The National Association of Clean Water Agencies (NACWA) is pleased to provide you with the February 2008 Regulatory Update.  This Update provides a narrative summary of relevant regulatory issues and actions current to February 14, 2008.  Please contact NACWA’s Chris Hornback at 202/833-9106 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or Cynthia Finley at 202/296-9836 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it with any questions or information on the Update topics.

Top Stories

NACWA Develops Comments on NRDC Petition, Meets with ASIWPCA on Nutrients

NACWA met with officials from the Association of State and Interstate Water Pollution Control Administrators (ASIWPCA) on January 28 to discuss a recent letter sent from ASIWPCA to EPA on the need for technology-based controls for nutrients.  Prior to the meeting, NACWA was concerned that ASIWPCA’s letter, together with the Natural Resources Defense Council’s (NRDC) recent petition for rulemaking to modify secondary treatment to include controls for nutrients, would help the concept of national, technology-based nutrient limits gain traction at EPA.  ASIWPCA made it clear during the meeting that a set of national, one-size-fits-all limits was not the goal of their letter, but that they were seeking more information from EPA on what certain nutrient-removal technologies can achieve at a particular cost.

NACWA’s Legal Alert 07-07 provides a more detailed summary of the NRDC petition.  NACWA is preparing comments based on the member input received in response to the Alert and will be meeting with EPA in the next few days to discuss the issue.  NACWA also is planning follow-up meetings with ASIWPCA to discuss the issue further.

NACWA is also considering how the recently issued EPA Science Advisory Board (SAB) Report on the Gulf of Mexico hypoxia problem and a new U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) report on the transport of phosphorus and nitrogen to the Gulf factor into the national debate on the issue.  The new SAB Report, Hypoxia in the Northern Gulf of Mexico: An Update by the EPA Science Advisory Board, while a vast improvement over previous draft versions, still has some technical flaws and relies heavily on point source reductions of nutrients.  The USGS report, Differences in Phosphorus and Nitrogen Delivery to the Gulf of Mexico from the Mississippi River Basin, found that practices in nine states contribute the majority of nitrogen and phosphorus to the Northern Gulf of Mexico.  These states make up only one-third of the 31-state Mississippi River drainage area, but contribute more than 75 percent of the nutrients to the Gulf.  Corn and soybean cultivation is the largest contributor of nitrogen to the Gulf.  Animal manure on pasture and rangelands and crop cultivation are the largest contributors of phosphorus, which shows the need for a watershed-based approach that would consider both point and non-point sources in addressing nutrients.  The nutrient removal process for wastewater is a very energy-intensive process, and the impact of this removal on the carbon footprint of clean water agencies was discussed at several committee meetings during NACWA’s Winter Conference in Phoenix.  NACWA’s Water Quality Committee will be reviewing the new SAB and USGS information as it prepares comments on the NRDC petition.

EPA Survey Finds National Needs for Wastewater Treatment Top $200 Billion

EPA’s long-awaited 2004 Clean Watersheds Needs Survey (CWNS), delivered to Congress in late January, finds that total capital project needs for publicly owned treatment works (POTWs) now exceed $200 billion.  The Survey, first conducted in 1972, is intended to provide a summary of the costs associated with planned water quality or public health-related projects nationwide over the next 20 years.  The 2004 survey report, which has been under review by the White House’s Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for more than a year, puts the nation’s clean water needs total at $202.5 billion, up 8.6 percent from the previous survey in 2000.  Despite the impressive figure, NACWA continues to believe that this total vastly underestimates the actual need, due in part to the limits placed on what projects can be included in the survey.  EPA’s total needs figure only includes those projects that are eligible for Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF) dollars and that meet rigorous documentation criteria, including justification for any costs estimates.   Projects that were not identified as needs by January 1, 2004, are not included in these estimates.  According to the survey report, the largest increases in national needs were associated with wastewater treatment plant needs, sewer repair needs, and stormwater management program needs.

