graph from Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis "FRED" Economic Data:
https://fred.stlouisfed.org/graph/?g=oLr6

Marines recruitment poster obtained from the public domain:
https://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/93500072/

Photo of Harry Truman obtained from Library of Congress with copyright expired:
https://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/2016874142/

Iowa population data retrieved from Iowa Data Center:
https://www.iowadatacenter.org/data/estimates/2018/pop-est-2018

Mortality estimate from inadequate sanitation:
https://www.gatesfoundation.org/what-we-do/global-growth-and-opportunity/water-sanitation-and-
hygiene