The economic stimulus legislation the House of Representatives is considering could include more money for water and wastewater infrastructure projects, a state water official told the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Jan. 22.

The House Appropriations Committee on Jan. 21 approved an $825 billion bill aimed at stimulating the economy, including $64 billion for infrastructure. (See related story in this issue.)

Witnesses at the hearing before the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee cited the need for infrastructure funds in a variety of areas including railroads, aviation, public transit, and wastewater treatment facilities. They assured the committee the funds would be used soon because the projects are ready to start now.

“While the package's $6 billion targeted to wastewater projects is significant, [National Association of Clean Water Agencies] members have over $17 billion worth of wastewater projects ready-to-go that can have shovels in the ground within 120 days of receiving the go ahead from their state agencies,” Marian Orfeo testified during the hearing before the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.

Orfeo, who is director of planning and coordination for the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority, is president of NACWA, which represents the country's wastewater treatment agencies.

The association is pleased that the proposed spending for wastewater infrastructure through the clean water revolving fund program would require states to distribute 50 percent of the funds in the form of grants, Orfeo said, but it would prefer that 100 percent of the funds be available as grants.

She said grants would make the funds more useful to communities hit hard by the economic downturn because those communities are hesitant to incur debt, and if they do not accept loans, the overall effectiveness and impact of the recovery package would be reduced.

Orfeo said all communities should have access to grant financing and that dollars should not be targeted to any particular set of communities.

She pointed to Environmental Protection Agency statistics showing a $388 billion shortfall in spending for water infrastructure.

Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman James Oberstar said he was disappointed that the legislation approved by the Appropriations Committee did not include more funds for infrastructure. He wanted the bill to include $85 billion for infrastructure.
John Mica, ranking minority member, said between 7 percent and 8 percent of the package is targeted to infrastructure. “Where are the jobs?” he said.

“It's a bipartisan disappointment,” Oberstar said.

$400 Billion Needed for Water Infrastructure.
Estimates of the nation's clean water infrastructure needs over the next 20 years exceed $400 billion, according to a summary of infrastructure investment needs released by the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Jan. 21.

The summary pointed to Congressional Budget Office estimates of an annual investment need of between $11.6 billion and $20.1 billion to ensure safe, clean drinking water, and another investment of between $13 billion and $20.9 billion in wastewater treatment. Given current funding levels from all sources, the summary cited an annual investment gap for wastewater and drinking water infrastructure of between $3 billion and $19.4 billion.

While the demand for clean water state revolving funds is increasing, the committee said, appropriations have declined significantly. This, in turn, has created a pent up demand for project funding. Additional funds could be put to immediate use by many states, the document said, citing specific examples provided by the Association of State and Interstate Water Pollution Control Agencies.

Recommendations From Nature Conservancy.
Robert Bendick, director of government relations for the Nature Conservancy, told the committee that funding the American Recovery and Restoration Act or any subsequent stimulus legislation would help accelerate the restoration of fresh water and coastal ecosystems using a watershed approach,

He recommended that no less than one third of the Army Corps of Engineers' overall allocation in the economic stimulus package be dedicated to ecosystem restoration projects. While the conservancy advocates substantial funding for the largest projects, the funds also should meet multiple small and large scale restoration needs, he said.

Bendick urged that stimulus funds be invested in green agricultural infrastructure in major river basins to manage water and nutrients, an action he said could employ thousands of people.

The conservancy has recommended to the Obama transition team that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers develop a national program aimed at doubling the restoration of fresh water and coastal ecosystems, and then work closely with Congress, state and local governments to achieve that goal.

The conservancy also suggested that the Corps develop tools and support the planning and budgeting of water resources projects on a watershed or regional basis.

Nutrient and chemical runoff from agricultural operations are persistent problems in the Chesapeake Bay and the Gulf of Mexico and also need to be addressed, Bendick said.

Larry Larsen, executive director of the Association of Floodplain Managers, said Congress should dedicate a portion of the economic stimulus package to activities that prevent flood damage. Hazard mitigation must be built into each infrastructure project, he said.
Larsen testified that critical infrastructure such as water supplies, sewage treatment, bridges, and roads must be protected from natural hazards so they can operate after “extreme events.”

Benefits of Waterborne Commerce.
James Weakley, president of the Lake Carriers' Association and first vice president of the Great Lakes Maritime Task Force, told the committee that waterborne commerce offers tremendous advantages in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and lessening dependence on foreign oil.

In funding maritime project infrastructure, he said, the priorities should be national security, job creation, and improved efficiency.

The best opportunity to increase the efficiency of the Great Lakes Marine Highway through the economic stimulus bill is to adequately fund the U.S. Coast Guard ice-breaking mission, Weakley testified. So far, this ice season in December and January, he said, four of eight USCG icebreakers were out of service due to maintenance.

By Linda Roeder