Clean Water Current - March 12, 2010

March 12, 2010

NACWA Takes Key Steps to Broaden Watershed Coalition, Advance Legislation

During its February 18 meeting with key state and stakeholder groups on its draft 21st Century Watershed Act (see 02-19-2010 Current article for details), all agreed to develop a set of draft watershed principles to help broaden a coalition in support of the fundamental concepts underlying the Watershed Act. NACWA took the lead on developing the draft principles, and this week the Association's Strategic Watershed Task Force is reviewing them and providing comment. The principles are based on the draft legislation, as well as the Task Force's 2007 report, Recommendations for a Viable and Vital 21st Century Clean Water Policy . Immediately after the Task Force’s review, these principles will be forwarded to the stakeholder groups for their comment and then, once finalized, will be shared with the NACWA membership. By utilizing the principles NACWA plans to widen the base of supportive stakeholder groups in the next few months. NACWA’s goal this year is to have the Transportation & Infrastructure Committee hold a hearing on the need for a new national watershed-based approach — with the principles document and the draft Watershed Act as a centerpiece of the discussion — and then to use this momentum to seek introduction of the legislation in the 112th Congress.

Large Number of Great Waters Bills Shows Need for National Watershed Approach
On a related note, recent weeks have witnessed a large number of bills advancing in Congress which authorize restoration programs at a number of “great waters” throughout the United States. Lawmakers representing Districts representing these ecologically significant watersheds are tackling water quality issues through regional approaches in part due to a lack of a comprehensive program at the national level. In just the past two months, bills have been introduced seeking to remove toxic chemicals from the Columbia River basin (H.R. 4652/S. 3025), combat invasive species in Lake Tahoe (S. 2724) and continue restoration activities in the Puget Sound (S. 2739), among other. Other waterbodies that have seen recent congressional attention include the Great Lakes, the Long Island Sound and the Chesapeake Bay. NACWA will continue to track these efforts and provide comment where necessary – but is also pointing to this plethora of bills in its advocacy on the need for a new 21st century watershed approach. (The complete text of legislation referenced in the Current is available at www.thomas.loc.gov.)

NACWA Meets with Key Senator’s Office to Discuss Chemical Security

This week NACWA met with minority staff on the Senate Homeland Security & Government Operations Committee following a hearing on Senator Collins’ bill (S. 2696) that seeks to extend the Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS) program for five years in its current form, continuing the exemption for water and wastewater facilities. NACWA met with committee staff to discuss next steps for CFATS and the relationship between this bill and the Administration’s stated preference to add water and wastewater chemical security oversight to the CFATS program. At this point, it appears likely that Sen. Collins’ legislation will be on hold until the Obama Administration releases a draft bill they are currently working on. The Administration is not expected to release its bill for a number of months. NACWA will continue working with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to monitor progress on the Administration’s bill and will remain committed to ensuring that if Congress moves in the direction of adding chemical security requirements to clean water agencies, they are reasonable and not overly restrictive.

NACWA Reiterates Concerns on Blending in Letter to AA Silva, Urges Quick Action

Following up on a February 18, meeting with Pete Silva, EPA’s Assistant Administrator for Water, NACWA highlighted its concerns over the lack of a final policy statement on the status of peak wet weather flow blending in a letter to Silva this week. Since EPA’s release of its 2005 proposed policy there has been significant confusion in the states and EPA regional offices regarding the appropriate approach to addressing peak flow blending in Clean Water Act (CWA) permits. Where EPA regional offices have sought guidance from Headquarters, the message has been clear – blending constitutes a bypass, and in accordance with the bypass regulations and the December 2005 proposed policy, a ‘no feasible alternatives analysis’ must be completed before permitting can proceed.

