Below the Line With Rebecca West, CEO of Renewable Water Resources

Welcome to Below the Line, a monthly question-and-answer column in which Chancellor Bennie L. Harris, Ph.D., of the University of South Carolina Upstate interviews a leader about change, technology, education, and leadership. This month, Dr. Harris spoke with Rebecca West, chief executive officer of Renewable Water Resources, a regional wastewater utility that processes 44 million gallons of water in South Carolina every day. (This article has been edited for clarity, content, and length.)

Harris: I understand you considered careers in marine biology and medicine before choosing to work in the water industry. What drew you to this career?

West: So it's really interesting. I have a B.S. in biology from Wofford College, and during the time of securing that degree, I had to take several environmental science classes. I took these classes and found them very interesting, especially those related to water policy, and with the connection to public health. So after I got out of school, I always wanted to be a marine biologist, but there were really not many jobs in that area. So I shifted gears. 

I actually worked in a hospital for a year after I graduated from Wofford trying to decide if I wanted to go to medical school. It was during that time I realized I really enjoyed the environmental sciences and was able to secure a job at that time at Western Carolina Regional Sewer Authority. That was what ReWa used to be called. 

I started at ReWa and realized it was where I was supposed to be. I never turned back. 

Harris: Let's talk about the 100-year history of REWA and how it evolved from mitigating the textile industry pollution to using high-tech biological treatment. 

West: We were fortunate that our founding leadership for ReWa was quite visionary. They were people who realized the textile industry had a lot of special needs treating the wastewater that they had. 

Then shifting gears, as textiles moved away from the Upstate, we were at a critical time for deciding how we put in technology that's going to meet the needs of environmental regulations and also a changing waste stream, and changing customers. 

That set the stage for us to put in advanced nutrient removal – changing environmental regulations and a changing customer base. Advanced nutrient removal is required because where we are located, we are at the headwaters of many of the streams in the Upstate. Protecting those streams requires advanced technology. 

As we've progressed, we have nine water resource recovery facilities. We quit calling it wastewater treatment because we don't waste water (laughs). We see the opportunity of taking all the “stuff” that comes in the water that is delivered to us to clean and we recover every resource from it.

Harris: You were one of the youngest people to lead the Water Environment Federation and the first woman to lead Renewable Water Resources. What barriers did you face and how did you overcome those barriers?

West: It was twofold. One, I was a female in a male-dominated industry. The Water Environment Federation is a professional organization that focuses on water technology and water treatment. And it's an international organization. Being a female in that setting at that time, there were very few women in the water industry field. As I became involved with the Water Environment Federation, I think I brought a fresh perspective. Fortunately, we had some very open-minded and visionary leaders that saw opportunity, and they wanted to give me that opportunity. 

Secondly, I was a biologist in a world of engineers. I didn't have the respect that some of our fellow engineers had. So, I had to be a biologist who could also go toe-to-toe with engineers. 

How did I get over some of those barriers? I tried to learn what it meant to be an engineer. My parents taught all of us children that color doesn't matter, sex doesn't matter, background doesn’t matter, they're just people. So I've always learned to just meet people with who they are, meet them where they are, and let's just get to know each other as individuals. That's been helpful.

Harris: You said you focus on competency and connection and that you have a reputation for working to collaborate and to find win-win situations. Where did you learn those skills and why do you think they were successful?

West: When I attended Wofford College in the late 1980s, it was a male-dominated school.  At that time, I was probably the one female, or one of two females, of 20 people in a classroom. So I think you just have to learn that to be respected, to be included in any type of work or decision making, you've got to learn how to meet people and find that middle ground. And I learned that as a skill early in my career. 

When I was a child, I enjoyed playing sports, especially in the neighborhood. And I grew up in a neighborhood that had more boys than girls. And the guys never would let me go play basketball with them or whatever they were doing. My father would tell me to quit whining and go outside and just play the game with everybody else. I think that was another early lesson – that you've got to find your way of being accepted and respected.

Harris: So tell me about the biosolids program, what it does to support Upstate farmers, and why that is important.

West: Renewable Water Resources, in 1989, was the first utility in South Carolina to begin a biosolids program. What that means is we take all  the nutrients and solid material that are byproducts of the wastewater treatment process, and we turn that into a fertilizer. That fertilizer we call biosolids. I was fortunate to be able to start the first biosolids program for Renewable Water Resources and in the state. 

Today that program continues to grow. We have about 11,000 acres of private farmland that we provide fertilizer (biosolids) to farmers in the Upstate. And that's in multiple counties in the Upstate.  The biosolids are valued close to $1 million in fertilizer value a year. What I see is it's an opportunity to recycle those nutrients from wastewater treatment, but more importantly, it is an opportunity to allow farmers to hold on to their farms. 

We see so much change and development in South Carolina; here's another way of ensuring our farmland is going to stay there. And what I love is, I remember sitting in a farm field one day with one of the farmers and he said, “This is going to allow me to pass my farm down to my children.”

We’re doing more than just providing fertilizer. We're ensuring intergenerational support.

Harris: So you served on a delegation to South Africa. Let's talk a bit about that experience. What did you learn that you carried home with you?

West: As I finished my time as president of the Water Environment Federation, I had the opportunity to take a delegation of about 20 water professionals from the United States to South Africa. Our purpose was to go to South Africa and understand what research was occurring relative to water. Also to look at opportunities for recycling water.

If you think of South Africa, it's a country where there's a lot of mining. The mining industry used a lot of water. So, you want to figure out how to recover that used water and turn that into something positive.

It's a country where there's water scarcity. How are you making sure communities that may not have water have water, and how do you do that in a responsible and an affordable way? 

And then how do you protect the beautiful parks and natural resources? How are they being protected? 

