Member Pipeline - Fax Alerts - February 4, 2005
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February 4, 2005
Winter Conference a Success,
Association Name Change Is Official!
AMSA’s Winter Conference took place this week in San Antonio, Texas and enjoyed a strong discussion on the meeting’s theme – Sustainable Systems. The Board of Directors and AMSA Members also voted on several key items at the winter conference, and we are excited to announce that members voted unanimously to change AMSA’s name to the National Association of Clean Water Agencies or NACWA. The name change will officially be kicked off at the Association’s 35th Anniversary Annual Meeting, May 1-2, in Washington, D.C. AMSA invites all members to join in this important event, which will be immediately followed by the first-ever joint AMSA-WEF National Clean Water Policy Forum, May 3-4, at the same hotel. Visit AMSA’s website (http://www.amsa-cleanwater.org/meetings/05nepf/) for more information about the May meeting.Keynote Speaker Keith Harrell Energizes, Motivates Attendees
In addition to excellent panel presentations on various sustainability-related topics, from methods to improve asset management and rate-setting strategies to the need for a clean and safe water trust fund and new security resources, attendees enjoyed a unique and energetic presentation from Motivational Speaker and Change Expert, Keith Harrell. Harrell refocused the audience’s energy on the need for clean water agency leaders to embrace their role in protecting the environment and to be the engines for changing the misperceptions about the role of treatment plants nationwide. Harrell rallied the crowd and made the case that for AMSA’s big audacious goal - “when people say environmentalist they think of us first” - to be successful there must be an understanding that “attitude is everything”.Harrell’s presentation was videotaped and AMSA is looking at ways to make it available to the members who were unable to share in this one-of-a-kind presentation. Also, all the PowerPoint presentations from the AMSA panels will be available early next week on AMSA’s website (http://www.amsa-cleanwater.org/meetings).
Targeted Action Fund Projects Get the Green Light
AMSA’s Board of Directors also approved several new Targeted Action Fund (TAF) projects. These projects include AMSA’s sponsorship of the National Water Quality Monitoring Council Conference, May 7-11, 2006 and two TAF litigation matters. The first is additional funding for the effluent limitations guidelines case, Our Children’s Earth Foundation (OCE) v. EPA, in which AMSA was granted intervenor status in October 2004 and in which a response to the complaint is due on March 23. The second case is a new matter involving member agency Sanitation District No. 1 in Ft. Wright, Kentucky and which raises important issues regarding the interplay between the Clean Water and Safe Drinking Water Acts, including whether wastewater permits should include effluent limits for pollutants of concern to drinking water utilities, such as Giardia cysts and endocrine disruptors.More detailed descriptions of these TAF projects and the Winter Conference highlights will be made available via future Alerts and Updates. AMSA thanks all of its attendees and participants for making this conference a success.