WRWC approves up to $612,654 for Nevada Water Innovation Institute to continue regional coordination

The Western Regional Water Commission unanimously approved a three-year scope of work Wednesday authorizing up to $612,654 from the Regional Water Management Fund for the Nevada Water Innovation Institute (NWII) at the University of Nevada, Reno to provide regional water-management coordination and technical assistance.

Commission staff said the contract covers fiscal years 2026–2028 and breaks down to $198,014 for FY26, $202,245 for FY27 and $212,255 for FY28; FY26 funding had already been approved in the current budget. Kim Rigdon, WRWC program staff, said the Northern Nevada Water Planning Commission prioritized full funding of the NWII work during annual priority-setting and that unused funds can carry forward between fiscal years to allow flexibility in scheduling technical assistance.

Dr. Krishna Pagela, NWII director at UNR, and Dr. Laura Huck, research scientist, gave commissioners an overview of institute projects supported by regional funding. Pagela said NWII is funded through a mix of university positions and project grants: "I'm fully funded by the university," Pagela said, while staff such as Huck are supported by project funding from member agencies and federal grants. The presenters highlighted continued support for the 1 Water Nevada advanced purified water demonstration at Reno-Stead, a mobile treatment trailer used for piloting technologies, an annual Truckee River Watershed Symposium and enhanced source-control monitoring in sewer sheds.

Dr. Huck described the enhanced source-control program, which focuses on preventing or pretreating discharges to sewer systems that could complicate wastewater treatment or pose risks for potable reuse. She said the program has conducted monitoring across sewer collection subareas to identify elevated concentrations of unregulated pollutants such as bromide, which can form regulated carcinogenic disinfection byproducts when oxidized. "When we did load estimates...we see that there's some specific sources happening in that sub-collection system," Huck said, describing how targeted monitoring can reveal disproportionate pollutant loads from small areas.

The commission debated contract phasing and fiscal exposure. Member Taylor asked whether work started in FY26 would remain usable if future years' funding were not approved; staff answered that approved FY26 funds would remain available and that the annual priority-setting and budgeting process gives agencies an opportunity to reprioritize tasks if later-year funding is not provided.

A motion to approve the scope of work and funding not to exceed $612,654 was made by Member Andriola and seconded by Member Hill. The motion passed unanimously.

Votes at a glance: - Motion: Approve scope of work and funding for Nevada Water Innovation Institute, not to exceed $612,654, project completion date 06/23/2028. Moved: Member Andriola. Second: Member Hill. Outcome: Approved unanimously. - Motion: Approve meeting agenda. Outcome: Approved unanimously. - Motion: Approve minutes of the WRWC meeting of 05/22/2025. Outcome: Approved unanimously.

The commission also heard that NWII continues to refine the mobile treatment trailer used for pilot testing and that NWII is coordinating workforce-development workshops, a nutrient-treatment training for operators and ongoing mapping and digital tools to support regional effluent-management planning. NWII presenters noted the institute has leveraged regional projects to secure competitive federal research grants.