This podcast will focus on a variety of water resources related topics and the interrelationship of water to our environment and society. The Podcast will be hosted by Tom Bellinger, and Joe Lyons. Dr. Thomas Bellinger, a professionally certified hydrologist and professor has over 40 years in the water science field with the Department of Interior and is currently on the faculty at the University of Colorado - Denver and the Metropolitan State University of Denver. Joe Lyons is an experienced Hydraulic Engineer/Hydrologist who has worked in the water science field with the Department of Interior. Tom and Joe have bee colleagues and friends for over 38 years. Podcasts will touch on issues such as climate change, water use and distribution, ground and surface water, water law, rivers, glaciers, snow, wetlands, etc. The Podcast format will vary from a host to host discussion to a discussion the between the co-hosts and invited guests with expertise on a variety of topics. Eventually, listeners may be invited to call in with questions. The podcast will run 25-40 minutes on a bi-weekly basis. Note that season one was a pilot season with Tom Bellinger as host. Season two began the co-hosting format with Tom Bellinger and Tom Cech. The third season in 2024 was be co-hosted by the ”two Toms” and Greg. Our 4th Season, starting in January 2025 will be hosted by Tom Bellinger, Joe Lyons with a variety of new topics on water. Stay Tuned! The co-hosts can be contacted through email at h2otalkpodcast@aol.com.
Listen on:
Joe Lyons is now a permanent co-host starting in Season 4. Tom Cech will be departing the podcast due to a heavy schedule. However from time to time Tom Cech and Greg Dewey may join in as guest hosts or as guests. We miss them both!
Sunday Jul 07, 2024
Sunday Jul 07, 2024
This week Tom and Tom will interview Rhea Bhansali, a triple-degreed water engineer. Born in India and educated in Europe and the US, Rhea represents the emerging generation of water professionals. Rhea will discuss her career and several issues related to water and environment today and into the future. She will give her perspective on water education in India, Europe, and in the US and provide advice to those entering the field of water and environment.
We hope to talk to Rhea again about women in water. Stay tuned!
Programming note: Greg Dewey will be stepping back from the podcast for now due to other commitments. We hope to see him back.
Sunday Jun 30, 2024
Sunday Jun 30, 2024
This week Tom, Tom, and Greg will interview Jerd Smith - a journalist specializing in water topics. Jerd was formerly with the Rocky Mountain News, the Daily Camera, and Times-Call Newspapers and has covered a variety of subjects, eventually specializing in water.
Today, Jerd Smith is the Fresh Water News Editor at Water Education Colorado. A former fellow at the Center for Environmental Journalism at the University of Colorado, she has a bachelor’s of science degree in political science from the University of Evansville, in Indiana, and a master’s degree in journalism from Northwestern University.
We look forward to bringing Jerd's expertise in Water Journalism to the podcast!!
Programming note: Due to technical difficulties this episode did not post until June 30 (originally scheduled for June 16). Our next episode will post prior to July 7 which will feature a discussion with a representative of the next generation of water professionals.
Stay tuned!
Sunday Jun 02, 2024
Sunday Jun 02, 2024
This episode will focus on the distinguished career of Jennifer Gimbel, considered a scholar of water. Tom, Greg, and Tom will have a fascinating chat with Jennifer on her experiences and contributions to US water with a focus on the western states.
Jennifer Gimbel is a Senior Water Policy Scholar at the Colorado Water Center. She is currently focused on Colorado River issues, with an emphasis on the Upper Basin. Jennifer has experience in law and policy on national and state water issues. She was the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Water & Science at the Department of the Interior, overseeing the U.S. Geological Survey and Bureau of Reclamation. She also was Deputy Commissioner for the Bureau of Reclamation and Counselor to the Assistant Secretary. Jennifer was the Director of the Colorado Water Conservation Board, the water policy agency for Colorado. As a water lawyer, she worked for the Attorney General’s Offices in Wyoming and Colorado. She has over 30 years of experience on water issues.
Sunday Jun 02, 2024
Sunday Jun 02, 2024
This week, the two Tom's and Greg will interview 3 international water consultants from Baringa - an international consulting firm. James Piggot (England), Chris Brannan (Scotland), and Patrick Swinburne (a New Zealander stationed in the US) will discuss Baringa and its operations across the planet with regard to water resources. This is a fascinating interview regarding how experts deal with addressing many worldwide water issues from several standpoints.
Founded in the UK in 2000, Baringa is now now a global partnership working with clients in every sector from hubs across Asia and the Pacific, Europe, and North America. Baringa's employees bring an average of 12+ years of industry experience. Every partner has a team of no more than nine consultants, so the company's experts learn and work together across all levels of their business expertise.
