Clean Water Current Archive

Now in its fourth week, the current partial government shutdown, which includes the EPA, is now the longest in US history with no end in sight. While negotiations continue, strong divisions between President Trump and Congressional Democrats on border security issues and funding have provided little headway in resolving the funding impasse and moving to re-open the federal government. NACWA legislative staff will continue to provide updates as they occur.

- President Trump announced, on January 11, his nomination of Andrew Wheeler—who is now the acting Administrator of the EPA—to become his permanent selection for EPA Administrator. The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee will hold an initial hearing on Wheeler’s nomination on Wednesday, January 16, before the process heads to the full Senate for a floor vote, which will occur at a later date.

President Trump signed the Water Infrastructure Improvement Act of 2018 (H.R 7279) on January 14, officially making it part of the Clean Water Act (CWA). The bill, which includes codification of integrated planning concepts into the CWA, creates an Office of Municipal Ombudsman at EPA, and more, has long been a key legislative priority for NACWA and is a significant advancement in CWA policy. The final bill enjoyed overwhelming bipartisan support, passing the House by a vote of 351-10, and the Senate by unanimous consent.

NACWA was honored to be invited to a meeting of the West Virginia Municipal Water Quality Association last week to learn about the West Virginia clean water sector’s priorities and challenges, and to present a national update on NACWA’s regulatory and legislative advocacy efforts.

During a whirlwind of legislative activity in the final hours of the 115th Congress, the House and Senate overwhelmingly passed bipartisan legislation to codify EPA’s Integrated Planning approach into law as part of the Clean Water Act (CWA).

The US Solicitor General (SG) has recommended that the US Supreme Court grant certiorari to resolve the circuit split on the limited question of whether the release of a pollutant from a point source that reaches groundwater and thereafter enters a Clean Water Act (CWA) jurisdictional surface water triggers the requirement for a CWA National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit.

With encouragement from EPA Region 9, California is proposing a new policy for whole effluent toxicity (WET) testing that seeks to use the controversial Test of Significant Toxicity (TST), which was never subjected to public comment and released by EPA Headquarters years ago with no formal notice.

Response to NACWA’s 2018 Cost of Clean Water Index Survey has been strong, but more responses are needed to ensure that the final report provides meaningful information and identifies robust trends and projections. NACWA would like to thank everyone who has already responded. NACWA is extending the deadline for completing the survey to January 18, so it can meet its response goal.

(January 8, 2019) – EPA remains closed as part of the ongoing government shutdown caused by the inability of Congress and the White House to reach agreement on legislation to fund certain parts of the federal government.

The Water Environment Federation’s (WEF) Utility Management Committee, through its Delivery Sub-Committee, is conducting a survey as part of an effort to support utilities as they develop and implement Capital Improvement Programs (CIP).

The federal district judge presiding over the challenge to EPA’s approval of Montana’s general nutrient variance heard oral argument on cross motions for summary judgment on December 12.

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released a pre-publication version of a final rule on December 11 that prohibits healthcare facilities from disposing of unused hazardous waste pharmaceuticals down the drain.

NACWA provided comments to the EPA Region 2 Long Island Sound Office on December 14 regarding the latest technical report from the Regions on their Nitrogen Reduction Strategy, which is part of a broader effort to improve water quality in the Long Island Sound.

Washington D.C. is mired in uncertainty this week as Congress and the White House try to find a way to complete seven unfinished Fiscal Year 2019 Appropriations bills and wrap up other end-of-year legislative priorities.

(December 11, 2018) - After several months of wrangling back and forth, late last night House and Senate Farm Bill negotiators finalized a bipartisan agreement on the 2018 Farm Bill Conference Report, which is expected to be voted on and passed in both Chambers of Congress later this week. The Farm Bill includes several key conservation and water quality provisions that were championed and advocated for by NACWA. Among the key provisions included is a “[s]ense of Congress that the federal government should recognize and encourage partnerships at the watershed level between nonpoint sources and regulated point sources to advance the goals of the Clean Water Act and provide benefits to farmers, landowners, and the public.”

(December 11, 2018) – EPA released a new proposed “Waters of the United States” (WOTUS) Rule that will clarify which waters are jurisdictional under the federal Clean Water Act (CWA). Repealing the previous 2015 WOTUS Rule and issuing a new one has been a top priority for the Trump Administration.

(December 11, 2018) - As it considers whether to accept review over two cases that address whether the release of a pollutant that travels through groundwater to reach a Clean Water Act (CWA) jurisdictional surface water constitute a “point source” discharge, the US Supreme Court on December 3 invited the Solicitor General to file a brief representing the position of the United States by January 4, 2019.

The Water Science and Technology Board and the Board of Atmospheric Sciences and Climate invited guests to the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) in Washington DC on November 29, for a robust discussion on Connecting Climate, Weather and Water: Status, Challenges, and Needs for Seasonal-to-Subseasonal Forecasting for Water Use and Management.

David Ross, Assistant Administrator for EPA’s Office of Water, and Bill Northey, Under Secretary for Farm Production and Conservation at the US Department of Agriculture (USDA), sent a letter to state water and agriculture leaders on December 4 in an effort to reinvigorate work to address nutrient pollution.

NACWA’s Stormwater Management Committee held its last committee conference call of the year on December 8, and hosted representatives from EPA, Black & Veatch, and AquaLaw to provide updates on several important issues that are happening nationally.