EVENT: You really gotta go. To our Open House and #neorsdTOUR this Saturday.

Wally Waterdrop and friends are ready to show what it takes to keep our Great Lake great.

It’s the question that has confounded children for generations: “Where does it go when I flush the potty?”

The Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District proudly answers one of life’s most important questions this Saturday, September 17, at the Southerly Wastewater Treatment Plant in Cuyahoga Heights.

This annual event offers opportunities for guests of all ages to tour the largest wastewater treatment in the State of Ohio, visit an award-winning laboratory, walk through a virtual sewer, learn about stormwater management, conduct experiments with “Zach the Mad Scientist” and experience first-hand the heavy machinery and vehicles required to maintain 350 miles of interceptor sewers.

EVENT: #2016outreach contractor opportunities event draws overflow crowd

Contract Compliance Officer Diana Jones greets guests January 21.

Construction contractors from Northeast Ohio and across the Midwest came to Cleveland recently to hear details about $140 million in construction projects presented by the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District.

Sewer District engineers rolled out plans for nearly a dozen construction projects—including the Dugway South Relief and Consolidation Sewer in Cleveland and East Cleveland—on Thursday, January 21, at the Centers for Families and Children in Cleveland.

“We were very pleased with the significant turn out for this outreach event” said Tiffany Jordan, manager of contracts and compliance. “It was exciting to see the diverse businesses and operators in the room."

You can hear the full event podcast courtesy Diane Helbig below.

COMMUNITY: Leadership and love of learning inspire little free library

Every little bit of reading helps, and every little free library helps a lot.

Today, members of Cleveland State University’s Leadership Academy XXIV dedicated a Little Free Library at 1299 Superior Avenue in Cleveland.

“Exposure to reading at a young age heightens the desire to learn and the mind’s amazing ability to absorb information,” said Ava Decembly (CMHA), Distinguished Fellow, Leadership Academy XXIV. “This establishes a firm foundation to build upon, thereby increasing one’s odds of future success.”

Leadership Academy includes a diverse team of public sector employees from many local organizations including Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District, Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority, Cuyahoga County, Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority, Village of South Russell, City of Shaker Heights, Cuyahoga County, City of Avon Lake, Cleveland Public Library, City of Brooklyn, Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency and Alcohol, Drug Addiction and Mental Health Services.

Five @neorsd employees participated in this year's Leadership Academy class.

COMMUNITY: Partnering for a bigger impact in education, awareness, action

Interns spend a morning at Cleveland Metroparks Watershed Stewardship Center at West Creek.

The District maintains partnerships with local organizations whose work to enhance quality of life in Northeast Ohio aligns with our own mission to protect water quality. By leveraging our partner resources, we broaden the public’s understanding of, and support for, our work. Here's a closer look at some of the work we're doing together.

Cleveland Metroparks

twitter.com/NEORSDbeaches

In 2013, the Sewer District partnered with the Cuyahoga County Board of Health and WKYC TV-3 to educate viewers about water quality at area beaches, and swimming safety updates were posted via Twitter. In addition, a new partnership with Cleveland Metroparks that included the District purchasing beach-cleaning machines resulted in better overall quality for Euclid Beach and Edgewater Park.

Also in 2013, the District and Metroparks celebrated the dedication of the Watershed Stewardship Center at West Creek in Parma. The District supported the center with $3 million towards construction and permanent on-site staff. The Center received a 2013 “Award of Excellence” from the Ohio Parks and Recreation Association, and is an opportunity to expand the District’s watershed- and environmental-education efforts.

NEWS: Green commitment in Cleveland's Public Square renovation improves drainage, manages stormwater

UPDATE 2015 03/09: It all begins today. Roads closed officially at 6:00 a.m. this morning. This story took a closer look at some of the green-infrastructure components of the work that will take shape under and on the surface of the Cleveland Public Square renovation scheduled for completion in 2016.

On October 2, Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District Trustees approved a $3 million installment grant for the Public Square Renovation Project, a contribution that will increase the square's greenspace and sustainability.

