On April 10, Administrator and CEO Mark A. Gabriel announced that nine WAPA employees were selected to receive the Gears of Government Award.
The Gears of Government Award recognizes individuals and teams across the national federal workforce whose dedication supports exceptional delivery of key outcomes for the American people, specifically in terms of mission results, customer service and accountable stewardship. All recipients are also under consideration for the President’s Award.
“I would like to extend my sincere congratulations to each of the winners, and a thank you to all of our employees who make WAPA such an exceptional organization,” Gabriel said in his announcement.
The winning teams and award descriptions are as follows:
Bird Repeller Team
- Tim Langer
- Michael Prowatzke
- Latisha Saare
- Andrea Severson
Developed a system to discourage birds from roosting in a 500-kilovolt electrical substation, saving taxpayers $5.7 million from power disruptions caused by the birds. The system has enabled electricians to focus on maintaining the facility’s power generation, as opposed to cleaning up biowaste from the birds.
Delisting Petition Team
- Steve Blazek
- Tim Langer
- Joy Gober (Department of Interior)
- Tracey Switeck (Department of Interior)
- Seth Willey (Department of Interior)
Reduced administrative costs and improved the efficiency of environmental compliance through the use of data. This data helped to identify a Utah plant species that no longer required protection as “threatened” under the Endangered Species Act. The Fish and Wildlife Service delisted the species based on its stability, allowing money and efforts to be redirected toward truly endangered species.
Transparency Team
- Justin Borsheim
- Tony Camp
- Amber Rodriguez
- Teresa Waugh
Improved organizational transparency and increased citizen awareness of WAPA’s mission through the modernization of WAPA’s website. WAPA provides power to more than 40 million customers including cities and towns, who can now access services and operational and financial information more easily.
View the complete list of winners.
Last modified on March 8th, 2024