Tom Pankratz

M.Sc.

Tom is a Special Advisor at WaterSMART, and is recognized as a leading world expert on desalination and water treatment technology. Tom has more than 40 years of experience in the water industry, including serving as Editor of the prestigious Water Desalination Report, a weekly publication at Global Water Intelligence. Tom works as an independent Desalination Consultant and Technical Advisor, and has participated in the development of some of the world’s largest and most technically advanced desalination and water reuse projects. As a global authority on desalination, he has been quoted in the Wall Street Journal, The Economist, The New York Times, National Geographic, NPR’s Marketplace, Popular Science and Scientific American.
Tom is a member of the International Desalination Association (IDA) board of directors, the Middle East Desalination Research Centre advisory council, the World Health Organization desalination technology committee, the American Water Works Association Desalting Committee, and is a past member of the National Academy of Sciences desalination roadmap review committee. Tom’s water experience includes international assignments in the Middle East and Europe, and he has written several industry-related books including the desalination.com, Dictionary of Environmental Engineering, and Screening Equipment Handbook. He has also written technical papers on subjects ranging from seawater desalination to water reuse to zero liquid discharge. Tom is the Vice President on the Produced Water Society’s Board of Directors and he frequently instructs training seminars and is a regular speaker at industry events. This includes being an invited participant to the White House’s Innovation in Water roundtable, a Panelist on “Australia’s Water Crisis” by Australia’s Television Weather Channel, and a Panelist on “Tale of Two Droughts” with Texas Congressman S. Reyes.