"Public Square is the heart of Downtown Cleveland," said Julius Ciaccia, Executive Director of the Sewer District. "We’re excited to be able to connect our clean water work to the makeover of this historic, popular and heavily traveled area."

SHARE: Don't let the unseen go unspoken. Water infrastructure needs attention and you can speak up 9/9 #WaterWorks

Without clean, safe, and reliable water and wastewater systems, one-fifth of our US economy would grind to a halt. That's because #WaterWorks.

Water sustains life. It creates jobs and drives our economy. Clean water is what our work is all about.

September's going to be big when it comes to water issues. On September 10, 2014, water leaders will be in Washington, educating the White House and Congressional leaders about how investment in our nation’s water and wastewater infrastructure puts people to work and builds a stronger America.

We'll share stats, stories, videos and more throughout the month, and you can lend your voice to the clean-water cause. One social-media method is a September 9 Thunderclap.

ENTERTAINMENT: #Watermen series will take reality TV to a new low, and it looks filthy.

Reality television is about to hit a new low: Sewers, and the team who keeps things flowing.

United Utilities—one of the UK's largest water and wastewater service providers—will star in a six-part documentary series called "Watermen: A dirty business" on BBC2 starting today.

#CIFF38: Silence your phones during the movie, and don't tweet from the bathroom.

@CIFF @wallywaterdrop gr8 partnerships yield gr8 results (& dry phones) Ty @neorsd for sponsoring gr8est film fest pic.twitter.com/v7VvJwSDL5
— joecimperman (@joecimperman) April 11, 2013

The Cleveland International Film Festival returns today, and with 93,000+ admissions last year, we know all sorts of eyes will be focused on our city—and thousands of visitors will be making bathroom breaks between flicks.

That means "Lights, camera, action!" when it comes to some clean-water communication.

This is the third year we are sponsoring the CIFF, branding restrooms and stalls at Tower City Cinemas to help educate visitors in the form of a public service announcement.

#WaitToTweet made its debut at last year's CIFF and the message remains the same this year: We remind people that dropping a phone in the toilet is an all-too-common occurrence, and we suggest people think twice before tweeting from the stall. The message connects guests' everyday actions with the everyday work of wastewater treatment that rarely crosses minds.

EDUCATION: Bathroom signage to promote thinking twice about sustainability? They're not wastes of time, they're #StallTactics.

Statistics show we use the restroom about seven times every day. That means public restrooms get a lot of use, and based on the amount of wastewater we treat every day, we know that from experience.

In 2013, your Sewer District found some unique opportunities to educate and communicate in the very place where our business begins. Bathrooms.

LIST: 10 ways Buzzfeed lists have inspired us to, well, make more lists

1. Lists give us a reason to post awesome photos.

2. And goofy gifs.

 

LIST: 7 reasons Captain America and Hollywood would love seeing a wastewater treatment plant, you know, like ours

If Captain America and Nick Fury need to adjust their Cleveland filming schedules anticipating rain this week and are suddenly faced with time to kill—I mean geez how much time can one spend in a commissary tent?—I'm just going to put this out there:

We'd be happy to welcome them on a plant tour.

I know, I know, these guys are busy, but hey, Hollywood might even find inspiration for a future flick around facilities like ours. With three treatment plants a short drive from downtown Cleveland, there's plenty to see. Afterall, this work is what keeps our Great Lake ready for its cameo, right?

Here are seven superhero-worthy attractions our clean-water infrastructure and employees would have to offer.

SLIDESHARE: How and why @neorsd got social

Why is the Sewer District using social media? Because you are.

That's the simple answer we've offered before, but we recently presented these slides at a professionals networking event. It gives the past, present, and future of social media's role in our communication efforts, and even includes a few cautionary tales for social-media newcomers. You may want to view the full-screen version on Slideshare that includes the captions and content links.

Your Sewer District and social media? How @neorsd is using it, learning from it, educating with it from Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District