Hello Ripple Effect Listeners!

I have some very exciting news. After 10 wonderful years with Clyde Snow & Sessions I am moving to Culp & Kelly, LLP and CK Blueshift. This organization works on some of the West’s most pressing water problems and I am thrilled to be joining their ranks. In this new position I will be focusing on water policy matters and multi-stakeholder collaborative efforts. Clyde Snow’s water team will continue to provide excellent client service for more traditional water law needs.

As part of this move, we are moving Ripple Effect to a new home. This current feed will be re-titled CSS Water Podcast and you can find all podcasts produced to date here. If you want to listen to new Ripple Effect episodes please look for and re-subscribe to Ripple Effect: A Podcast Putting Water in Context. You can find links to all major podcasting platforms on Ripple Effect’s Buzzsprout site (https://www.buzzsprout.com/2464230) or re-subscribe directly on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. The logo will look the same and we are bringing all of the old episodes over with us. If you are a long time listener, please leave us a review and rating as it will help this new feed move up in the rankings.

Thanks for listening and I am excited to keep the discussion going! 

Steve Clyde, Senior Partner and Chair of the Natural Resources Practice Group at Clyde Snow & Sessions, joins us to talk about his 40 year legal career in Utah water. Steve is an esteemed Utah water lawyer responsible for shaping decades of Utah water law and mentor to countless Utah water attorneys. A wonderful discussion, personal thank you from Ripple Effect's host, and look to the future! 

Dan Adams, Senior Executive with the Langdon Group, and Celeste Carlisle; Biologist with Return to Freedom Wild Horse, Sanctuary, Educational, and Advocacy Group; Chair of the National BLM Wildhorse Working Group; and Chair of National BLM & Forest Service Wild and Burro Advisory Board; join us to talk wild horses in the West.This free ranging discussion covers the incredibly complex and emotionally charged issue of wild horses. We talk about the environmental complexities, the regulatory complexities, and the political complexities informing solution making on this topic. Fascinating discussion.

Andrew Pompeo, Environmental Engineer with Division of Water Quality, and Dani Zebelean, Environmental Engineer with Division of Drinking Water, join us to discuss Utah's water reuse projects and regulatory process. Andrew and Dani provide a fantastic overview of municipal waste water systems, how water reuse fits into that process, and what the future of reuse might look like in Utah.

Jason Brown, Vice President of Communications and Education at Envision Utah, and Bart Forsyth, Utah Water Ways Policy Advisor, join us to talk about the release of the Utah Water Values study. This extremely helpful survey, study, and review makes a contemporary assessment about what Utahns are thinking about Utah's water. The study provides concrete recommendations regarding the terminology that most resonates with Utah, their biggest concerns, and what their hopes are for the future. The Utah Values Study will guide how Utah Water Ways and other Utah organizations engage and inform Utah citizens about water.

Sarah Page, Drinking Water Treatment Lead for the Utah Division of Drinking Water, joins us to provide a great PFAS update. We discuss EPA's final, but not yet implemented PFAS National Primary Drinking Water Regulation, what monitoring and remediating PFAS will look like for various water systems, and the role of Guns and Roses in engaging water communication. Super practical information about a critical topic that will be with us a long, long time. 

Sarah Null, Professor at Utah State University in the Department in Watershed Sciences, Nell Green Nylon, Senior Research Fellow, and Molly Bruce, Research Fellow at the Center for Law, Energy, & Environment at the UC Berkeley School of Law, join us to talk about their report “Information Needs for Water Markets: Fair and Effective Water Markets Require Adequate Measurement and Reporting of Diversion and Use.” This collaborative effort synthesizes a number of key trends and themes across California, New Mexico, and Utah, impacting the ability to set up and establish water markets. The Report does a great job compiling a large amount of information and stakeholder feedback and distilling it into actionable recommendations. Fantastic effort led by a great group! 

Doug Clyde, Project Manager for High Altitude Watershed Planning for Mountain Resort Consulting and former Member of Summit County Council Planning Commission, joins us to talk about the importance of watershed health and incorporating watershed protections to land use planning rules and regulations. We discuss the specifics of the Kamas Valley in Summit County, Utah as a prime example of high altitude valleys, rural development, and how prospective land use planning can protect the water quality of a critical tributary to the Great Salt Lake. 

Shaina Shay, CEO and Editor-in-Chief of the Water Report, joins us to talk about her thoughts and themes for the upcoming 2025 Water Year. We discuss 1) Climate Change Adaptation: fire, floods, and drought and the rise of nature based solutions; 2) Funding: the end of a once in a generation surge of money for water through the Bi-partisan Infrastructure Bill and Covid relief funding and growing collaborative efforts to pool public, private, and corporate dollars; and 3) Administration Change: keeping watch on changes under the new Trump Administration and the lasting impacts of Sackett and the death of Chevon deference. We also discuss perennial hot topics of advanced water treatment technologies and the Colorado River. Great discussion for the New Year!! 

Jeff Gittins, partner at the law firm of Smith Hartvigsen and author of the Utah Water Law and Water Rights Blog, joins us for a 2025 Utah Legislative Preview. After several years of non-stop action, 2025 is shaping up to be a bit slower with most bills addressing specific administrative tweaks or brass tack items. This intentional slowdown is giving Utah some breathing room to let the big programs we have set up over the last several years develop and to identify the not so flashy but important micro-changes that make practicing water law easier. Check out his blog: https://utahwaterrights.blogspot.com/