Clean Water Current

After two years of virtual events due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Water Week 2022 (April 24 – April 30) returns to an in-person format this year in Washington, DC. The cornerstone event, the National Policy Fly-In, is set for Wednesday, April 27th and will be hosted by NACWA, the Water Environment Federation (WEF), the Water Research Foundation (WRF), and the WaterReuse Association.

In comments submitted February 7, NACWA weighed in once again on the latest iteration of EPA and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ (USACE) proposed rulemaking to establish a “durable” Waters of the United States (WOTUS) definition. ​

EPA recently announced the Industrial Control Systems Cybersecurity Initiative – Water and Wastewater Sector Action Plan to help improve water utility cybersecurity. The Action Plan is part of President Biden’s Industrial Control Systems (ICS) Initiative, established in the National Security Memorandum on Improving Cybersecurity for Critical Infrastructure Control Systems. Similar plans were implemented last year for the electrical and natural gas sectors.

The U.S. House of Representatives last week passed H.R. 4521, the America Creating Opportunities for Manufacturing, Pre-Eminence in Technology, and Economic Strength (COMPETES) Act of 2022, which is a comprehensive bill designed to help drive research and innovation to improve American global competitiveness and supply chain constraints in the fields of science and technology.

The White House released a guidebook earlier this week to help state and local government officials understand the billions of dollars that will be made available for numerous programs under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), the bipartisan infrastructure package that was signed into law in November 2021.

Bipartisan legislation, led by Representative Lisa McClain (MI-10-R) and Alan Lowenthal (CA-47-D), was introduced today in the U.S. House of Representative to establish standards for the flushability of disposable nonwoven products – commonly known as wet wipes.

NACWA has been engaged in recent weeks with other water sector organizations in advocacy around the Build America, Buy America (BABA) requirements that were signed into law as part of the recent bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Ac (IIJA).

A bipartisan group of lawmakers has introduced legislation aimed at centralizing the federal government’s role in climate resilience planning and oversight. ​

The NACWA Board of Directors met in-person and via Zoom this week as part of NACWA’s 2022 Winter Conference in Scottsdale, Arizona. ​

Nearly 200 people gathered in Scottsdale, Arizona this week for NACWA’s 2022 Winter Conference. Participants followed strict COVID-19 protocols for safety and health but still enjoyed reconnecting with one another at NACWA’s first annual conference since the start of the pandemic.

NACWA sent a letter to Congressional Leadership and key committees of jurisdiction Jan. 21. urging that clean water remain a key component of the Build Back Better (BBB) Act, also known as the reconciliation package, as negotiations resume.

NACWA this week joined the Edison Electric Institute (EEI) on an amicus brief to the U.S. Supreme Court in the ongoing litigation over EPA’s regulation of greenhouse gasses (GHGs) under Section 111(d) of the Clean Air Act (CAA). EEI represents U.S. investor-owned electric utilities.

NACWA utility representatives, along with representatives from the Association of Clean Water Administrators (ACWA), met with EPA’s Office of Wastewater Management on January 25 to discuss cybersecurity at clean water utilities.

The U.S. Supreme Court earlier this week granted review in litigation over the scope of federal Clean Water Act (CWA) jurisdiction over “waters of the United States” (WOTUS) in the case of Sackett v. EPA.

As part of an ongoing series of region-specific meetings, NACWA was joined by a number of member and nonmember utilities via a virtual meeting on Jan. 21 to discuss a range of issues facing Region 8 utilities.

NACWA met with the Government Accountability Office (GAO) Jan. 20 to provide input on a report regarding how EPA has addressed combined sewer overflow (CSO) issues around the country. GAO initiated the report at the request of a number of members of Congress.

NACWA continues to seek member feedback on EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers’ (USACE) proposed Revised Definition of “Waters of the United States” (WOTUS), published in the Federal Register on December 7, 2021.

Monitoring raw wastewater influent to identify the distribution of viral diseases, such as COVID-19, continues to show its value over the course of the pandemic. With the most recent spike in infections, public health officials have been able to track the underlying omicron variant in wastewater to help understand the extent and duration of community outbreak.

The Responsible Flushing Alliance is conducting the #FlushSmart consumer education campaign in California that is required by the new California wipes law. The campaign focuses on not flushing baby wipes and other non-flushable wipes, as well as other products that can cause or contribute to clogs and other problems in sewer systems, such as dental floss, cotton swabs, and paper towels.

Both chambers of Congress are back in session this week, but negotiations on the Build Back Better (BBB) Act remain on hold as the Senate’s focus has pivoted to voting right legislation for the time being.