Clean Water Current

NACWA has been actively advocating for targeted protection for water systems against PFAS liability as the EPA moves towards listing the chemicals under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA). The U.S. Senate is presently reviewing PFAS legislation, aiming to advance a bill after the August recess.

NACWA recently filed comments in response to EPA’s advanced notice of proposed rulemaking soliciting feedback on the potential designation of precursors of PFOA and PFOS, as well as seven additional PFAS, including GenX, and their precursors, as hazardous substances under CERCLA.

In a long-awaited decision, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit recently ruled against NACWA public utility member, San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC), in the city’s challenge to a Clean Water Act (CWA) National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit issued jointly by U.S. EPA and the State of California.

EPA recently announced that approximately $50 million dollars in grants will be awarded to states, the District of Columbia, and U.S. territories for municipalities to plan, design, and construct projects that will help mitigate combined sewer overflows (CSOs), sanitary sewer overflows (SSOs) and manage stormwater.

In July 31 comments on EPA’s Draft National Strategy to Prevent Plastic Pollution, NACWA emphasized the importance of source control to prevent plastics from entering the water environment. The Draft Strategy contains multiple potential actions related to three objectives: 1) reduce pollution during plastics production; 2) improve post-use materials management; and 3) prevent trash and micro/nanoplastics from entering waterways and remove escaped trash from the environment.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) added Water Systems to their existing Community Lifelines on August 1, which improve the identification and representation of the water sector in emergency response procedures, protocols, and frameworks. The Water Sector Coordinating Council (WSCC) has advocated for this addition for many years.

NACWA’s Director of Legislative Affairs, Jason Isakovic, moderated a panel last week at the annual Water Finance Conference in Cleveland, Ohio on current federal funding and legislative issues.

Adam Krantz, NACWA CEO, was a featured panelist on Capitol Hill July 26 as part of a roundtable discussion hosted by the bipartisan Congressional Supply Chain Caucus. The Caucus is co-chaired by Representatives David Rouzer (R-NC), Angie Craig (D-MN), Dusty Johnson (R-SD), and Colin Allred (D-TX). The discussion focused on current supply chain issues and impacts and the need for sensible permitting and regulatory reforms.

NACWA joined over 60 other organizations on a recent letter to EPA Administrator Michael Regan asking that the Agency finalize an eRINs framework within its Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) program to allow electricity produced from biomass to qualify for Renewable Identification Number (RIN) credits in the RFS program.

At the Region 6 Pretreatment Workshop in Denton, TX this week, Cynthia Finley, NACWA’s Director of Regulatory Affairs, discussed how recent actions by EPA could have serious implications for clean water utilities.

Through its Creating Resilient Water Utilities Initiative, EPA is offering free climate change risk assessment technical assistance. The program will provide practical tools, training, and technical assistance to utilities to increase resilience to climate change.

As August draws near, utilities find themselves presented with a valuable opportunity to raise their voices and advocate for crucial clean water solutions.

NACWA expressed deep concern to Congress and the press this week about potential massive spending cuts to State Revolving Fund (SRF) programs for clean water and drinking water. The cuts were proposed in the U.S. House’s Fiscal Year 2024 (FY24) Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations bill, which was released on July 12 and marked up by the House Appropriations Committee July 19.

NACWA helped organize and lead a virtual press conference on behalf of the Water Coalition Against PFAS on July 18, highlighting the unique challenges that water sector utilities face in addressing PFAS and the potential that clean water utilities and their customers could be left paying for the massive costs of PFAS cleanups unless Congress and EPA act to shield them.

EPA is offering a free webinar on July 31 from 1:00 – 2:00 PM ET outlining the various Water Technical Assistance (WaterTA) offered by the Agency.

NACWA congratulates Oluwole “OJ” McFoy, General Manager of the Buffalo Sewer Authority in New York, as he takes the reins of the Association as NACWA’s newly elected President for 2023-2024.

NACWA submitted comments this week to the U.S. Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee on draft PFAS legislation, highlighting the critical need for inclusion of a Congressional legislative exemption for public clean water utilities from CERCLA liability for PFAS.

NACWA submitted comments June 28 to the 11 expert members of EPA’s Science Advisory Board (SAB) Biosolids Panel to consider as they develop their final report reviewing the draft Framework for Addressing Risks of Chemicals in Biosolids and the parallel Biosolids Screening Tool (BST).

As federal agencies including U.S. EPA continue working to implement the Build America, Buy America (BABA) Act provisions that were enacted as part of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) in 2021, waiver proposals and guidance have continued to roll out.

The U.S. EPA’s Scientific Advisory Board (SAB) Biosolids Panel will be completing its much-anticipated review of the Agency’s proposed Standardized Framework for Sewage Sludge Chemical Risk Assessment (“Framework”) and Biosolids Screening Tool in the coming weeks. The draft Framework reflects the process EPA plans to use to initially screen pollutants that are found in biosolids and to determine whether a formal risk assessment for a given pollutant is warranted.