Provided by the Water Environment Federation, Alexandria, VA

Senate Environment and Public Works Committee Releases Committee Report
This week, the Senate Environmental and Public Works Committee released its committee report accompanying S.1400, Water Infrastructure Financing Act, which the committee passed in July.  The bill seeks to update the Clean Water and Drinking Water State Revolving Loan Funds (SRF), which are the primary Federal funding mechanisms for clean water and drinking water. In addition, the bill seeks to promote the research and development of new ways of meeting water quality goals through a research and demonstration pilot program. The bill would also help communities meet the costs associated with many regulatory requirements, pursue watershed plans, and address some of the nation's most pressing water quality problems through limited and directed grant assistance.  The Senate report contains a section by section analysis of the bill itself with CBO cost estimates for its provisions, as well as actual bill language.  The Committee Report number is 109-186 and is available at http://www.thomas.loc.gov/. (PS)

Congressman John Duncan Introduces Water Trust Fund Legislation
On December 15, Congressman John Duncan (R-TN) introduced legislation to establish a trust fund to pay for water infrastructure projects financed by the Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF) and a new grant program that States would manage that would support high priority water infrastructure projects.  The legislation does not establish a funding source for the trust fund, but rather orders the EPA to report to Congress within 180 days of the bill’s enactment an “equitable system of user fees” to provide the revenue stream for the trust fund.  The proposed legislation would expand the definition of eligible projects that can receive financing under the CWSRF to include water conservation projects as well as decentralized sewer system projects, among others.  It would also establish a set aside of up to 15% of all CWSRF funds for projects in small communities serving under 20,000 people. The legislation would establish a new grant program, referred to as High Priority Partnership Grants, that would provide 65% cost share grant financing to projects that “address the most serious water pollution problems; are necessary to ensure compliance with the requirements of the [Clean Water Act]; or, benefit communities with the greatest [financial] need”.  Title IV of the proposed legislation authorizes the establishment of a trust fund from which financing for a number of CWA programs, including the CWSRF, would be available.  In addition to the CWSRF, other Clean Water Act (CWA) programs that would receive financing from the trust fund include water pollution reduction and control activities, technical assistance for small communities, a utility management program, sec. 106 grants to States, watershed pilot projects, regional watershed projects such as the Long Island Sound and Chesapeake Bay, alternative water source projects, wet weather projects, and fisheries habitat protection and restoration projects.  The bill as introduced does not include Davis-Bacon provisions requiring contractors to pay prevailing wages for work on projects paid for using funds authorized under this program; the Davis-Bacon issue prevented progress on earlier water infrastructure legislation.  There is no accompanying bill in the Senate. It is not expected that Congress will take action on this legislation before adjourning next year; however, Congressman Duncan may hold hearings when Congress reconvenes for the 2nd Session of the 109th in January.  (PS)

Across the Board Cuts Expected in Discretionary Spending, including CWSRF
Congress is expected to complete work on the remaining two discretionary appropriations bills early next week before adjourning for the year, with additional funding included for recovery efforts for Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.  The two remaining spending bills are bills to fund the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services and Education, and the Department of Defense.  Early on, the Administration offered targeted cuts to what it termed as “low priority” federal programs to help pay for additional spending related to Hurricane recovery efforts.  Included in the Administration’s list for targeted cuts was a $166 million cut to the Clean Water SRF.  However, there was little support for this and other cuts in Congress. Rather Congress is likely to do an across-the-board cut of 1% in all discretionary programs, including the CWSRF, and attach this cut to the Defense Appropriations Act.  As of this writing, no final decisions have been made, but reports are that this action is likely.  (PS)