We had about two weeks traveling across South Africa. It was not my first time to Africa. But prior to that, I had been to Kenya and Tanzania. So I was rather prepared for being in a country that didn't have the resources and benefits of the United States. 

But my colleagues were not. So it was interesting how I had to help them adjust to what they saw, what they experienced, and realize how blessed we are in the United States. 

I think the takeaway from that was not taking what we do in the United States and saying, “This is how you should do it,” but rather understanding what their needs were and helping them explore ideas on how to solve their problems.

Harris: When you look at servant leadership and how you lead people, you empower people to solve their own problems, which is much more sustainable. It lasts because they own it. It's a product of their environment, where they live. 

So you've traveled a lot, and I love it. You've traveled to China, to South Korea, to Japan, to Germany, Portugal, Sweden, Kenya, Romania, Tanzania. Have I missed any of them?

West: I added Singapore this year.

Harris: What impact did those trips have on you and what leadership lessons did you learn from those experiences?

West: Fortunately, many of those trips span a lot of my career. So it's been a gradual learning experience. I won't go through each one, but I'll start with China, because that was another country I went to very early in my career. We were able to see the construction of the Three Gorges Dam. So, to be able to see the Yangtze River and how they never tamed it but rather continued to use it for a resource for power and economic development. 

For me, going into that experience, it was really trying to get my head around: what do you do when you don't have the same culture or resources that we have? And trying to understand the origin of the values that built their culture — not from a negative, but from a learning perspective. What created this culture? What created this mindset? And early on it taught me that we do great things in the United States, but we can learn a lot from other people. Having that humility and that open-mindedness, I think I've taken that with each of my journeys abroad. 

It is truly a lesson of diversity. Everybody has a different approach and that's OK. And I think it taught me those lessons. It also taught me how to be open to other ideas and how others make decisions, and helped me figure out what parts can you take away and build back into your experience. I love to travel for that reason. It just opens your mind.

Harris: One of the things that I believe here at USC Upstate that's critically important is to make sure my students have a global experience and global exposure. Just in the Upstate of South Carolina, we have more than 575 global companies here. So I want every student at USC Upstate to feel a sense of courage, a sense of inclusion, to know that they can go and learn from others, because we really are in a global economy. Switching gears: What kind of work environment do you thrive in? Do you like being thrown into new challenges? 

West: I like a work environment where there are few rules.

I really like to create things. I've learned over time I'm a better creator than I am a maintainer. So I thrive in that environment. I'm not a person that likes a lot of rules, and I think sometimes it creates too many barriers. I like to say, “It puts braces on your brain.” It doesn't keep you open. And the regulatory people that work with us all the time, I drive them crazy because I'll tell them, in my book, there's only 10 rules and they were given to Moses on the stone. The rest is open for conversation and discussion. 

So I really do thrive where we could be creative and bring different solutions. Truly everything is possibility. Today it's so exciting with everything that's going on. It's a little overwhelming, with what's changing with AI, with different perspectives. We're truly global in a lot of things that we do. But I really thrive there. 

As far as challenges, I take them head-on. I'm a person that, given an option, I'll dive in the deep end. I don't wade into a pool. I think it's fun to just jump in and figure it out.

Harris: I've had the joy of interviewing a lot of leaders. I'm seeing a common theme among leaders: they love challenges, they're very courageous, and they don't like boundaries, so they make decisions without borders, so they can help their teams to be innovative. 

Great leadership requires you to be courageous and requires you to always be thinking about how you innovate and create new opportunities.

West: I'll jump off a cliff, but I'll know where I'm going before I do that. Or at least have an idea of it.

Harris: I’d next like to talk about Leading Below the Line. What I mean by that is that oftentimes we don’t know what’s going on beneath the surface — for leaders and for their teams — and we have to dive in and find out exactly what’s at play in order to make a project or a plan successful. 

West: It’s a great question, because I believe true leaders understand that you should understand what it means to lead below the line, but also that it tells you and inspires you to stay focused on the mission and to be clear on the direction you're going in, so everybody below the line knows where we're heading. 

I think you need to certainly tap into what's driving your organization, whatever you're leading, and ensure that what's below the line is certainly capable of accomplishing the goal that you  have.

When I think of our organization at ReWa, hiring the right people is so important. Setting the culture so they know those boundaries will help them thrive. 

And every day I wake up thinking, “Am I being clear enough in the direction that we're heading?" To find out, I walk around and ask people: "Where do you think we're heading?” And I use that as a way of gauging — not micromanaging, but knowing how I have to keep shifting my message. Then I continue to make sure they're given the right information in the right context to do their work. 

I love the people who work with me, and I think that is the most critical thing that a leader does. It's getting the right people moving in the right direction.

Harris: So do you have a hero?

West: I do. My hero is Jesus. It truly makes me wake up every day and go, “OK, Lord, what opportunity are you putting in front of me? And why is this in front of me?” And if I could stay focused on his why and not my why, then I know it's going to be all right. 

I talk to other leaders and they talk about what's keeping them up at night and the stresses, and I say, “Maybe I'm just too simplistic and too trusting, but I know where I put my faith.”

When you're going to see hardship, you're going to see difficulty, sometimes you go, “Oh my goodness.”  And then you go, “Wait a minute. It's here for a reason. Let's figure this out with the context of his way.” But you've got to stay open to that. I try, I strive. I fail many times. 

Harris: Is there a quote or a mantra that resonates with you?

West: “Be the change you want to see.” I try to live that every day. I know that when I walk into our offices or go anywhere, I'm representing the organization and I know I'm always “on”. 

If I've got a difficult meeting I have to walk into, where stakeholders or the public or even employees are involved, it's like, “What do I want? What outcome do I want to see?” And then I think about what I can do to inspire that outcome in a positive way.