Member Pipeline - Fax Alerts - May 12, 2006
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for the FaxAlert ArchiveMay 12, 2006
Wastewater Security
Legislation Introduced in Senate Environment Committee
Chairman of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, James M. Inhofe (R—OK), along with Sens. Lincoln Chafee (R-RI), Chair of the Fisheries, Wildlife, and Water Subcommittee, and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), introduced this week the Wastewater Treatment Works Security Act of 2006 (S. 2781). The bill would authorize $200 million in grants to conduct vulnerability assessments, set mutual aid networks, and make security enhancements, $15 million for technical assistance for small publicly owned treatment works (POTWs); $5 million over five years to non-profit organizations to improve vulnerability self-assessment methodologies and tools; and $25 million over five years for research and review of collection systems and treatment works. NACWA staff provided input during the bill drafting process, including ensuring grant funding eligibility for voluntary mutual aid and emergency network preparedness efforts. In its statements to the media NACWA has noted that “this legislation represents an important step in acknowledging the commitment made by POTWs to both protect the environment and provide continuity of service. We welcome the support provided by the bill to assist wastewater facilities in their efforts to prepare for both man-made and natural disasters. In this difficult budget climate, NACWA also commends Chairman Inhofe and Senators Chafee and Murkowski for providing federal funding in the bill to assist POTWs with their security needs.” There remains, however, a significant gap between the voluntary approach taken in S.2781 and the EPW Minority’s approach favoring mandatory vulnerability assessments, which were required in Ranking Member Jim Jefford’s (I—VT) Wastewater Treatment Works Security Act of 2005 (S.1995). As such, it remains unclear if S.2781 can move forward as is or if a viable compromise can be worked out in the 109th Congress.NACWA will be seeking input on the final bill from its Legislative and Security and Emergency Preparedness Committees. The Association will also provide members with a detailed analysis of the final bill via a Legislative Alert as soon as it is available from the Government Printing Office. The bill will be made available next week on the Bill Tracker section of NACWA’s website (http://www.nacwa.org/private/legreg/legupdate/leg_tracker.cfm).
NACWA Urges
Additional Study in Comments on EPA Test Method for E.Coli
NACWA provided EPA with comments (http://www.nacwa.org/private/reg_outreach.cfm) this week on its notice of data availability, Results of the Validation of m-ColiBlue24 Media for Enumeration of E. coli in Wastewater Effluent. While commending the Agency for attempting to validate new procedures under the Clean Water Act (CWA) for microbiological pollutant analysis in wastewater, NACWA voiced serious concerns with data supporting the approval of the m-ColiBlue24 method to measure E.Coli. NACWA noted that the study establishing the method contained serious limitations, most notably the very narrow set of testing conditions. The Association also pointed out that a customary EPA validation approach should be employed, which would address inter-laboratory variability, acceptance criteria, holding time variability, wastewater treatment type variability (secondary, tertiary, membrane bioreactors, etc.) and sample matrix variability. As the comment letter states, “NACWA believes the method must be proven effective over a much more inclusive set of circumstances than is indicated in this preliminary work for it to be approved for use.” NACWA will update members when it receives a response from EPA regarding its comments.Mark Your Calendars for the
NACWA/WERF UAA Web Seminar, Summer Conference
Register today for two key NACWA offerings. The first is a unique NACWA/Water Environment Research Foundation (WERF) web seminar series focused on the joint publication released earlier this year, Collaborative Water Quality Solutions: Exploring Use Attainability Analyses (UAA Handbook). The program is priced “per site,” allowing multiple staff from the same utility to participate for one price. Web seminar registrations include both web seminars and one complimentary copy of the UAA Handbook, which the faculty will reference extensively throughout the seminar. Additional copies of the book can be purchased for staff participating in the web series for only $25 per copy. Some priority topics to be addressed include strategies for a successful UAA, economic considerations, UAAs for wet weather situations, effluent-dominated waters, antidegradation, and protection of downstream water quality standards.NACWA also urges you to the save the date for its 2006 Summer Conference and 36th Annual Meeting, Cross-Cutting Clean Water & Drinking Water Issues…Challenging Traditional Boundaries, July 18-21, in Seattle, Washington. Through an agenda prepared in cooperation with the American Water Works Association (AWWA), the Association of Metropolitan Water Agencies (AMWA) and the Water Environment Federation (WEF), NACWA’s 2006 Summer Conference will examine several cross-cutting issues. New, more stringent requirements for pathogens and disinfection byproducts, emerging contaminants, and communities’ increasing demand for water — that are contributing to mounting tension between water and wastewater agencies — will all be featured.
More information on both offerings will be made available in NACWA Updates and the May Clean Water News. Register now for both of these cutting-edge learning opportunities by visiting NACWA’s Meetings and Conferences webpage (http://www.nacwa.org/meetings/).