Clean Water Current Archive

February 1, 2008

House Committee Leaders Ask GAO to Study Trust Fund Revenue Sources

Democratic leaders on the House Transportation & Infrastructure (T&I) Committee and a member of the House Ways and Means Committee sent an important letter to the Government Accountability Office (GAO) Jan. 30 requesting a study on potential revenue sources for a clean water trust fund capable of supporting a minimum of $10 billion annually.  The letter from Reps. James Oberstar (D-Minn.), chair of the T&I Committee, Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-Texas), chair of the T&I Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment, and Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.), a member of the Ways and Means Committee, also pointed out that a dedicated funding source for wastewater infrastructure is critical to ensuring communities can meet their current and future water infrastructure needs.  Calling on the federal government to increase its investment “in the repair and replacement of wastewater treatment and sewer-collection systems,” the letter also says that a “Clean Water Trust Fund would provide a deficit-neutral, sustainable, and long-term federal contribution to protecting existing water resources.”

The House T&I Committee issued a press release in which Oberstar indicated his intention to take up trust fund legislation in the next Congress.  Blumenauer has echoed that call in recent meetings, saying he plans to work from draft legislation drawn up by NACWA and Water Infrastructure Network (WIN) in the previous Congress.  In its own press release issued the same day, NACWA applauded the members for taking this important step in laying the groundwork for trust fund legislation.  The Association worked vigorously to ensure the letter to GAO was sent and has already sent a draft legislative strategy document to relevant NACWA committees and task forces to help lay the groundwork for legislation in 2009.

NACWA Releases Report on Mercury Control Effectiveness

NACWA’s Mercury Workgroup released the report from a three-year Targeted Action Fund (TAF) study this week, providing valuable insight for member agencies on meeting stringent effluent limits for mercury.  The study examined influent, effluent, and biosolids mercury concentrations from 12 U.S. and Canadian wastewater treatment plants to evaluate the impact of amalgam separators that were in various stages of being installed at dental facilities between July 2003 and July 2006.  Designed to examine the effectiveness of such controls on meeting strict effluent mercury limits, the study also tracked information on other source control efforts and operational activities at the treatment plants to assess numerous issues related to controlling mercury.

The report, An Examination of Mercury Levels at Clean Water Agencies, 2003-2006, found that separators generally do not appear to significantly reduce effluent mercury concentrations, at least within the timeframe of this study.  However, despite the variability and uncertainties described in the report, the data indicate that separators can decrease the amount of mercury that would be removed by plant processes and end up in biosolids.  The study also indicates that many factors, not just amalgam separator installation, influence mercury concentrations at clean water agencies, making it difficult for a facility to predict with certainty whether amalgam separators will decrease mercury concentrations without also exploring the other potential contributors of mercury.  Though the study results indicate that even publicly owned treatment works (POTWs) with demonstrably successful amalgam separator programs may not be able to consistently meet current or imminent effluent limits (e.g., 1.3 nanograms per liter in the Great Lakes), these local efforts do appear to be having a measurable effect on the quantity of mercury being discharged to the nation’s clean water agencies. The final report, which has been highly anticipated by stakeholders, compiles the most comprehensive data on the subject and will play a critical role in NACWA’s advocacy efforts as EPA considers national pretreatment standards for dental clinics.

NACWA would like to extend special thanks to Keith Linn, Elizabeth Toot-Levy, and Seth Hothem all with the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District in Cleveland, Ohio, and Steve Anderson with Clean Water Services in Hillsboro, Ore., for their contributions to this report.

NACWA Joins Other Groups on Letter Seeking Green Infrastructure Incentives in SRF Bill

NACWA joined six other organizations on a Jan. 28 letter sent to Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), chair of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, urging her to introduce and pass legislation to reauthorize the Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF).  The letter also asked that provisions be included that would promote the use of green infrastructure and water conservation technologies in projects receiving SRF funding.  Also, signing onto the letter were American Rivers, the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), the American Public Works Association (APWA), the American Institute of Architects (AIA), the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA), and the Water Environment Federation (WEF).

“As the national discussion regarding water resources management shifts its focus to sustainable infrastructure, it is critical that the bill offer strong, specific provisions regarding funding and incentives for green infrastructure research, programs and projects as well as water efficiency measures,” the letter said. “Such provisions would help states and municipalities nationwide further advance innovative natural-system solutions that use soil and vegetation as part of a community’s water quantity and quality management system.”

The House passed a reauthorization bill in early 2007 that would provide $14 billion over four years.  NACWA has been working closely with Senate staff to push similar legislation in that body and has been told that a bill should be introduced soon.

NACWA Signs onto Letter Seeking Stormwater Provisions in WaterSense Specifications

NACWA and the Association’s treasurer Kevin Shafer, executive director of the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sanitary District, signed a letter with American Rivers and NRDC urging EPA to include provisions on stormwater management in its upcoming WaterSense New Homes outdoor water efficiency specifications.  The WaterSense Program, of which NACWA is a supporter, is an EPA initiative to promote water conservation by enhancing the market for water-efficient products.  The letter, sent Jan. 31, expressed concern that new home specifications being drafted by EPA to promote the use of WaterSense-certified products are silent on managing stormwater and harvesting rainwater.  “Particularly in light of EPA’s new commitment to green infrastructure, this is an important and supportable means for integrating goals for lowering water demand through reduced imperviousness, low-impact development and related non-structural stormwater approaches, replenishing groundwater aquifers, and reducing the infrastructure burden on both water and wastewater treatment systems,” the letter said.

We look forward to seeing many of you next week at NACWA’s 2008 Winter Conference, Creating Tomorrow’s Utility … Keys to Management Success, in Phoenix, and wish you safe travels.