Meet the Officers

Kin Hill, P.E., was named Chief Executive Officer in December 2006 by Charleston Water System's Board of Commissioners.

As the utility's top executive, Mr. Hill is responsible for the daily operations of Charleston Water System and its 420 employees. Prior to becoming CEO, Mr. Hill served as Chief Operating Officer, overseeing the water distribution and wastewater collection operations, which include some 1,700 miles of water mains, 600 miles of sewer mains, and nearly 200 pump stations maintained by 120 associates.

Mr. Hill came to Charleston Water System in 1987 to serve as Director of Wastewater Operations and became Director of Collection and Distribution in 1994. Under Mr. Hill’s leadership, the Water Distribution Department led Charleston Water’s efforts to earn ISO 14001 certification for the implementation of an Environmental Management System (EMS).

Before coming to Charleston Water, Mr. Hill worked for the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) for nine-plus years, lastly serving as District Director of the Aiken Environmental Quality Control Office where he was responsible for management and administration of six county areas in all fields of environmental quality control.

As Chief Operating Officer, Andy is responsible for the management of Charleston Water System’s Water Treatment Facility, Water Distribution Department, Wastewater Collection Department and Wastewater Treatment Facilities, along with the environmental laboratory, SCADA system, and associated environmental management programs.

Andy holds a Bachelor of Science in Microbiology from Clemson University and a Master of Science in Public Health from the University of South Carolina. He holds South Carolina Environmental Systems Operations Licenses in the areas of Physical-Chemical Wastewater Treatment, Biological Wastewater Treatment, Wastewater Collections, Water Treatment and Water Distribution.

Andy’s career includes seven years as a state environmental regulator, two years working as an environmental trainer, three years as an environmental consultant and 25 years with the Charleston Water System.

As Chief Financial Officer, Mr. Ropp is responsible for the daily financial operations of Charleston Water System, including the accounting, budgeting, finance, records management and information technology functions.

Prior to becoming the CFO, Mr. Ropp served as Senior Director of Financial Services, overseeing the accounting and finance departments, which include accounts payable, payroll, cost accounting, financial statements and the billing areas.

Mr. Ropp joined Charleston Water System in 1982 as an Accountant. In 1986, he was promoted to the Administrator of Accounting and then to the Administrator of Finance in 1989.

As Capital Projects Officer, Mark Cline oversees the engineering and construction functions of Charleston Water System, including the Geographic Information System (GIS) and cross connection control programs.

Additionally, he is responsible for managing Charleston Water’s capital needs to ensure the utility has the infrastructure in place to accommodate growth and meet new regulatory requirements.

Mr. Cline has been with Charleston Water System for 29 years; he spent five years as Engineering Manager, fifteen as Superintendent and Plant Engineer for the Hanahan Water Treatment Plant, and two years as Senior Director of Design and Construction before becoming Capital Projects Officer.

Mr. Cline is a graduate of North Carolina State University, with a bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering. He is licensed as a Professional Engineer and a Water Treatment Plant Operator.