ALEXANDRIA, Va. (Aug. 8, 2013) – The Water Environment Federation (WEF) will debut the inaugural Stormwater Congress this October in Chicago. Featuring an extensive line-up of stormwater programming, world-class speakers and dedicated exhibit space, this new event offers attendees the best of both worlds by co-locating with WEFTEC® 2013, the world’s largest annual water quality conference and exhibition.

Following WEF’s successful Stormwater Symposium in 2012, this “conference-within-a-conference” was developed to maximize networking opportunities for stormwater professionals and facilitate participation in high quality programming dedicated to stormwater-related issues. Featuring 17 technical sessions and more than 70 world-class speakers, the event’s technical programming will include cutting-edge issues such as changing regulations and policies, climate change impacts, stream restoration, flow-based TMDLs, stormwater financing strategies, and more. Co-locating the Stormwater Congress with WEFTEC provides an added benefit by giving attendees easy access to WEFTEC’s high quality technical program, events and record-setting exhibition.

”Stormwater is an extremely dynamic field right now and is continuing to grow as a significant national water quality issue,” said Seth Brown, WEF's Stormwater Program and Policy Manager. “The Stormwater Congress is an ideal venue for practitioners to network, explore high-performing and cost-effective solutions, and get the latest technical and policy-focused information to aid them in their work.”

Also featured this year will be the return of the popular Stormwater Pavilion. Debuted last year as WEFTEC’s first topic specific exhibit pavilion, the 10,000 square feet of dedicated exhibit space will be the focal point for business opportunities between field practitioners and companies that offer stormwater-related products and services. This year’s pavilion will also feature a theater that will host numerous presentations, discussions, and networking events.

Exclusive to Stormwater Congress full conference and Stormwater one-day registrants will be a special luncheon on Monday, October 7 at the Hyatt Regency McCormick Place. Andrew Reese, vice president at AMEC Environment & Infrastructure, Inc., will provide a keynote presentation that will address the ways stormwater and wastewater management differ, especially in relation to topics associated with financial and asset management issues.

The Stormwater Congress will be held at the Hyatt Regency McCormick Place from October 5-9 and the Stormwater Pavilion will be open from October 7-9 at McCormick Place. To register for the Stormwater Congress and to learn more about WEF’s stormwater program, visit www.wef.org/stormwater.

WEFTEC 2013—WEF’s 86th Annual Technical Exhibition and Conference—will feature more than 140 technical sessions, 27 workshops, numerous events and the largest exhibition in WEFTEC history! Scheduled for October 5-9 at McCormick Place, this year’s conference offers a new pricing structure that helps THE Water Quality Event become YOUR Water Quality Event by making it more accessible than ever.

Founded in 1928, the Water Environment Federation (WEF) is a not-for-profit technical and educational organization of 36,000 individual members and 75 affiliated Member Associations representing water quality professionals around the world. WEF members, Member Associations, and staff proudly work to achieve our mission to provide bold leadership, champion innovation, connect water professionals, and leverage knowledge to support clean and safe water worldwide.