Ed James, P.E., General Manager

Phone: 775.887.7456

Ed James has a B.S. in Soil and Water Science from University of California Davis, an M.S. in Civil Engineering from University of Colorado Boulder, and an MBA from University of Phoenix.

Ed started his professional career working for the Denver Water Department negotiating and purchasing water rights.  He then worked for the Chino Basin Municipal Water District in Southern California managing the Chino Groundwater Basin and was responsible for imported water deliveries from Metropolitan Water District.  In 1994, Ed became General Manager for the Jurupa Community Service District in Southern California.  Ed has been General Manager for the Carson Water Subconservancy District since August 1998.  Ed is married to his high school sweetheart, Christie, and has three grown kids.  In his free time, he enjoys rafting, golfing, softball, table tennis, and snowboarding.

Brenda Hunt, Watershed Program Manager

Phone: 775.887.9005

Brenda Hunt began working with the CWSD in 2011. Brenda has over 25 years of environmental employment experience with non-profits, and local and regional governmental organizations in the USA and Australia. Past employment experience includes working as the Land Steward with The Nature Conservancy in Upstate New York; as an Open Space and Conservation Planner with the City of Hume near Melbourne, Australia, and as an Environmental Planner with the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency. Brenda lives in Carson City with her husband and son. She earned her B.S. in Natural Resources from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a M.A. in Environmental Science from Monash University located near Melbourne, Australia. Brenda is a native Minnesotan and enjoys a good book, hiking, biking, playing ultimate frisbee, skiing, camping and traveling with her friends and family.

Shane Fryer, Watershed Program Specialist

Phone: 775.887.9005

Shane Fryer joined the CWSD team as the Watershed Program Specialist in 2016. His former employment with the Alpine Watershed Group (AWG) acquainted him with the Carson River Watershed, where he led monitoring and restoration efforts in the upper watershed. Previously as a physical scientist in the National Park Service he administered large restoration projects along with the monitoring of air, water, and geologic resources.

Shane, a native of Kentucky, moved to California in 1999, and then to Carson City in 2013 with his wife Cyndie. He has a Bachelor of Science in Geography and Minor in Geology from Western Kentucky University.  Shane’s resource background has allowed him to travel extensively, to collaborate in the mapping some of the world’s most remote caves and developing natural resource inventories for developing nations.

Debbie Neddenriep, Water Resource Specialist II, CFM

Phone: 775.887.1260

Debbie Neddenriep is a native Nevadan who began working for CWSD in 2007 after a rewarding career as a stay-at-home mom.  Debbie earned her BSBA degree in Marketing Management in 2016. Since starting at the district, Debbie has been lay-trained to perform field work, such as gathering stream flow and ground water measurements, surveying, photo monitoring, residential water audits, and weeding dams. Her certifications include floodplain manager, CompTIA Project + project management, and AWWA Water Use Efficiency Practitioner I. In the office, a large portion of Debbie’s time supports flood hazard grants by creating, maintaining, and submitting financial reports, progress reports, and earned value data (she’s becoming the FEMA pro). She also participates in marketing efforts, environmental outreach and education, maintains database, helps with web page, IT, and the CWSD library.  Given a preference, she loves to be outside, whether it is riding her mountain bike, hiking in the Sierras, or exploring the Nevada wilderness with her husband Chris.

Max Robinson, Water Resource Specialist I

Phone: 775.887.1260

max@cwsd.org

Max Robinson started his position as a Water Resource Specialist I in 2022. Before joining the CWSD team, Max enjoyed a rewarding career in the private sector as a hydrogeologist and groundwater modeler working in the Coastal Plain region of Eastern North Carolina where he gained valuable experience in everything from well drilling and groundwater sampling to aquifer modeling and permitting. During the summer, Max would travel with the North Carolina Geology Field Course to the Southwest to teach geological field mapping and where he developed a love for the exposed and beautiful landscapes of the American West. Max holds Bachelors of Science in Kinesiology and Geological Sciences from Truman State University and East Carolina University, respectively.

Max grew up in the Ozark Mountains of Missouri where he developed a deep connection to the outdoors. He and his partner, Hallie, moved to Nevada in 2021 via Flagstaff, AZ where they met while Max was pursuing his other life passion, mountain biking.