The Driller Newscast

On this episode, anchor Brock Yordy brings on fellow The Driller writer Jake Fletcher. The pair start with a safety segment offering tips on avoiding heat stress in construction work (and everywhere else). Then, they discuss the tension between responsible groundwater use and the free market.

This week, host Brock Yordy covers a lot of territory, from California’s zero-emissions vehicle plans to geothermal’s role in New York’s energy mix. Yordy gives us his thoughts after attending (and presenting at) the NY-GEO conference in New York.

In episode 59 of The Driller Newscast, anchor Brock Yordy walks us through options the Department of Interior recently presented to Colorado River Compact states. In our safety segment, we talk about mental health for drilling and other construction professionals.

On episode 58 of The Driller Newscast, we start by marking Workers’ Memorial Day, which is April 28, a day set aside to honor those injured and killed on the job. Then, anchor Brock Yordy interviews Joe Parsons, senior marketing sustainability manager for Climate Control Group, which designs and manufactures a range of HVAC products and systems, including for geothermal installations. Parsons, a g...

For this week’s featured guest, we welcome back Jeff Williams of Spafford & Sons Well Drilling. The driller and former National Ground Water Association president talks to host Brock Yordy about making the case for groundwater to U.S. Senators. Both Williams and Yordy attended the NGWA’s recent Legislative Fly-In.

Drilling, while necessary for modern civilization, doesn’t exactly have a modest environmental footprint. However, the industry can make changes around the edges toward sustainability, and every bit makes a difference. This week, host Brock Yordy talks to Dean Kangleas, vice president of product services, Sandvik Rock Tools Division, about one such effort for mining customers.

This episode takes us to Washington, D.C., for the National Ground Water Association’s Legislative Fly-In. Host Brock Yordy talks to attendees about groundwater, groundwater policy, CDL policy and other issues critical to the industry.

This week, in our safety segment, we talk about trench shoring, sloping and shielding, and about noxious gas exposure. Then, host Brock Yordy covers U.S. Supreme Court arguments in Arizona v. Navajo Nation from Washington, D.C. It’s Driller Newscast episode 54.

This week, we start out by turning the mic on our own Chelsea Yordy, The Driller’s national sales manager. We talk about getting into the industry from a woman’s perspective.

On this episode, we start with Terry Morse, CEO of NGWA, who gives us an update on the group’s training initiatives. Then, host Brock Yordy talks to Nocona Williams of Venture Drilling Supply about the challenges (and opportunities) she sees trying to solve equipment issues for driller clients.

This week, host Brock Yordy starts out with Rachel Bourne, a driller from Hamilton, Ontario, who goes by BourneToDrill on Instagram. In school, she thought she might go into fashion. Tune in to find out how she got into geotechnical and environmental drilling instead.

This special 50th episode features a wide-ranging discussion from a range of industry veterans and fresh perspectives. Our lineup today features everyone from former National Ground Water Association President Jeff Williams to Garen Ewbank of Ewbank & Associates LLC. Stick around for The Driller columnists Jake Fletcher and Dave Bowers.

Roving anchor Brock Yordy spent some time at the 2023 AHR Expo, Feb. 4-8 in Atlanta. While at the major HVAC event, he talked to several experts about geothermal and opportunities for drillers.

Time for context, folks. An acre-foot of water is 325,851 gallons. In the United States, we use nearly 1 million of those acre-feet every day. It’s kind of a staggering amount, and this week anchor Brock Yordy walks use through where it comes from and where it goes. Then, in this week’s safety segment, we talk about carbon monoxide.

By some estimates, California over about three weeks recently got about 98 million acre-feet of rain. So, why hasn’t that solved the Western drought? Anchor Brock Yordy walks us through the logistics of massive-scale water capture. Then, in this week’s safety segment, we talk about willful misconduct.

This episode again takes us to the Western United States. Anchor Anchor Brock Yordy lays out some of the complex issues surrounding tribal sovereignty and water access amid historic drought.

In this episode, anchor Brock Yordy wraps up a talk with water law expert Jesse Richardson we started last week. Richardson this week gives us the rundown on droughts in the parts of the U.S., and what water scarcity means for the industry and its customers. This editorial podcast is brought to you by:

In episode 44 of The Driller Newscast, water law expert Jesse Richardson returns to explain the Dec. 30 announcement by the Environmental Protection Agency and U.S. Army of a finalized definition of “waters of the United States” (WOTUS). Richardson and anchor Brock Yordy dive deep into WOTUS and what changes to it might mean for groundwater professionals.

In this episode we reconnect with Margaret Martens, executive director of the Water Systems Council, to talk about the group’s latest State of the Water Well Industry report. Those in the industry can make their voices heard by going to www.watersystemscouncil.org and clicking Take the Survey by Jan. 15, 2023.

Today’s episode takes us to the floor or the Groundwater Week 2022 event Dec. 6-8, 2022, in Las Vegas. Anchor Brock Yordy speaks with Art Steelman of Matrix Drilling Products about sharing industry knowledge, then talks to longtime geothermal advocate Jack DiEnna of the Geothermal National & International Initiative. It’s episode 42.

In this episode recorded live at Groundwater Week 2022, anchor Brock Yordy talks to both the outgoing and incoming presidents of the National Ground Water Association. President Brian Snelton is preparing to hand the reins to president-elect Jason House, a hydrogeologist — only the second time a scientist has led the group. It’s episode 41.

We start Groundwater Week 2022 with an episode that should interest anyone who wants to make money as a contractor. This week, anchor Brock Yordy talks to Jeffrey Williams, MGWC, and Buddy Sebastian. The two industry vets present a class this week called “Understanding your Inputs, Protecting your Margins and Generating enough Revenue to Replace Equipment on Schedule.” They get into the nuts and b...

Today’s episode gets into the perception of drillers within and outside of the groundwater industry. Anchor Brock Yordy interviews Dave Schulenberg of NGWA about his upcoming talk on the subject at Groundwater Week. We also have a featured professional interview with Mike Steffen of Steffen Well Drilling. It’s episode 39. This editorial podcast is brought to you by:

On today’s episode, anchor Brock Yordy has news from the EPA, DOE and NSF, plus tips for dressing for those sub-freezing jobsites. It’s episode 38.

We wrap up a conversation this week with about veterans in civilian drilling and construction. On today’s episode, anchor Brock Yordy finishes his conversation with Rob Meyer of Talon LPE, who served in the U.S. Marine Corps, and Jake Fletcher, formerly of the RED HORSE. It’s episode 37.