NACWA’s letter underscores what the Association and its members told Silva during the February 18 meeting — EPA’s assertion that peak flow blending should be handled under the bypass regulation is a new interpretation and a significant departure from long-standing practice, and that EPA cannot simply change its mind and apply an aggressive interpretation of the bypass rule without a clear and final articulation of this policy shift that allows for appropriate public review and comment. EPA’s application of this new interpretation will have major cost impacts on utilities, both in conducting the ‘no feasible alternatives analysis’ and in implementing any identified alternatives, and permit writers and utilities need clear and definitive direction. As recently as 2003, EPA issued a proposal stating that peak flow blending for sanitary sewer systems was not a bypass and could be authorized in a CWA permit. For decades the Agency has sanctioned state permitting programs that specifically identify and authorize peak flow treatment scenarios. NACWA’s letter reiterated that EPA must not continue to implement its CWA permitting program based on a new interpretation of a decades-old rule that hinges on a non-final policy proposal. EPA has told NACWA and other stakeholders that while a final decision has not been made, its senior managers are actively considering the Agency’s next steps and it would require policy direction from the Administrator’s office.

Capitol Hill Visits to Be a Key Policy Forum Focus, Members Urged to Schedule Meetings

NACWA recently sent an Advocacy Alert (AA 10-08) urging its members to make plans to meet with their congressional delegation on the afternoon of Tuesday, April 20 and carry the clean water community’s priority issues to their Representatives and Senators as a crucial component of the Association’s upcoming National Environmental Policy Forum, April 18-21 in Washington, D.C. The Alert has garnered significant interest with members inquiring about conducting joint meetings consisting of several utilities. If you have not already done so, NACWA strongly encourages you to begin making plans to attend the Policy Forum and to take part in meetings with lawmakers and their staff on Capitol Hill as part of this event. Now is the time to make your utility’s voice heard with your elected officials on clean water issues of national and local significance. If you need assistance setting up these meetings please contact John Krohn at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Also, the Policy Forum will feature the presentation of NACWA’s National Environmental Achievement Awards (NEAA) to individuals. Recipients of the awards at the federal level include Senator Ben Cardin (D-Md.), as well as Reps. Mike Simpson (R-Idaho) and Donna Edwards (D-Md.). State and local officials will also be receiving NEAA awards during the 40th Anniversary Gala Reception & Awards Ceremony being held at the L’Enfant Plaza Hotel on Monday, April 19 from 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm. The agenda and registration information is available on NACWA’s website.

Flow Series Web Seminar Showcases Nexus between Climate Change and Stormwater

Over 160 individuals joined NACWA on March 10 for a web seminar discussing the impacts of climate change on wet weather and stormwater flows and examining how these changes may affect clean water and stormwater utilities. The second of four web seminars in the Association’s new Flow Series, the March 10 event featured presentations from Richard Heim, a meteorologist with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and Ed Torres, Director of Technical Services for the Orange County, Calif. Sanitation District and Chair of NACWA’s Climate Change Committee.

The seminar began with an examination by Heim of historic rainfall and drought records from different parts of the country showing that precipitation patterns in many areas have been changing in recent decades, resulting in less precipitation in some areas and more in others. These changes are at odds with traditional rainfall and snowfall patterns. Heim then examined current climate change models and predictions for the future and noted that while many parts of the United States can expect to see extended periods of drought, they can also expect more intense precipitation events when they occur. This information is particularly relevant for clean water and stormwater utilities since more intense wet weather events will impact how wastewater and stormwater systems are designed and modified to accommodate higher volumes of wet weather flows. Following Heim, Torres discussed the specific adaptation issues that clean water agencies need to consider in response to climate change, including projected adaptation costs as outlined in NACWA’s recent adaptation report . Torres also discussed NACWA’s ongoing advocacy efforts on climate change, including a successful push to include language in congressional climate change legislation targeting federal funding to assist the water sector in meeting climate change adaptation needs.

NACWA’s Flow Series web seminars are a key component of the Association’s Wet Weather Advocacy Project. The increasing number of people participating in these seminars highlights the Association’s role as the leading advocacy organization for clean water and stormwater utilities. Additional information on the Flow Series, including access to past seminars and registration for future seminars, is available on NACWA’s website. We encourage you to join us for the next Flow Series event on June 9 which will focus on the water quality impacts of stormwater.