In response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, and in recognition of the concerns raised by NACWA members and many others concerning the worker shortages and compliance limitations it may cause, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance (OECA) on March 26 issued a temporary policy outlining how the Agency “intends to exercise its enforcement discretion with respect to certain compliance situations.”

NACWA and the broader water sector joined together in a formal request to Congress this week to aid water and wastewater utilities in overcoming the challenges posed by coronavirus.

NACWA is hosting a free webinar regarding the impacts of COVID-19 on clean water agencies, with all utilities invited to participate. The webinar will be held April 2 from 2:00 – 3:30 PM ET.

Washington State became the first state with a wipes labeling law on March 25, when Gov. Jay Inslee signed Washington’s HB 2565.

NACWA met with the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) via conference call on March 19 to discuss the Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS), the regulatory program that manages security of high-risk facilities that possess any of 300 chemicals of interest above a specified threshold.

In a recent report released March 9, NACWA corporate affiliate Arcadis reviewed readily available fate and transport models for groundwater leaching, surface water runoff, and plant uptake as they apply to PFAS in land applied biosolids and residuals. NACWA and the Water Environment Federation (WEF) partnered with the American Forest and Paper Association (AF&PA) and the National Council for Air and Stream Improvement (NCASI) to complete this modeling review.

NACWA submitted comments March 13 on EPA’s Draft Inventory of US Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks: 1990-2018. The annual Inventory provides nationwide estimates for greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions for different sectors, including wastewater treatment, and is intended to be used only for informational purposes.

Congress continues working around the clock to reach agreement on its next round of coronavirus stimulus legislation – and NACWA is pleased that proposals under consideration include water/wastewater assistance.

As the impacts from the COVID-19 outbreak continue to spread across the country, NACWA is committed to providing the highest level of service and resources to its members during this difficult time. Member utilities are doing incredible things to keep their staff and communities safe and their utilities providing service without disruption that all clean water agencies can benefit from.

As the economic impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic further reverberate throughout the entire U.S. economy, NACWA staff have been in continual engagement with Congress to advocate that any legislative stimulus package must include assistance for hard-hit public clean water utilities.