Release of the 2004 survey took so long that EPA has already initiated data collection efforts for the 2008 Clean Watersheds Needs Survey.  This year’s data collection will use a new web-based system and for the first time will allow for the inclusion of some non-CWSRF eligible projects.  NACWA representatives were involved in the early work to develop this year’s survey tool and advocated for greater municipal input into the data collection process and for including the non-CWSRF projects.

Air Quality and Climate Change

Water Sector Associations Draft Joint Message on Climate Change

NACWA and the other water sector associations are working on a climate change issue paper that outlines the joint policy priorities for drinking water and wastewater utilities.  The draft paper focuses on federal funding for utilities to adapt to climate change, increased research on the water-related effects of climate change, promotion of water conservation and reuse, and funding for energy efficiency and pollution reduction programs at utilities.  The issue paper will allow the water sector associations to deliver a unified message in their advocacy efforts regarding climate change.  The paper is expected to be finalized soon, and NACWA will share the paper with members when it is completed.

Biosolids

WERF Report Finds No ‘Sudden Increase’ in Pathogens Following Dewatering

In June 2006, NACWA alerted the membership to a potential issue associated with the regrowth/reactivation or ‘sudden increase’ of indicator bacteria in anaerobically digested sludge following dewatering (See Regulatory Alert 06-03).  Indicator organisms by themselves do not pose a health risk, so the Water Environment Research Foundation (WERF) undertook new studies to determine whether this phenomenon in indicator bacteria could also be observed in the actual disease-causing bacteria (pathogens).  WERF released the results of this additional work earlier this month.  The results of this work confirmed the occurrence of a ‘sudden increase’ phenomenon for indicator bacteria, but found no comparable increase in pathogens.  Copies of the report are available for purchase on the WERF website and a free Fact Sheet is available for download.

Conferences and Meetings

National Clean Water Policy Forum Information Coming Soon

Planning is now in full swing for the joint NACWA/Water Environment Federation (WEF) National Clean Water Policy Forum in Washington, D.C., May 4-7, at the Renaissance Mayflower Hotel.  The conference is well-timed as the 2008 presidential candidates will likely have been selected and their national campaigns will be intensifying.

To put the shifting political landscape into perspective, NACWA and the Water Environment Federation (WEF) have secured Stuart Rothenberg to provide a Keynote Address on the 2008 elections and their potential impacts to national policy, including environmental issues.   Rothenberg is editor and publisher of The Rothenberg Political Report, a non-partisan political newsletter covering U.S. House, Senate, and gubernatorial campaigns, presidential politics, and political developments.  The current Democratic majorities in both the House and Senate have already led to a significant increase in the attention clean water issues are receiving on Capitol Hill — including Clean Water Act jurisdiction, sewer overflow notification, chemical facility security, clean water funding, and climate change.  These and other issues will also receive significant attention from Policy Forum panelists and speakers.

Make your hotel reservation by April 14, 2008, to guarantee the special conference rate of $285 by calling the Renaissance Mayflower Hotel directly at 202/347-3000.  More information and online registration will be made available soon on the Conferences and Meetings section of NACWA’s website.

Facility and Collection Systems

NACWA Urges EPA to Include 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 the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) urging EPA to include stormwater management components in its WaterSense New Homes outdoor water efficiency specifications.  WaterSense is an EPA-sponsored program to promote water conservation by enhancing the market for water-efficient products, such as high-efficiency toilets and sensor-based irrigation control.  NACWA and many of its members support the WaterSense program.  The January 31 letter expressed concern that the draft specification being developed by EPA does not include criteria for stormwater management and methods for reducing outdoor potable water use, such as rainwater harvesting.  “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.  Although the letter recognizes that drafting these specifications may be challenging due to regional differences in precipitation and climate, the signatories offer their assistance to EPA in developing workable criteria for stormwater management and outdoor water conservation.  NACWA will continue to work with EPA and these other organizations on the WaterSense New Homes outdoor water efficiency specifications and will keep members informed about the development of the specifications.

