Philip D. Guerin, MCWRS Executive Director

Jay Bernas, P.E. serves as General Manager/CEO of the Hampton Roads Sanitation District (HRSD), which is the nation’s 14th largest wastewater utility, serving 1.9 million residents across twenty cities and counties in Eastern Virginia.  Previously, Mr. Bernas held key roles at HRSD, including Chief Financial Officer, where he was pivotal in building innovative financial models and securing $1.05 billion in Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) funding, positioning HRSD as a leader in water sector infrastructure investment. Combined with SRF, HRSD ratepayers will save over $390 million and see almost 9% lower monthly bills with federal subsidized financing.  

Prior to being CFO, he was Chief of Planning and Analysis, where he specialized in hydraulic modeling, data analysis, and capital programming.

A licensed Professional Engineer, Mr. Bernas holds an MBA from The College of William & Mary and a Bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering from Old Dominion University. His experience includes serving on the $3 billion Virginia Investment Pool Board of Trustees and the National Association of Clean Water Agencies (NACWA) Board of Directors. He was also appointed by the Governor of Virginia to the Board of Accountancy and served on the Virginia Beach Planning Commission, chairing the body during his final two years.

This panel will explore what science informs environmental policy and regulations. Panelists will discuss what we know, and don’t know, about the fate, transport and toxicology of PFAS as it relates to drinking water, wastewater and biosolids. The science of toxicology itself will be examined with the goal of understanding how data is used, and possibly misused, in setting national and state standards.

Panelists:

Laura Green, Green Toxicology

Charles Schaefer, CDM Smiith

Richard Desrosiers, GZA

Linda Cook, Weston & Sampson

Meet with other water resource professionals from around the country!

This panel will offer insights into recent national and state legislation, regulations, policies, legal actions and court decisions that may affect those managing or using water infrastructure systems. Panelists will describe recent and pending legislative, legal and regulatory actions, how they might impact communities, and the current status of these developments. The panel discussion will center on advocacy options to best address these concerns.

Panelists:

Robert D. Cox, Jr., Of Counsel, Bowditch

Beth Card, Senior Policy Advisor, Smith, Costello & Crawford

Adam Krantz, NACWA

MCWRS Executive Director Philip D. Guerin will present the Joseph J. Superneau Leadership Award & the Robert L. Moylan, Jr. Project of the Year Award.

Visit our awards page for more information.

This panel will discuss the public perception of science and regulation and how that influences state and national policy. The panel discussion will consider how actual risk could best be communicated to the public to help inform thoughtful consideration of costs and benefits of regulatory actions.

Panelists:

Andrew Shapero,Town of Nantucket

Kate Riley, Kleinfelder

Barbara Moran, WBUR

This presentation highlights recent research and innovative technologies developed at local universities to address PFAS in drinking water and PFAS in wastewater/biosolids.

Panelist:

John Tracy, Aclarity

Philip D. Guerin, MCWRS Executive Director