Sunday May 19, 2024
Sunday May 19, 2024
This episode will feature the two Tom's discussing the water and environmental consulting world (pertaining to US federal agencies) with Mr. Matt Cook of HDR Engineering, a diversified firm serving a variety of clients focused on several societal aspects including water.
Matt provides the overall direction and strategy for growing and managing HDR's federal water clients. He is responsible for providing services, recruiting and integrating staff, and working closely with federal team partners to deliver assistance and collaboration for a variety of targeted water programs and projects.
Based in HDR's Denver office, Matt is passionate about understanding and collaborating with federal water agencies and their most difficult, complex challenges and positioning the HDR staff and resources to find innovative, cost effective and sustainable solutions for a variety of issues.
As a contract manager and project manager for more than a decade, Matt has collaborated directly with several federal agencies that deal with water, including the National Park Service, U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Bureau of Indian Affairs, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
With nearly three decades of broad industry and leadership experience, Matt brings knowledge, strategic thinking and energy to his work. He has served as president of three Colorado-based professional organizations. Matt recently retired as a Commander from the U.S. Navy after over 30 years of active and reserve service.
This will be an exciting episode and will reveal the vast world of consultation and collaboration regarding various US federal interests. Yes, there is a lot going on behind your faucet and drain pipes!!
Sunday May 05, 2024
Sunday May 05, 2024
Tom Bellinger will host a solo broadcast this week. After a few news items, Tom will explore some statistics regarding water, the environment, and related societal issues. Tom will be using the website: WORLDOMETERS, a statistically driven set of meters/clocks that show realtime numbers associated with population, water use, land degradation, consumerism, etc. You are welcome to listen in while viewing this live website. Just go to: www.worldometers.info or Google "worldometers" to get to the site. We hope you enjoy this informative session!
In future episodes Tom, Tom, and Greg will be interviewing international consultants, a water lawyer and scholar, and a discussion on big data and water. Stay tuned!
Monday Apr 01, 2024
Monday Apr 01, 2024
This episode will begin with some headlines of water news, followed by a discussion of water education between the Two Toms and Greg. Tom Bellinger and Tom Cech will elaborate on their experiences of educating students at the college level on various topics related to water and environment. Greg Dewey will discuss his experience as a speaker/educator to the general public and professional groups on water related to his work with Northern Water in Colorado.
Included in these discussions will be the importance of education regarding natural resources and the environment to students entering the the fields of water engineering, hydrology, and environmental science as well as the importance of educating youth (K-12) and adults (general public and professionals) with various backgrounds working in the natural and environmental sciences.
Enjoy!
Sunday Mar 17, 2024
Sunday Mar 17, 2024
This episode will be an informal discussion between Tom, Greg, and Tom about various news topics including Artificial Intelligence, old time weather forecasting and flying, PFAS (forever chemicals), the cost of natural losses, and coral reef recovery rates. Upcoming shows and guests will also be announced as the show takes on a more international flair.
Enjoy!
Sunday Feb 25, 2024
Sunday Feb 25, 2024
The "Two Toms" and Greg are all back for this episode discussing several topics with Cole Bedford, P.E., the Chief Operations Officer (COO) of the Colorado Water Conservation Board.
This episode will begin with recent water news and then move on to a conversation with Cole. We will be discussing Cole's COO role, the agency (its structure, mission, and work at both the policy and grassroots levels of dealing with water in the State of Colorado. The CWCB is a unique conglomeration of state agency heads, representatives of recreation, industry, cities, and the general public. It works with Basin Roundtables - a multi-disciplinary, multi-agency, and grassroots process of developing water policy - such at the Colorado State Water Plan.
Greg and the "Two Toms" will also be discussing Cole's upcoming book and the art of writing and publishing in the water/environmental world.
Join us!
Sunday Feb 11, 2024
Sunday Feb 11, 2024
In this episode Greg and Tom will discuss recent water news, and then delve into the fascinating world of wastewater treatment. Mr. Mickey Conway, CEO of Metro Water Recovery (MWR), based on the Front Range of Colorado will discuss his organization and its impact on keeping the downstream areas of Denver safe from harmful water. MWR is a world class organization, that is highly respected nationally and internationally. MWR is known for its cutting edge innovations that combine water treatment with power generation, farming, and high tech treatment strategies.
If you have ever wondered about cleaning wastewater from a major city - this is the episode to listen to - you will probably never think about the "sewer plant downstream" the same ever again!
One last note H2O Talk can now be listened to on Spotify, Amazon Music, IHeart, and Podbean.
