Clean Water Current
Winter Conference Highlights Intersection of Clean Water, Drinking Water Issues
(February 12, 2019) – NACWA’s 2019 Winter Conference took place last week in Albuquerque, New Mexico and featured engaging discussions around the intersection of clean water and drinking water policy issues, especially the federal Clean Water Act and Safe Drinking Water Act.
Highlights of the conference included remarks from Andrew Sawyers, Director of EPA’s Office of Wastewater Management, who discussed the challenges EPA has from a federal level in addressing water holistically under two different regulatory and statutory structures. The conference also featured a panel of senior staff from a broad cross-section of water sector associations discussing how the sector can better coordinate to advance common water policy goals.
A number of NACWA’s committees also met during the conference and continued the conversation of cross-cutting clean water/drinking water issues including PFOA/PFAS, EPA’s proposed new “Waters of the United States” rule, increased federal funding for water infrastructure, and climate adaptation/resiliency issues.
NACWA thanks all the speakers and participants that attended the Winter Conference, and encourages its members to continue these important water discussions with national policy makers as part of Water Week 2019 and the National Water Policy Fly-In in April!