From left, Zack Horve, Dr Kimberly Murphy, Adriana Reyes, Sustainability Manager Peyton Heisch, and Erik Bergren at WATERCON in Peoria
ROCK ISLAND, ILLINOIS (May 8, 2024) — Erik Bergren, an Economics, Public Health major from Geneseo, Illinois (61254), was one of three Augustana College students to present research at the Illinois Section of the American Water Association industry conference in Peoria on April 17. Together with Augustana and City of Rock Island representatives, they presented research on the water-line inventory project.
Known as WATERCON, the annual event brings together utilities and industry suppliers, consultants, manufacturers, and regulators to share information through the exhibits, education, and networking events.
All three presenting students were among the student researchers on the multi-year, interdisciplinary water-line inventory project. They were joined at the conference by Augustana Associate Professor of Biology Dr Kimberly Murphy, Augustana Sustainability Manager Peyton Heisch and City of Rock Island Water Superintendent Jason Upton. View the WATERCON presentation.
"WATERCON provided our students the opportunity to share their lead service-line community-based research-project methods and results with a diverse group of professionals and experts all focused on safe and sustainable water practices," said Dr Murphy. "The students also discussed the life skills they developed that are valuable for their personal growth."
Augustana announced a partnership with the City of Rock Island to identify the city's service lines in July 2022. The project is in compliance with the 2022 Illinois' Lead Service Line Replacement and Notification Act, which requires cities to inventory lead service lines, implement replacements, and coordinate financing strategies to fund this work.
The college's Center for the Advancement of Community Health and Wellness, led by Dr Murphy, and the Upper Mississippi Center, led by Associate Professor of Environmental Studies Dr Michael Reisner, assisted in gathering data for the project.
Over 12,000 residential homes were included in the survey, which accounts for 25 percent of inventory citywide. With the use of predictive modeling, the project leaders were able to estimate the remaining 75 percent.
As an economic and public health student, Bergren said presenting on how to equitably serve communities through water-pipe replacement was the perfect combination of his majors.
"Seeing how excited and curious industry leaders were in our research was the best part of my experience at WATERCON," he said. "I'm glad our research has the potential to help more communities beyond Rock Island."
Augustana College is a vibrant, welcoming liberal-arts college located on a 115-acre campus in the Quad Cities (pop 400,000) along the Mississippi River. Augustana, a residential campus, has 100 majors and programs, 160 student organizations, and 28 varsity athletic teams.
The college enrolls 2,500 students in a metro area that provides access to many career-paths and hands-on learning opportunities, including internships, jobs, student teaching, and research sites.
