As part of its standard to forge and maintain long-term, positive and proactive relationships with members of the local community and greater water industry and to be transparent about its operations and programs, OCWD board members and staff speak regularly before civic groups and at events. OCWD participated in the following during October:

• President Cathy Green gave a presentation to the Kiwanis of Fountain Valley about the status of the groundwater basin, groundwater supplies and the Groundwater Replenishment System (GWRS) Initial Expansion.
• Lab Director Lee Yoo provided presentations about the GWRS to the Seoul Water Institute, Young Nam University and attendees of the World Water Cities Forum.
• Recharge Planning Manager Adam Hutchinson participated in the Groundwater Regulation in California Conference. He presented about strategies for achieving sustainable groundwater basins.
• General Manager Mike Markus participated in the 2015 Environmental Training Symposium and Conference. He served on a panel titled “Regional Sustainable Water Supply.”
• Chief Hydrogeologist Roy Herndon gave a presentation titled “Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA) and the Orange County Groundwater Basin” at the National Water Research Institute’s (NWRI) Clarke Prize Conference in Huntington Beach.
• General Manager Mike Markus participated in the 2015 American Academy of Environmental Engineers & Scientists Summit. The event focused on attaining a sustainable wet infrastructure for Southern California. Mike presented about the GWRS.
• Public Affairs Director Eleanor Torres presented on the GWRS at an event hosted by Southern California Gas Company called “A Gathering of Green Teams.”
• Director of Water Production Mehul Patel participated in the 3rd Annual World Water-Tech North America Summit. He gave a presentation about water reuse and the GWRS and was part of a roundtable discussion about advanced water technologies.
• Assistant General Manager Mike Wehner participated in the NWRI panel for the City of San Diego Pure Water Program. The panel was asked to evaluate a proposed cost- and time-saving option to use a smaller reservoir in conjunction with the supplemental treatment processes as an alternative to the reservoir detention requirements in the draft criteria and offer recommendations for how this option might be pursued through the regulatory process.
• Chief Hydrogeologist Roy Herndon gave OCWD/groundwater basin overview presentations to two groups: Law Seminars International and Covenant Presbyterian Church in the city of Orange.
• Recharge Planning Manager Adam Hutchinson participated in the second of two Groundwater Sustainability Plan roundtable discussions convened by the California Water Foundation. The objective was to provide cross-interest discussion of Groundwater Sustainability Plan regulations being developed by the Department of Water Resources.