EPA Releases Green Infrastructure Action Strategy Developed with NACWA Input

In January, EPA released its Green Infrastructure Action Strategy, developed in conjunction with NACWA, the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), the Association of State and Interstate Water Pollution Control Administrators (ASIWPCA), the Low Impact Development Center (LID Center), and American Rivers.  The Strategy outlines a set of collaborative actions that EPA and the partnering organizations plan to pursue over the coming years to promote the use of green infrastructure techniques to reduce stormwater runoff, combined sewer overflows, and nonpoint source pollution.  Increasing funding and establishing regulatory credit for green infrastructure project are included in the planned actions, both of which are also NACWA priorities.

The release of the Action Strategy was announced by Assistant Administrator for Water Benjamin Grumbles at the start of the EPA-sponsored Green Infrastructure Research Forum in Washington, DC.   This Forum reflects the planned action category in the Strategy of research and development of tools to help improve green infrastructure techniques.  Previously, EPA also released a report, Reducing Stormwater Costs through Low Impact Development Strategies and Practices, which provides information to cities, counties, states, private-sector developers and other interested parties about the costs and benefits of using low impact development as part of stormwater management to help protect and restore water quality.  EPA plans to update the Strategy and its green infrastructure information webpage periodically, and is committed to communicating information on activities and accomplishments related to green infrastructure to its partnering organizations.  NACWA will continue to work with EPA and other organizations on the planned actions to promote green infrastructure.

NACWA Participates in Wet Weather Forum

NACWA participated in a forum on wet weather issues hosted by the Water Environment Federation (WEF), January 22-23, in Baltimore.  Invited participants included representatives from the municipal wastewater utility and consulting communities, as well as state and federal regulators, academics, and several former U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) officials.  The goal of the Forum was to have an open discussion on the future of wet weather management, and participants began the discussion by sharing their ideas of what the ideal wet weather management program would look like if it could be started now.  Green infrastructure was a major theme of the discussions, and most participants stayed away from tough issues like the elimination of sanitary sewer overflows.  During the Forum, the recommendations from NACWA’s Strategic Watershed Task Force report, Recommendations for a Viable and Vital 21st Century Clean Water Policy, were suggested as a potential starting point for short-term actions that could form the beginnings of a new management framework for wet weather.  EPA enforcement officials participating in the Forum seemed very receptive to the use of more green techniques for dealing with wet weather challenges, but it was clear that historically divisive issues, such as wet weather standards, would be nonstarters with several of the stakeholders in the room.  WEF will be providing a summary of the meeting that NACWA will make available to the membership.

Security & Emergency Preparedness

Water Sector Coordinating Council Approves Security Metrics Workgroup Report

The Critical Infrastructure Partnership Advisory Council (CIPAC) Metrics Workgroup for the water sector completed its work on a set of metrics that will provide a national performance measurement system for the security progress of drinking water and wastewater utilities.  The Workgroup consisted of representatives from utilities, government agencies, and associations, including NACWA.  The Workgroup’s consensus report, which also contains a revised version of the 14 Features of an Active and Effective Security Program that are better aligned with the Water Sector Specific Plan, was forwarded to the Water Sector Coordinating Council (WSCC) for review.  The WSCC approved of the report during its meeting this week.  The metrics rely on voluntary, anonymous reporting by utilities, states, associations, and federal agencies.  NACWA will keep the membership informed about the schedule for distributing the metrics to utilities for reporting.

Water Quality

NACWA Releases Report on Effectiveness of Dental Amalgam Separators

NACWA’s Mercury Workgroup released the report, An Examination of Mercury Levels at Clean Water Agencies, 2003-2006,  from a three-year Targeted Action Fund (TAF) study in January, 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 installation 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 study found that separators generally do not appear to significantly reduce effluent mercury concentrations, at least within the timeframe of the 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 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 to date and will play a critical role in NACWA’s advocacy efforts as EPA considers national pretreatment standards for dental clinics.