» Clean Water Current Archive

June 29, 2012

NACWA Launches Blog Dedicated to Clean Water Issues

NACWA today launched The Water Voice™, a blog dedicated to an analysis of policy issues affecting the clean water community.  The blog will cover all facets of water quality protection from nutrients and total maximum daily loads (TMDLs) to stormwater, pretreatment, and combined and sanitary sewer overflows, and more.  Current posts provide an analysis of the Clean Water Act in its 40th anniversary year; several recent court rulings, including a Supreme Court decision and two nutrient cases; the future of clean water agencies as a resource producer; and the problem with nonpoint sources.  New posts on relevant issues will be posted each week.

Authors will provide legal, regulatory, and legislative perspectives and will include members of NACWA staff, as well as contributions from Member Agencies on emerging issues and how their organization has been affected.  Posts will provide context for various national issues and that explain its relevance to members.

NACWA invites comments and thoughtful discussion on posts to encourage further exploration of a new or emerging topic and the sharing of knowledge.  In addition, NACWA invites members to suggest future blog topics of interest.  Visit http://www.blog.nacwa.org or access The Water Voice™ through the Association’s website at www.nacwa.org.

Website Enhancements Offer New Options

NACWA launched enhancements to its website today –  incorporating new features to provide greater access to Association information 24/7.  New features include mobile and cross platform friendly photos and a wider format with larger text – friendly for larger screens and tired eyes.  The enhanced look and feel of the site also incorporates social media features including NACWA’s Blog, The Water Voice™; the Association’s presence on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and LinkedIn; and, our new social networking site NACWA Engage™.  Navigation and content of the website remain unchanged.  We look forward to incorporating additional features in the coming months – so stay tuned!

U.S. Supreme Court to Review Two CWA Stormwater Cases

In what was a very busy week at the U.S. Supreme Court, the justices announced on Monday that they would review two Clean Water Act cases related to stormwater when the Court’s next term begins in October 2012.  The two cases, Los Angeles County Flood Control District v. Natural Resources Defense Council and Decker v. Northwest Environmental Defense Center, both come out of the U.S Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.

The first case involving LA County deals with the “water transfers” issue and whether the transfer of water from one section of a waterbody through a manmade channel to another section of the same waterbody falls under CWA permitting requirements.  This case has potential implications for MS4s and other clean water utilities that may transfer water from one section of a waterbody to another as part of their water management efforts.  The second case involves a challenge to the Ninth Circuit’s 2010 decision that stormwater runoff from logging roads qualifies as “point source” discharges under the CWA and thus must be regulated under the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) system.  Although this case is likely to have less impact on clean water utilities due to its focus on industrial as opposed to municipal stormwater dischargers, it will provide the Supreme Court with an opportunity to further clarify the CWA’s distinction between point and nonpoint sources.

It is notable the Court already has two CWA cases on its docket for the next term, and that they both encompass stormwater issues.  NACWA is currently reviewing both cases and will be evaluating an appropriate role for the Association to take in representing the municipal clean water community before the Supreme Court in these two matters.  We will keep the membership updated on NACWA’s advocacy plans moving forward.

NACWA Participates in Meeting on Siloxane Data Collection Plan

NACWA participated in a meeting this week to begin negotiations on an enforceable consent agreement (ECA) regarding two siloxanes, D4 and D5, which are found in many soaps, detergents, personal care products, and other consumer and industrial products.  As NACWA detailed in a letter to EPA last week, D4 and D5 cause problems for POTWs when biogas is used as renewable fuel source, since it is converted to silicon dioxide and deposited in the exhaust stages of boilers, engines, and other equipment.  D4 and D5 are also persistent in sediment and bioaccumulative in aquatic species, which may impact wastewater effluent and biosolids.

As an interested party in the ECA negotiations, NACWA will be providing input on an appropriate sampling plan that will provide EPA with information for environmental risk assessments.  The initial plan proposed by the Silicone Environmental Health & Safety Council of North America (SEHSC) includes monitoring at five publicly owned treatment works (POTWs).  During this week’s meeting, EPA expressed doubts that five POTWs would be representative of POTWs across the country.  NACWA agreed to work with EPA, SEHSC, and other interested parties to determine an appropriate number of POTWs to monitor.  The ECA negotiations must be completed by December 27.  Any NACWA members with an interest in the issue of siloxanes are encouraged to contact Cynthia Finley at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

NACWA Urges Members to Complete Utility of the Future Survey

NACWA encourages members that have not already done so to complete a key survey that is part of the Association’s effort to gather vital information on its Water Quality Utility of the Future initiative.  NACWA has been very pleased with the response to the survey and wants to ensure as robust a data-set as possible.  The Association is providing additional time to complete the survey and asks that all responses be completed by Friday, July 6.  All information collected will be aggregated, with nothing attributed to individual agencies without securing permission to do so.  Initial survey results will be available for discussion by relevant Standing Committees at NACWA’s 2012 Summer Conference next month in Philadelphia.  Please email Adam Krantz at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it if you have any questions regarding the survey.

