What happens when cities become “networked”—and water systems start telling us what they need in real time? In this episode, Trace Blackmore speaks with Christine McHugh (CEO, White Strand Development) about practical smart-city strategies for water: real-time monitoring, digital twins, and IoT/AI approaches that turn Legionella control from periodic testing into continuous risk management. Christine frames smart water not as gadgets, but as a disciplined, data-driven process that improves human health, operational efficiency, and insurability.
Building the “Networked” City: A Practical Definition
Christine defines a smart city as a networked one—linking health, energy, waste, and water through technology that measures and correlates across systems. The aim isn’t novelty; it’s safer drinking water and safer water environments via better data and faster decisions. Digital twins, decentralized treatment, and AI-enabled pattern recognition help teams move from “single point-in-time readings” to persistent trends they can act on.
Legionella Risk, Reframed as Strategy
Most water programs still sample periodically, waiting days for results. Christine argues the future is pattern-based, proactive control: track temperature, stagnation/flow, and disinfectant continuously; intervene when pattern thresholds indicate elevated risk. This lens aligns water quality, human wellness, and insurance risk reduction, encouraging property insurers and building owners to incentivize water science as part of smart-building operations.
From Sensors to Sense-Making: Hierarchy, Data Lakes, and Reporting
Adding devices isn’t enough. Christine stresses a hierarchy of sensors and data governance so operations, engineering, and ESG teams aren’t running conflicting reports from siloed sources (BMS vs. cloud dashboards). Her model: create a data lake with agreed-upon sources of truth and standardized outputs so every stakeholder “sees the same movie.”
Case Studies & What “Good” Looks Like
Christine highlights programs that combined water management plans, continuous disinfectant monitoring, and campus-scale digital twins—reducing manual tests, achieving compliance, and cutting consumption. European hospitals using IoT on hot-water systems report faster compliance and fewer manual interventions. The pattern: real-time insight + trained people + maintenance and reporting contracts = measurable risk reduction.
Cybersecurity: Close the Back Doors
Smart water raises legitimate cyber concerns. Christine’s guidance: encrypt all sensor communications, hire experts to penetration-test your own systems, and watch for unexpected bridges (e.g., HVAC or even “non-critical” devices) into critical networks. OT/IT segmentation, alert transparency, and a culture of continuous testing matter as much as the sensors themselves.
Public–Private Partnerships (with Academia)
The fastest path to adoption pairs public oversight and access to infrastructure with private-sector technology and capital—and an academic partner for research and validation. Clear performance metrics and maintained as-builts keep pilots honest and scalable.
Resilience: Droughts, Floods, and Stormwater
Smart networks matter beyond Legionella. Real-time consumption, leak detection, and pressure management minimize waste during droughts; stormwater and wastewater sensors prevent overflows that contaminate receiving waters during floods. Long-running sensor programs abroad show how a single resort area eliminated contamination events by instrumenting the system and responding to alerts.
Emerging Tech to Watch
From self-healing pipes and biosensors to drone inspections and AI-orchestrated networks, Christine sees water systems becoming more like natural ecosystems—self-regulating, adaptive, and resilient—while humans supervise exceptions and validate performance.
For industrial water professionals, the takeaway is clear: treat smart water as an integrated risk-management system, not a pile of devices. Invest in sensor hierarchy, unified data, and team training, and align the work with safety and insurance outcomes. That’s how you protect people, performance, and the balance sheet.
Stay engaged, keep learning, and continue scaling up your knowledge!
Timestamps
02:37 – Trace Blackmore kicks off the episode by reminiscing about the TV show Leave It to Beaver and how families used to watch together in the 1950s.
08:40 – Water You Know with James McDonald
09:48 – Upcoming Events for Water Treatment Professionals
12:20 – Interview with Christine McHugh, CEO of White Strand Development
13:03 – What Is a Smart City?
15:13 – Risk Reduction as Strategy
16:23 – Real-Time Monitoring: Core Controls
17:06 – Smart Fixtures & “Only When Needed” Flushing
19:28 — Duplication, BMS vs Cloud, Data Governance
25:03 — Case Studies: VT & Copenhagen University Hospital
31:59— Cybersecurity: Water Systems at Risk
40:21— City Resilience: Drought & Flooding
41:59 — Emerging Tech to Watch
Quotes
“Technology will give us real-time patterns, and… by just having that pattern recognition, we have power to be more proactive.”
“We really should be trying to break into our own system or hiring people to break into our own system… the bad guys will find it as well.”
“Creating a water system that’s more like a natural ecosystem… self-regulating, adaptive, and maximizes both efficiency and resiliency.”
Connect with Christine McHugh 
Phone: 9179409383
Email: christine.mchugh@whitestrand.com
Website: White Strand Development
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christine-a-mchugh/
Guest Resources Mentioned
Smart Cities, Copenhagen and the Power of Data
Scaling UP! H2O Resources Mentioned
AWT (Association of Water Technologies)
Scaling UP! H2O Academy video courses
Water You Know with James McDonald
Question: What type of resin is primarily used in a sodium zeolite water softener?
2025 Events for Water Professionals
Check out our Scaling UP! H2O Events Calendar where we’ve listed every event Water Treaters should be aware of by clicking HERE.