EPA Announces New Drinking Water Rules
On December 15, EPA finalized two drinking water protection rules, one that reduces the risk of disease-causing microorganisms entering water supplies and the other that requires water systems to limit the amount of potentially harmful "disinfection byproducts" (DBPs) in drinking water.  The rules were proposed in August 2003 and were developed from consensus recommendations from a federal advisory committee.  Finalizing the two rules represents the last phase of a congressionally required rulemaking strategy under the 1996 Amendments to the Safe Drinking Water Act.  The Long Term 2 Enhanced Surface Water Treatment Rule increases monitoring and treatment requirements for systems that are prone to outbreaks of Cryptosporidium.  The Stage 2 Disinfection Byproducts Rule targets water systems that have the greatest risk of high DBPs by using more stringent methods for determining compliance. Under the rule, water systems are required to find monitoring sites where higher levels of DBPs are likely to occur and use these new locations for compliance monitoring. If DBPs are found to exceed drinking water standards at any of these new monitoring locations, water systems must begin to take corrective action.  The final rules will be published in the Federal Register in January. Pre-publication copies are available at http://www.epa.gov/safewater/disinfection/. (SRT)

Great Lakes Regional Collaboration Strategy Available; EPA Plans for Action
On December 12, federal, state, local and tribal officials unveiled the Great Lakes Regional Collaboration Strategy at an event in Chicago.  The strategy is intended to serve as a blueprint for prioritizing future actions to restore and enhance the Great Lakes Basin.  "One year ago, we accepted President Bush's unprecedented charge to devise a strategy for prioritizing future actions to protect the Great Lakes," EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson said. "Today's blueprint is the next step in ensuring these majestic lakes remain an international treasure."
Johnson committed his Agency to specific actions to accelerate cleanup of contaminated sediment, return another 200,000 acres of wetlands to ecological health in equal partnership with the states, reduce the spread of invasive species, and make beaches cleaner.  EPA plans for action include a commitment to improve and supplement beach monitoring and notification programs in lakeside communities. EPA proposed a three-year, three-step effort to perform watershed-based sanitary surveys in Great Lakes recreational waters to help identify sources of pollution. Surveys will be done in 2006 and the first pilot projects should begin in the Great Lakes basin in 2007. The strategy is available at http://www.glrc.us/.  (SRT)

EPA Announces New Water Conservation Organization Headquartered in Chicago
On December 12, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Stephen Johnson, Chicago Mayor Richard Daley, and Executive Director of the California Urban Water Conservation Council (CUWCC) Mary Ann Dickinson announced that Chicago will be the headquarters of a new water conservation organization. The organization, the Alliance for Water Efficiency, will be a clearinghouse and advocate for water efficiency research, evaluation, and education.  "We are delighted we could work with stakeholders nationwide to develop the goals and programs for a new national organization focused on water efficiency," said Executive Director Dickinson. "There is extraordinary interest from a wide variety of groups including water suppliers, government officials, environmentalists, plumbing and appliance manufacturers, irrigation professionals, and building developers to pull together a program of water efficiency options that will benefit the nation as a whole."  Currently, there are no funds and no formal structure for the proposed organization, which is still in a conceptual phase of development.  Last year EPA provided grant money to CUWCC for a stakeholder meeting to discuss strategies for structuring, funding and deploying the water efficiency institute.  The meeting, held in the summer of 2005, was attended by state and federal regulators, industry representatives and officials from water conservation groups.  CUWCC will release a draft report form the stakeholder meeting in mid-January.  (SRT)

DuPont to Pay Largest Environmental Administrative Penalty in EPA History
On December 14, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that DuPont will pay $10.25 million to settle violations alleged by EPA and has committed to $6.25 million for Supplemental Environmental Projects (SEPs).  "This is the largest civil administrative penalty EPA has ever obtained under any environmental statue.  Not by a little, by a lot," said Granta Y. Nakayama, assistant administrator for the Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance.  The violations originated from two complaints the Agency filed against DuPont in July and December of 2004 related to the synthetic chemical Perfluorooctanoic Acid (PFOA).  Seven of the eight counts involve violations of TSCA Section 8(e) which requires that companies report substantial risk information about chemicals they manufacture, process or distribute in commerce. The violations involved multiple failures to report information to EPA about substantial risk of injury to human health or the environment that DuPont obtained about PFOA as early as 1981.  PFOA is used in the manufacturing process of fluoropolymers, which are used to provide non-stick surfaces on cookware and waterproof, breathable membranes for clothing.  The Consent Agreement and SEPs can be viewed at
http://www.epa.gov/compliance/resources/cases/civil/tsca/dupont121405.html. (SRT)

