MWH UK technical specialist, Lisa Barrott has been elected chair of the CIWEM water supply and quality panel, the first ever woman to assume the role.  The panel comprises a range of experts in the water supply field, drawn from government, regulators, water companies, consultants, research organisations and others.

In her role as chair, Barrott will lead and continue the work of the panel which includes preparing public position statements, contributing to consultation responses, providing technical advice for the public and organising conferences.

Barrott is a principal water scientist with MWH (now part of Stantec). She has experience of a wide range of water treatment processes from research for the water industry and the consultancy sector and knowledge of both small community water treatment and advanced water treatment processes and particularly drinking water safety plans. Recently she has been engaged in strategy feasibility and optimisation studies for several water companies in the UK.

On becoming the first woman to chair the CIWEM panel, Barrott said: “I have particularly encouraged women to join the panel and present at conferences and hope that this will continue into the future. I would encourage anyone to help with CIWEM meetings in their local area as it is so valuable to have the experience of arranging meetings, inviting speakers and making contact with people throughout the water industry.”

CIWEM is the only royal chartered professional body dedicated to the water and environment sector. They represent and support a community of thousands of members globally, dedicated to improving water and environmental management and associated social and cultural issues.