October 2025 Vol. 80 No. 10

Underground Infrastructure magazine has announced finalists for the 2026 MVP and UI Awards, including the 30th anniversary of the Most Valuable Professional Award. Winners will be honored at the Underground Infrastructure Conference in San Antonio.

The changes aim to reduce costs, streamline permitting, and allow expanded use of drones and satellite patrols. Industry groups support the direction, while environmental advocates raise concerns about reduced oversight.

It seems whenever the federal government looks to cut spending on American infrastructure, programs that fund water, wastewater and stormwater infrastructure are put on the chopping block earlier, rather than later.

The Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project is bringing long-awaited clean water infrastructure to Navajo Nation communities in New Mexico and Arizona. The $143 million project includes more than 35 miles of pipeline, multiple HDD crossings, and new storage tanks, with completion targeted for 2029.

Mexico is fast-tracking more than $6.7 billion in water infrastructure projects to address severe droughts and rising tensions with the United States over shared water resources.

The event features new educational sessions, hands-on exhibits, the combined MVP + UI Honors Awards, and the annual HDD Reunion, bringing together industry leaders, engineers, and contractors for two focused days of learning and networking. Registration is open now at UI-Conference.com.

Daniel Shumate, Managing Director, FMI Capital Advisors Inc.   Across the underground utility infrastructure segment, companies are performing quite well in the power, gas distribution and water and wastewater construction segments. Strong investment by investor-owned utilities, the federal governm..

Andrea Huizar Beymer, executive vice president and chief operating officer of the San Antonio Water System (SAWS), will headline the upcoming Underground Infrastructure Conference (UIC) with a keynote address that highlights transformative innovation in the water and wastewater industry.  ..

The Water Quality Association has certified four more Avanti injection grouts for use in drinking water systems, expanding the company’s NSF/ANSI/CAN 61-approved product line. The certification ensures safe, reliable solutions for municipal and industrial water infrastructure.

The latest Underground Infrastructure business roundup features major acquisitions, leadership transitions, and new initiatives from companies including Ditch Witch, VisuSewer, ADS and others shaping the underground construction industry.

The latest Underground Infrastructure business people roundup highlights key leadership appointments, promotions, and achievements across the underground construction and water sectors, including Carollo Engineers, McElroy, PipeSense, Primoris, Fortiline, and DP Nicoli.

$283 million Black Creek sewer upgrade expands Toronto sewers   Canada’s federal government has announced a $283 million investment to expand and modernize Toronto’s Black Creek sewer system, one of the city’s largest wastewater infrastructure upgrades in decades.  According to the Government of C..

Ditch Witch  The next big things in vacuum excavation are actually small.   When working around buried utilities, precision matters. That’s why compact hydroexcavators like the new Ditch Witch W8 are a must. They give crews a safer, more controlled way to dig, especially in tight, utility-heavy en..

By NASSCO Board Member James Burn, LET, C.E.T., C.Eng.(UK), MIET As part of its ongoing commitment to innovation and modernization, with PACP Version 8, NASSCO has transitioned the PACP / LACP™ / MACP™ Exchange Database from Microsoft Access to SQLite. This strategic upgrade reflects the evolving n..