Dr. Thomas (Tom) R. Bellinger is a certified Professional Hydrologist (Emeritus) through the American Institute of Hydrology. He was formerly a Visiting Professor and is currently an Adjunct Professor of Environmental Science at the Metropolitan State University of Denver (MSU Denver) in the Earth and Atmospheric Sciences (EAS) and Engineering and Engineering Technology (EAET) Departments. He teaches Environmental Science, Planning, Environmental Policy, Water Resources, Snow Hydrology, Water Law, Engineered Water, Environmental Policy and Planning, and a Senior Design Project class. He is also a member of the Industry Advisory Board for the EAET Department.
Tom retired as Principal Hydrologist with the Department of Interior Bureau of Reclamation. Prior to this position, he served as a hydrologist/ Branch Chief of Refuge Hydrology for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
Since retiring, Tom has remained active in the water resources community. He currently serves as a Technical Advisor (Hydrology) with the Department of Interior/USAID International Technical Assistance Program (ITAP). He was a team member working with the Lao PDR government in the Mekong River Valley.
Tom is Past President/ Board Member of NecroSearch International (NSI) a non-profit multi-disciplinary forensic group that assists law enforcement on cases with a focus on the location of clandestine evidence and graves. He currently serves as a hydrologist with NSI. His specialty is in hydrologic forensic analysis. Tom is an Affiliate with the Organization of Scientific Area Committees for Forensic Science (OSAC) and is a member of the newly formed Aquatic Scene Processing Standards Task Group.
Tom is a former member of the Metro Basin Roundtable, a collaborative team assisted in developing the Colorado State Water Plan. He recently retired from the Board of Directors (3 terms) for the Metro Waster Recovery District, an entity serving nearly 2 million wastewater customers in the Denver Area. Tom also recently retired from the Board of Directors for the Bancroft-Clover Water and Sanitation District in Lakewood, CO (2 terms), which serves over 65,000 customers.
Tom holds a B.S. (Resources Management/Environmental Science) from the State University of New York, College of Environmental Science and Forestry (SUNY ESF)/Syracuse University and M.S. (Hydrologic Sciences/Forest Influences) degrees from SUNY ESF. He holds a doctorate in Organizational Management /Leadership from the University of Phoenix with an emphasis/ dissertation on collaborative processes in the water resources field. Tom has authored a variety of journal articles, research papers, and government reports on several aspects of the water sciences.
A “mustang” naval officer, Tom served in both the enlisted and officer ranks of the US Navy retiring at the rank of Lieutenant Commander. He specialized in the analysis of operational intelligence.
Tom is an emeritus member of the American Institute of Hydrology, and a current member of the American Geophysical Union and the Explorers Club (National Fellow).
One of Tom’s passions is music – he is a mandolinist with the Denver Mandolin Orchestra, played bass and mandolin for the Bluegrass Bandwagon, and mandolin/fiddle for various local jam bands. Tom also played bagpipes with Michael Collins Pipes and Drums. Tom and his wife Anita reside in Colorado.
Joe Lyons is an experienced hydrologist/hydraulic engineer with over 30 years experience. A graduate of Colorado State University and the Oregon State University Joe's career has covered several years with the Department of the Interior (Bureau of Reclamation and the US Fish and Wildlife Service).
Joe is joined the Podcast in Season 4.
Tom Cech is an experienced water resources professional with over 40 years of experience. Tom was born and raised on a farm near Clarkson, Nebraska, graduated from Kearney State College with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Math Education, and later received a Master’s degree in Community and Regional Planning (MCRP) from the University of Nebraska –Lincoln. He was Executive Director of the Central Colorado Water Conservancy District in Greeley, taught water undergraduate and graduate level water resources courses at the University of Northern Colorado and Colorado State University, and is the founding Director of the One World One Water (OWOW) Center at Metropolitan State University of Denver.
Tom has and continues to author a variety of books. He authored “Principles of Water Resources: History, Development, Management and Policy,” published by John Wiley & Sons - currently in its 4th edition and translated into Portuguese. Tom also recently published “Introduction to Water Resources and Environmental Issues,” (co-author Dr. Karrie Pennington) with Cambridge University Press and translated into Arabic, and “Colorado Water Law for Non-Lawyers,” (co-author P. Andrew Jones) with the University Press of Colorado. He has also completed histories of the Colorado Water Conservation Board and the Colorado State Engineer’s Office with Bill McDonald and Dick Stenzel, respectively. Tom is currently co-authoring a book and big data and water.
Tom is semi-retired – and continues to remain active in water and environmental resources. He resides in Colorado.
Greg Dewey PE, is an experienced engineer and water manager who has worked for the the federal government (Bureau of Reclamation), as a consultant, and for the City of Loveland, CO. Greg is currently an engineer with Northern Water, a key water purveyor in northeastern Colorado.
Greg joined the Podcast in seasons 2 and 3 and will be an occasional guest/collaborator in the future.