Events

Whidbey Island Water Systems Association hosts quarterly Member Meetings which are open to the public. Typically the Member Meetings are held in March, June, September and December, with the December meeting designated as the Annual Meeting for budget approval, director elections and other formal business. Only WIWSA members are able to vote on motions at the quarterly and annual meetings.

Other upcoming events will be included here, both those sponsored by WIWSA or our partners, or other community events that might be of interest to WIWSA members.

Upcoming Events

RESCHEDULED: 2025 Annual Member’s Meeting—January 15, 2026; 5 pm to 7 pm IN-PERSON and ZOOM

As with many events in Island Count the Annual Member’s Meeting for December was cancelled and rescheduled. We will be hosting our annual meeting in person on Thursday, January 15, 2026 at the Coupeville Library and online over Zoom. 

We will continue to host hybrid in-person and online meetings each quarter. Despite the rescheduling we are hoping for a good turnout at the library for this 2025 annual meeting. Please come in person if you are able to.

We will have a full agenda with our annual director elections and budget review, along with several proposed bylaws revisions to support online meetings and clarify WIWSA voting procedures. Our featured topic will be a presentation from Jill Lipoti on Scatchet Head Water District’s infrastructure project. We are grateful to Jill for taking the time to prepare and present on such a relevant topic for the community.

The agenda, zoom information and other details have already been emailed to all subscribers of the newsletter. If you are not currently on the email list, you can sign up here and look for one of the reminder emails which will be sent in early January.

Island County Comp Plan—Public Meetings; IN-PERSON

The draft 2045 Comprehensive Plan documents are now available for public review. Visit the county’s Comprehensive Plan page for access to the documents and links to comment on the draft. The individual elements are scheduled for discussion at the Planning Board starting in December through the early months of 2026, see this page for agenda details as they become available.

Public meetings on the draft comp plan materials are planned for the following dates:

  • Oak Harbor, at The Center: January 15 from 5 to 6:30 PM 
  • South Whidbey, at the Clinton Community Hall: January 20 from 5 to 6:30 PM
  • Camano, at the County Annex Building: January 24 from 10 to 11:30 AM

Evergreen Rural Water of Washington—ERWOW 2026 Annual Conference February 10-12, 2026; Register here.

The 2026 Annual Conference and Tradeshow will be February 10-12, 2026 at the ilani Resort and Casino located at 1 Cowlitz Way in Ridgefield WA. The agenda will be out before the end of the year. Registration is open now.

ERWoW encourages Operators, Utility Board Members, Mayors, Council Members, Public Works Directors, and other leaders to attend our conference. We have specific classes scheduled to help officials in their responsibilities as managers of their community’s most important assets. It is imperative that today’s leaders have a firm understanding of their role in their water and wastewater utility systems. Please plan on attending!

1.6 CEUs Water pending
1.6 CEUs Wastewater approved

Recent Events

Reports from meetings or events that have been held recently. For less recent events, look further down under Meeting & Event Archives.

RECAP: Drinking Water Advisory Group Meeting—December 1, 2025, 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. ONLINE (TEAMS) ONLY

The Quarterly Drinking Water Advisory Group (DWAG) meeting was held on December 1, 2025 from 9 am to 12 pm. Here is the December 1 agenda (including Teams meeting links) and is also available on the DWAG meeting webpage. Attendees heard about the value of Small Water System Plans (presentation: Challenges of Establishing Adequate Water System Rates Presentation (PDF)), Challenges in setting Water Rates, the updates on LCR and PFAS rules, a recap of DWSRF applications received in the cycling closing November 30th (61 applications received) and a presentation on customer service feedback (Feedback on ODW Customer Service Presentation (PDF)). You can find the detailed meeting notes here.

The general DWAG page can be found here with meeting agendas and notes from previous meetings along with some presentation materials. At any time you can sign up for email notifications for all DWAG notices here.

RECAP: Small Water System Management Program (SWSMP) Workshop—October 25, 2025  IN-PERSON only

October 25, 2025 from 8:30 am to 5:00 pm at Pacific Rim Institute for Environmental Stewardship, 180 Parker Road, Coupeville, Washington 98239

Whidbey Island Water Systems Association sponsored an all-day workshop on the Small Water Systems Management Program (SWSMP) in Coupeville on October 25, 2025 as announced at the Q3 Member Meeting. The workshop was led by Samuel Rodriguez of Rural Community Assistance Corporation (RCAC) supported by the RCAC team and the Washington Department of Health staff members Sarah Spotts and Jocelyne Gray. Over 35 Group A and B water systems were represented with 45 participants. The workshop was well received by all and we are grateful to the RCAC and DOH staff for taking their Saturday to lead the workshop for us.

Sam’s presentation along with supporting materials can be found at the links below through the end of December. If you need them at a later date please contact Sam by email:

RECAP: Q3 Member’s Meeting — September 18, 2025; 5:30 pm to 7:30 pm

The Q3 Member Meeting was held in person on September 18, 2025 at the Coupeville Library with over 50 members and guests attending either in person or joining over Zoom. The is a brief recap followed by links to the video recording, agenda and other materials including presentations for our two main topics and some links that were mentioned at the meeting.

Emerging Contaminants in Small or Disadvantaged Communities (EC-SDC)—Samantha Delmer from Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF) spoke about the EC-SDC program from background and eligibility criteria through a step-by-step description of the application process. In addition she provided a glimpse of some upcoming programs.

Group A systems from small or disadvantaged communities with PFAS, Manganese or Cynotoxins are the target for these programs which provide substantial grants to those that qualify. Interested systems are encouraged to file a Technical Assistance Request whether to start the application process or for other types of funding or support. Submissions should receive a response quickly. The complete presentation is below and includes contact information and links to more information and resources.

Small Water System Management Program Workshop—Samuel Rodriguez of RCAC (Rural Community Assistance Corporation) presented an overview of the all-day workshop planned for October 25, 2025 in Coupeville exclusively for Island County water systems. He gave a brief introduction of RCAC before reviewing the workshop agenda.

WIWSA is working with RCAC to make this workshop available and will be sending out an email shortly with registration information to the newsletter subscriber list as well as posting that information the website. If you aren’t already on the email list you can subscribe here. The complete presentation is below.

Apprenticeship Program; Randi Perry announced that the most recent recipient of the WIWSA Scholarship, Jeremiah Pace, has received his Water Operators Certificate after completing his two year program. Congratulations, Jeremiah!

Franchise Requirements are under review; members who may be applying for a new franchise or renewing an existing franchise might want look into some discussions at the Board of County Commissioners. A recent work session discussed potential changes that would affect water system franchise holders. Check out the meeting agenda (pages 63-70) for details, and you can listen to the audio of the discussion here though you’ll have to search ahead for the franchise discussion.

Meeting & Event Archives

Browse the meeting archives which include all meeting agendas, minutes and reports along with some presentations that were included in those meetings.

All Member Meetings (2015-present) — All quarterly, special and annual member meetings since 2015.

Group B Meetups (2024-present) — New meetings with Group B water system board members and residential water users.

Community Events (2015-present) — Other events or meetings hosted by WIWSA, our partners or other community members.