Water treatment plant operators are an innovative and resourceful group of professionals. Often, operators must come up with alternative methods when tried-and-true procedures don't work. These stories of real people in the diverse cities of Cleveland, Ohio; Long Beach, Calif.; Golden, Colo., and Santa Fe, N.M., provide stellar examples of operators making tough decisions and creating innovative solutions under pressure. Appendixes include pumping and horsepower calculations, chloramination guidelines, and disinfection practices for trihalomethane control.