Climate Resilience

Saltwater Intrusion Spurs Regional Action to Protect Virginia Beach’s Water Supply

By HRCNN Staff Writer, Eric S. Cavallo

Saltwater intrusion, long regarded as a quiet threat beneath the Coastal Plain, has moved to the forefront of public concern in Hampton Roads. For decades, heavy withdrawals have lowered groundwater levels across the region, allowing salty water from the coast to slowly press inland. The result is a creeping risk of contamination in aquifers that once provided reliable fresh water. Today, officials and contractors alike are treating the issue as an urgent challenge with long-term consequences.

Although Virginia Beach households receive most of their drinking water from Lake Gaston through a regional pipeline, the health of the aquifers beneath the city still matters greatly. Those underground reserves remain essential for private wells, agriculture, and industry. State officials caution that even if tap water is secure today, the resilience of the region tomorrow depends on keeping saltwater at bay. Protecting the aquifer, they say, is central to ensuring Hampton Roads can sustain growth without sacrificing its water security.

The most ambitious response so far has come from the Hampton Roads Sanitation District. Its Sustainable Water Initiative for Tomorrow, widely known as SWIFT, is designed to restore balance underground by taking highly treated wastewater, purifying it further to meet drinking water standards, and then returning it to the Potomac Aquifer. The process helps replenish pressure in the system, keeping saltwater from advancing and even slowing land subsidence that threatens roads, buildings, and utilities in low-lying communities.

Construction has been at the heart of the program. Firms including Garney Construction, MEB, Hazen & Sawyer, Tetra Tech, Carollo Engineers, and Crowder Construction have been responsible for everything from design to delivery. Their combined efforts represent one of the nation’s largest managed aquifer recharge programs. The scale is considerable: injection wells, advanced treatment trains, and continuous monitoring systems must all work in tandem to ensure that the project delivers safe water while stabilizing the aquifer.

At HRSD’s Nansemond Treatment Plant, Garney is leading the design-build team constructing a full-scale SWIFT facility. Hazen & Sawyer serves as overall program manager, guiding the multi-phase effort. Tetra Tech and Carollo Engineers are handling advanced treatment design, while MEB is engaged in critical construction roles. Crowder Construction, for its part, built the demonstration facility that proved the approach was viable. Each of these firms has contributed expertise that makes the program possible, and their work highlights the close partnership between public utilities and the private construction sector.

Meanwhile, state regulators continue to track conditions underground. The Virginia Department of Environmental Quality, working alongside the U.S. Geological Survey, monitors aquifer levels and saltwater movement to inform future permitting and planning. These data points shape the pace and scale of projects like SWIFT and provide policymakers with the evidence needed to justify major infrastructure investments.

For now, Virginia Beach residents can turn on their taps without worry. But the experts leading this effort agree that security depends on staying ahead of the threat. The SWIFT program, which is expanding across multiple facilities in Hampton Roads, is widely regarded as the region’s best defense against the slow but steady march of saltwater into fresh groundwater. It is a defense built not only on science, but also on the skill of the contractors and engineers who are turning plans into lasting infrastructure.

About HRCNN
The Hampton Roads Construction News Network (HRCNN), powered by Earthly Infrastructure®, delivers accurate, timely, and in-depth coverage of construction, infrastructure, zoning, and development across Virginia. Serving both industry professionals and the public, HRCNN provides trusted reporting on the projects and policies that shape the future of our communities.

EPA Suspends 2025 WaterSense® Awards, Raising Questions for Industry

By HRCNN – Hampton Roads Construction News Network Staff Writer

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has quietly suspended its annual WaterSense Awards for 2025, leaving water efficiency advocates and industry partners without one of the nation’s most visible platforms for recognizing leadership in conservation. The decision, confirmed in an email from Acting WaterSense Program Manager Veronica Blette, has sparked uncertainty about the future of the program’s recognition initiatives.

For more than a decade, the WaterSense Awards have been a cornerstone of EPA’s efforts to highlight best practices in water efficiency. Utilities, builders, manufacturers, and nonprofits competed annually for recognition, with winners often leveraging the award to strengthen partnerships, market products, or demonstrate compliance with sustainability standards. The pause in 2025 raises concerns that the momentum built around conservation recognition may be losing ground at a critical moment.

In her communication, Blette explained that the decision stemmed from “program resource constraints” and the need to reassess priorities. She emphasized that the WaterSense label itself remains unchanged, and that EPA continues to view water efficiency as a national priority. Still, the suspension of awards creates a vacuum in industry acknowledgment, at a time when communities face mounting challenges from drought, flooding, and climate-driven water stress.

The WaterSense program, established in 2006, has long served as a voluntary but highly influential label for plumbing fixtures, appliances, and homes that meet strict efficiency standards. Over the years, award recognition extended beyond products, showcasing the leadership of local governments and builders in advancing water-smart development. By putting the awards on hold, EPA is signaling that recognition may take a back seat to maintaining core labeling and verification functions.

Industry response has been cautious but concerned. Builders and manufacturers note that awards offered more than prestige—they provided a competitive edge in demonstrating commitment to conservation. For utilities and municipalities, WaterSense Awards were often used to highlight partnerships and validate public investments in efficiency programs. Without this recognition, stakeholders may struggle to maintain visibility for initiatives that save both water and money.

For Hampton Roads, where sea-level rise and stormwater management remain pressing concerns, the suspension lands at an awkward time. Regional utilities and builders have increasingly turned to WaterSense specifications as part of their strategy for resilience. The loss of a high-profile award program reduces opportunities to showcase local innovation in water stewardship, even as demand for such solutions continues to grow.

EPA has not announced whether the WaterSense Awards will return in 2026. For now, industry professionals are left to navigate without the recognition program that, for nearly two decades, helped set benchmarks for leadership. Whether the pause proves temporary or permanent, the change underscores a broader truth: as water challenges mount nationwide, the need for innovation and accountability in conservation is greater than ever.

About HRCNN
The Hampton Roads Construction News Network (HRCNN) provides independent coverage of infrastructure, housing, zoning, and environmental policy across Virginia. By highlighting the intersection of local development and national regulatory shifts, HRCNN delivers fact-driven reporting for industry professionals, policymakers, and the communities they serve.