July 24, 2015
Biogas Stakeholders Discuss Barriers & Opportunities with USDA, DOE & EPA
Stakeholders involved in the production and use of biogas, including agricultural interests, private investment firms and the clean water community, gathered this week in Washington, DC to discuss the barriers to, and opportunities for, the increased production and use of biogas. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) convened the meeting to discuss progress on the biogas front since the release of the Biogas Opportunities Roadmap  (Roadmap), a joint product of the USDA, the Department of Energy (DOE) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). While the Roadmap was primarily focused on increasing the deployment of anaerobic digesters to treat animal manure, it did acknowledge the important role the clean water community will continue to play in biogas production and use.
USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack opened the meeting, highlighting his department’s interest in reducing methane emissions from the agricultural sector, and Under Secretary for Natural Resources & the Environment Robert Bonnie led the discussion. A top concern raised by several stakeholders was the strong resistance from power providers to allowing biogas producers to sell energy back to the grid. Chris Hornback, Senior Director of Regulatory Affairs for NACWA, highlighted that the clean water community experiences similar resistance and reinforced the need for the federal agencies in the room to work with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and others, including representatives from the power sector, to remove some of these barriers.
In addition to the production of energy, the discussion also focused around markets for secondary products from biogas production, including nutrients, fiber and bio-based products (e.g., bioplastics), as well as the potential to move beyond electricity generation into the production of liquid fuels and hydrogen for fuel cells. NACWA’s newly-formed Energy Workgroup will be having a conference call in the coming months to discuss these and related issues. Contact
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if you are interested in joining the workgroup.
NACWA Pushes Back on Sewer Overflow Provisions in Senate Appropriations Bill
NACWA met with several House and Senate offices this week to express its opposition to Section 428 of the Senate’s FY16 appropriations package for the Environmental Protection Agency. Section 428 would require communities that discharge effluent directly or indirectly to the Great Lakes and operate combined sewer systems to eliminate all overflows by 2035 or face $100,000 in fines per violation. The provisions would also prohibit all direct and indirect dischargers to the Great Lakes from blending.
In meetings with Capitol Hill staff, NACWA emphasized that the language violates the 1994 Combined Sewer Overflow Policy codified by Congress in 2000 which has guided the development of hundreds of Long-Term Control Plans throughout the country, including 170 among Great Lakes dischargers. NACWA also emphasized that, should this legislation be enacted, sewer rates would skyrocket in some of the most economically disadvantaged communities in the industrial mid-west. For example, the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District servicing the Greater Cleveland region would face an additional $16.5 billion in capital costs to comply with these requirements. Milwaukee’s Metropolitan Sewage District would face $5 billion in additional costs.
NACWA conferred with several Congressional offices this week, including that of Senator Mark Kirk’s (R-IL), the main sponsor of the provision, to discuss our member’s concerns and possible alternative approaches for dealing with sewer overflows to the Great Lakes. NACWA also met with staff for Wisconsin Senators Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and Ron Johnson (R-WI), as well as staff for Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and Representative Bob Latta (R-OH), and House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee Chair Bill Shuster (R-PA). NACWA also met with staff for the House and Senate appropriations committees to urge that the language be stripped from the final FY16 spending package.
The Association urges all its members in the Great Lakes, and elsewhere because of its national precedent, to alert their Congressional delegations to the provisions and the detrimental impact they would have on their communities should they be enacted. Members interested in additional information are urged to contact
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, NACWA’s Senior Legislative Director for more information.
UOTF-Focused Congressional Caucus Welcomes New Co-Chair
NACWA is pleased to announce the official registration of the Congressional Clean Water Caucus for the 114th Congress. Rep. Dan Lipinski (D-IL) will be joining Rep. John Duncan (R-TN) as Co-Chair of the Caucus. The Association is excited that Rep. Lipinski has accepted to serve as Co-Chair and is confident that he, along with Rep. Duncan, will bring the leadership needed to create a strong bipartisan focus on the nation’s key clean water issues.
The Clean Water Caucus will provide a platform for Members of Congress to highlight clean water technology and innovation. NACWA looks forward to working with the Caucus to hold briefings on the Utility/Industry of the Future (UOTF) and encourage congressional discussion to help make progress towards addressing the nation’s critical water infrastructure needs. Please contact
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with any questions about the Congressional Clean Water Caucus.
NACWA Discusses a New Water Act with Oregon Agencies
NACWA participated in the Oregon Association of Clean Water Agencies' summer meeting this week where discussion centered on the increasing regulatory burden on public agencies and the need to rethink the Clean Water Act. NACWA hosted 40 utilities at a breakfast where attendees drilled deeper into how the desire to innovate and become the Utility of the Future is being stifled by EPA and State regulatory overreach. The concept of a new Water Act was identified as a potential avenue to pursue.
NACWA also provided a presentation to over 200 attendees discussing the importance of having small and medium sized utilities join their colleagues in membership, broadening the Association’s reach to every Congressional district in the country. There was also significant discussion of the Great Lakes provision in the Senate appropriations bill (see related article) and concern that its zero overflow and no-blending requirements for the Great Lakes states, if passed, would ultimately spread to Oregon – and nationwide.
NACWA continues to work closely with its state counterparts to ensure the clean water community is speaking with one voice at the state, regional and national levels.
Upper Occoquan Service Authority Opens its Doors to NACWA Staff
Ten NACWA staff toured the Upper Occoquan Service Authority (UOSA) Facility in Centreville, Virginia this week led by Bob Angelotti, Director of Technical Services. Staff presented Chuck Boepple, UOSA Executive Director, with the Authority’s Platinum10 Peak Performance Award before viewing the pioneering water reclamation facility. UOSA is a worthy example of the Utility of the Future principles. The facility generates approximately a quarter of its energy through combined heat and power (CHP) on site, and produces water that meets federal primary and secondary drinking water standards for indirect potable reuse. UOSA was formed in 1971 and provides product water flows to the Occoquan Reservoir, a major water supply source for over 1.3 million people served by the Fairfax County Water Authority (FCWA) in suburban Washington, DC.
 
The Plastic Microbead Loophole
Guest blogger, Ed Gottlieb, Industrial Pretreatment Coordinator Ithaca Area Wastewater Treatment Facility with NACWA Member City of Ithaca Department of Public Works discusses the growing number of states who are banning micobeads in products. Recently, the plastics industry has fought back with legislation that would generate a loophole for microbeads. Will this plastics industry’s version catch on? Read The Water Voice to find out more.
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