EPA Releases Green Infrastructure Factsheets

EPA this week announced the publication of a series of factsheets providing information and guidance on how green infrastructure practices can be incorporated into wet weather control programs from both a permitting and enforcement perspective.  The set of factsheets, the Green Infrastructure Permitting and Enforcement Series, consist of separate documents addressing the use of green infrastructure in a number of different contexts including combined sewer overflows (CSOs), sanitary sewer overflows (SSOs), stormwater, and total maximum daily loads (TMDLs).   There are also supplements to the factsheets that provide examples and case studies, such as sample language from existing consent decrees that include green infrastructure provisions and information on green infrastructure models and calculators.  EPA has indicated that the information in the factsheets is based upon “existing EPA authority, guidance, and agreements to describe how EPA and state permitting and enforcement professionals can work with permittees to include green infrastructure measures as part of control programs.”  The documents are part of the Agency’s existing green infrastructure website.

NACWA is currently reviewing the factsheets and supplements, and plans to follow up with EPA for further clarification on their content and intended use.  As part of this process, NACWA welcomes any comments, questions, or concerns that NACWA members have with the factsheets.  Any member comments may be sent to Nathan Gardner-Andrews at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or Cynthia Finely at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Healthy Waters Coalition Praises Focus on Nutrients in Senate Farm Bill

Following passage of the Senate Farm Bill, formally known as the Agriculture Reform, Food, and Jobs Act of 2012 (S.3240), NACWA, as part of the Healthy Waters Coalition, released a statement , praising the Senate Agriculture Committee for including provisions in the bill’s conservation title to help agriculture producers achieve water quality goals.  Specifically, the bill establishes a new program called the Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP), designed to encourage partnerships between agricultural operators and entities such as POTWs, NGOs and governmental agencies to focus on improving farm conservation practices.  By providing eligible partners with stable funding over a five-year period of time, the RCPP will help farmers address the nutrient challenges faced by the country’s watersheds.  The Farm Bill now moves to the House, and NACWA will be working to promote this language and make sure it remains in any final package.

NACWA Joins WEF, Water Sector in Calling on Congress to Fund USGS Water Program

NACWA and nearly 30 other water industry, environmental and conservation organizations signed onto a letter this week, led by the Water Environment Federation (WEF), urging Congress to fully fund the U.S. Geological Survey’s (USGS) National Water Quality Assessment (NAWQA) program.  The letter states that the NAWQA program “provides critical scientific information to guide governmental and private actions to protect the nation’s water resources.”  It urges Congress to restore funding to the fiscal year (FY) 2010 appropriations level of $62.6 million.  The President’s proposed FY2013 budget calls for $56.3 million for the program – a cut of $10.2 million, or over 15 percent, compared to the FY2010 level.  The impacts of these cuts on stream, river, and drinking water supply monitoring efforts, as well as other vital initiatives the program supports, are detailed in the letter.

EPA Provides Update on Nutrient Issues during Webinar

Ellen Gilinsky, Senior Policy Advisor for EPA’s Office of Water provided an update on EPA’s activities related to nutrients during the final web seminar in NACWA’s Coming Soon to a Permit Near You . . .the Next Generation of Nutrient Management series.  Gilinsky’s remarks highlighted the progress that has been made since EPA issued its nutrient framework memo in March of 2011.  That memo stressed that states with certain minimum building blocks necessary for effective programs to manage nutrient discharges that are working to “maximize progress” on nutrient control efforts (including work to develop numeric nutrient criteria) will be afforded additional flexibility and time to continue to develop those criteria.  According to Gilinsky EPA is pleased with the progress to date and that all states are working to develop frameworks consistent with the March 2011 memo, with most working on elements 1 – watershed priorities and 2 – load reduction goals.  EPA is working with its regional offices to develop a detailed summary of state progress by early Fall 2012.  Though Gilinsky stressed that numeric nutrient criteria remain a critical element, she also noted that there is no single approach to developing the criteria.  Reflecting a significant change in EPA thinking since early 2011, Gilinsky referenced a Science Advisory Board report that emphasizes the importance of multiple lines of evidence when developing and implementing criteria.  EPA is working with states to further develop a bio-confirmation component of nutrient criteria and plans to have some “guiding principles” for this approach later this year.  The principles are anticipated to suggest considerations for states as they develop nutrient criteria.  Following
Gilinsky, Rich Budell, Director of the Office of Agricultural Water Policy for the Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services, provided insights into Florida’s successful program for addressing nonpoint contributions of nutrients.  NACWA’s Water Quality Committee will discuss EPA’s ongoing efforts on nutrients during its upcoming meeting on Monday, July 16, during NACWA’s 2012 Summer Conference in Philadelphia.


The NACWA staff would like to wish everyone a happy and safe July 4th!