This Week in Washington is a weekly publication of the Water Environment Federation’s Government Affairs department. It provides updates on the latest legislative and regulatory developments that affect the water and wastewater communities.

March 24, 2006

Provided by the Water Environment Federation, Alexandria, VA

EPA Requests Nominations to Science Advisory Panel on the Distribution of Persistent Chemicals in Wastewater Treatment  
In the March 22 Federal Register, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Science Advisory Board (SAB) Staff Office announced the formation of a new SAB panel on the Distribution of Persistent Chemicals in Wastewater Treatment and requested nominations by April 12.  The City of Chicago operates the Claumet Water Reclamation Plant (CWRP), the largest POTW in the city. The city and EPA Region V are studying the distribution of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), persistent toxic substances (PTS) and other chemicals in the wastewater influent, treatment plant, effluent, and sludges.  The new SAB panel will consider the CWRP study and provide advice and recommendations on sampling design, uncertainties inherent in the investigation, and interpretations of the results. Future studies of fate, emissions, and transport of PTSs will be undertaken, and the panel will provide advice and recommendations on the future design and direction of such studies.  For additional information, contact Ron Josephson at (202) 343-9986 or via e-mail at josephson.ron@epa.gov.  General information about the SAB is available at: http://www.epa.gov/sab.  (SRT)

Draft Hudson River Cleanup Plan to be Reviewed by EPA 
This week the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) received a draft of the final design plan for the first phase of the Hudson River PCBs site cleanup from the General Electric Company (GE). The document contains key information about the dredging operations to be performed in the Upper Hudson and a detailed layout of the sediment dewatering and transfer facility that will be built in Fort Edward, NY. A community health and safety plan is also included as an appendix to the draft Phase 1 Final Design Report.  The construction schedule in the draft GE report differs from EPA’s projected plan to begin dredging in 2007.   In its review of the report, the Agency intends to see if adjustments can be made to keep a 2007 dredging start date.  EPA is making all of the documents available to the public for review, and the public comment period is open until April 24.  The draft report is available at http://www.epa.gov/hudson.  (SRT)

U.S. and Mexico Meet on Environmental Issues; EPA Awards $1.7 Million for U.S.-Mexico Environmental Science Center
Today the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Deputy Administrator Marcus Peacock met with Mexican Environmental Undersecretary Felipe Vazquez at the annual meeting of the U.S.-Mexico Binational Commission (BNC).  The BNC is an annual cabinet-level meeting designed to emphasize the close relationship between the U.S. and Mexico.  The two countries signed a Letter of Understanding identifying areas of cooperation in a "Methane to Markets" agreement.  The Methane to Markets Partnership is an international initiative that focuses on advancing cost-effective, near-term methane recovery from sources in the petroleum sector for use as a clean energy source.  Seventeen countries currently participate in this international initiative (http://www.epa.gov/methanetomarkets/). 

On March 21 the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) awarded the University of Arizona a $1,750,815 grant to fund a U.S.-Mexico Binational Center for Environmental Science and Toxicology. The state of Arizona is also funding the project with an additional $449,185 grant.  The center is designed to build Mexico’s academic capacity to address environmental and human health risks, particularly those associated with arsenic and other metals resulting from mining activities.  The university will coordinate with EPA and Mexico’s environmental agency, SEMARNAT, to ensure that the center’s workshops and educational materials meet Border 2012 cleanup goals.  The U.S.-Mexico Border 2012 Program is a binational 10-year cooperative plan aimed at protecting public health and the environment along the 2,000-mile border region. Additional information is available at http://www.epa.gov/region09/border/index.html.  (SRT)

EPA Affirms Extended Term Financing through the CWSRF
The EPA Office of Water issued a statement on March 17 affirming EPA’s policy to allow states to purchase or refinance municipal debt through Clean Water State Revolving Funds (CWSRF) with terms exceeding 20 years. The Clean Water Act (CWA) authorizes the CWSRF program to provide loans with terms up to 20 years; however, since the CWA does not directly limit the term of transactions for purchasing or refinancing local debt, it has been EPA’s policy to permit purchase or refinance transactions to exceed 20 years.  In 2005, the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) performed a financial audit of the Utah clean water state revolving fund. The OIG found that Utah was violating the CWA by purchasing communities’ bonds with 30-year repayment terms. The OIG recommended that Utah restructure these agreements and that EPA cease allowing states to follow EPA’s policy on extended term financing. Based on a review of the statute, the legislative history, EPA regulations and consultation with the Office of General Counsel, EPA concluded that the CWA does allow a State managing the CWSRF to purchase municipal debt obligations where the terms exceed 20 years. The statement issued by the Office of Water upholds the extended term financing policy by allowing states to use, as appropriate, the practice of purchasing local debt with terms greater than 20 years and maintains this flexibility for other states that wish to take advantage of the practice.  A copy of the policy statement is available at http://epa.gov/owm/cwfinance/cwsrf/law.htm.  (SRT)

$53 Billion in CWSRF Money Invested over Last 18 Years
On March 24 EPA released new information that the federal government and states have invested almost $53 billion in the CWSRF program over the last 18 years.  The figures are published in the Clean Water State Revolving Fund Programs: 2005 Annual Report.  The report also highlights the innovative ideas of state CWSRF programs and includes an update on the financial performance of the CWSRF program.  The CWSRF is the largest federal funding program for wastewater infrastructure projects, such as treatment plants and collection systems.  The CWSRF has made almost 17,000 loans since the program's inception in 1988.  "EPA is committed to helping our partners sustain progress and increase opportunities for state revolving funds through financial stewardship, innovation, and collaboration," said Assistant Administrator for Water Benjamin H. Grumbles.  "This report demonstrates the power of partnerships to leverage, innovate, and excel to meet wastewater infrastructure, watershed protection, and community health needs."  The report is online at:  http://www.epa.gov/owm/cwfinance/cwsrf/annreport2005.htm.  (SRT)

Quote of the Week: “If we had no winter, the spring would not be so pleasant; if we did not sometimes taste of adversity, prosperity would not be so welcome.”  - Anne Bradstreet

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/.