Great Lakes Water Diversions to be Prevented
On December 13, Great Lakes region governors and premiers signed agreements designed to control consumption of water and conditionally ban new diversions of water outside the Great Lakes Basin.  The agreements were signed by Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Ontario, and Quebec and call for banning new or increased diversion of water, except under tightly regulated circumstances.  They include using a consistent standard to review proposed uses of Great Lakes water; strengthening data collection and sharing; and establishment of five-year regional goals for water conservation and efficiency.  Once approved by the states and provinces and the U.S. Congress, the agreements will establish a legal framework for joint decision making in the Basin.  According to Ohio Governor Robert Taft, “The new agreements will improve and protect the health and economic vitality of the Great Lakes region."  For more information, visit http://www.cglg.org/projects/water/annex2001Implementing.asp.  (SRT)

New EPA Guidebook Available on Controlling Urban Runoff Pollution
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released a guidebook December 8 on managing runoff pollution caused by urban activities.  "Our guidance is a textbook and toolkit for cooperative conservation and sustainable management of urban and suburban runoff," said Benjamin H. Grumbles, assistant administrator for water.  The document describes twelve management measures that can be used to help establish performance goals for storm water control programs and that are useful for determining how to minimize negative factors associated with urban runoff.  Other subjects included in the guidebook are watershed and site protection, new development, septic systems, transportation, construction, existing urban areas, pollution prevention, operation and maintenance, and program evaluation. The guidebook, National Management Measures to Control Nonpoint Source Pollution from Urban Areas, is free and available at: http://www.epa.gov/nps/urbanmm/.  (SRT)

Effluent Limitations Guidelines, Pretreatment Standards, and New Source Performance Standards for Iron and Steel Industry
EPA announced in the December 13 Federal Register that it is amending certain provisions of the regulations establishing effluent limitations guidelines, pretreatment standards, and new source performance standards for the Iron and Steel Manufacturing Point Source Category. In 2002, EPA also promulgated amendments to these regulations. The earlier regulations authorized for direct discharges of pollutants the establishment of limitations applicable to the total mass of a pollutant discharged from more than one outfall--a ``water bubble.''  The effect of such a water bubble was to allow a greater or lesser quantity of a particular pollutant to be discharged from any single outfall so long as the total quantity discharged from the combined outfalls did not exceed the allowed mass limitation. Among the changes adopted in the 2002 amendments was a provision that prohibited establishment of a water bubble for oil and grease effluent limitations. Based on consideration of new information and analysis, EPA is reinstating the provision authorizing alternative oil and grease limitations with certain restrictions. Today's final rule also corrects errors in the effective date of new source performance standards for direct and indirect discharges of pollutants. This final rule is effective on January 12, 2006.  To view the Federal Register notice, visit: http://www.epa.gov/fedrgstr/EPA-WATER/2005/December/Day-13/w23973.htm.  (SJH)

Quote of the Week:  “Never worry about the size of your Christmas tree. In the eyes of children, they are all 30 feet tall.”   ~Larry Wilde, The Merry Book of Christmas

This Week in Washington is provided by the Water Environment Federation, Alexandria, VA. To receive This Week in Washington by e-mail, contact Lisa Jones, (703) 684-2400 ext. 7741, ljones@wef.org. For more information on this week's stories, please contact the WEF staff whose initials appear at the end of the item in which you are interested. TW –Tim Williams (703) 684-2437, twilliams@wef.org; SRT - Sharon Thomas, (703) 684-2423, sthomas@wef.org; SJH - Sam Hadeed (703) 684-2418, shadeed@wef.org; PS-Patricia Sinicropi (703) 684-2416, psinicropi@wef.org. This Week in Washington is available on-line at http://www.wef.org/PolicyAction/USGovernmentAffairs/TWIW/.