Christensen Named WEF Water Hero
Lyle R. Christensen, P.E., of Omaha, Neb., has been selected as a Water Environment Foundation (WEF) Water Hero, according to a March 11 press release from HDR.
WEF defines water heroes as “the everyday professionals who protect public health and the environment by cleaning the world’s water day after day.” Its Water Heroes program is the organization’s way of saying “thank you” to those who work to improve water quality.
Christensen decided to become a water quality professional more than 35 years ago “to sincerely make a difference in the quality of life and education of our citizenry and to contribute to the continued improvement of our water-based environment,” he said. “In my lifetime, I have personally witnessed too many abuses to our water resources, and I have always felt a strong sense of ownership and duty to ‘do it right.’”
When Christensen became involved with WEF a decade ago, a personal goal was to open dialogue with representatives from WEF member Governmental Affairs committees, state regulatory agencies, and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) staff in the four states that make up EPA’s Region 7. The ultimate goal was educating “our respective memberships, the regulated community, and the public in general.”
The second annual four-state governmental affairs meeting was held in September 2008. Christensen said all in attendance believed that this effort should not only continue in Region 7 but be implemented in EPA’s other regions. That’s why Christensen said this project is one of his biggest achievements as a water quality professional.
HDR is an employee-owned architectural, engineering, and consulting firm with more than 7,700 professionals in more than 165 locations worldwide.