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.

September 8, 2006

Provided by the Water Environment Federation, Alexandria, VA

Congress Returns for Quick Session before October Adjournment; Action on Chemical Plant Security Possible
Congress returned this week to begin final work on end of year legislative business before adjourning at the end of this month to return to their districts for mid-year election campaigning.  With less than four weeks left before adjournment, Congress is not expected to complete much in way of legislation.  High on their list of priorities is legislation dealing with aspects of our national security, including finalizing chemical security legislation.  The legislation would authorize the Department of Homeland Security to require facilities that manufacture, store and otherwise use large quantities of hazardous chemicals to undertake security improvements, including water and wastewater facilities.  The legislation has stalled in the Senate where Senator Inhofe (R-OK), Chair of the Environment and Public Works Committee, has placed a hold on the legislation because it does not exempt water and wastewater treatment facilities.  Negotiations are underway among Congressional leaders and the White House over how to move this and other national security legislation forward before Congress adjourns.  It is unclear whether they will succeed.  Other pending national security legislation includes legislation on port security, how to adjudicate trials of prisoners held at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and legislation dealing with the President’s wire-tap program. 
 
Though Congressional leaders have pledged to focus this month on national security issues, they also must decide how to proceed with FY07 appropriations legislation.  Congress has yet to complete action on any appropriations legislation funding the government’s operations for this upcoming fiscal year, which begins on October 1. Expectations are that Congress will pass a continuing resolution through the elections and return in November to consider these bills.  Included in the appropriations mix is the bill funding the Environmental Protection Agency, which passed the House early this summer but has yet to reach the Senate floor for action by that body.  The FY07 EPA budget is expected to make steep cuts in the Clean Water State Revolving Fund program, amounting to over $200 million less than FY06 funding levels. (PS)

Senators Ask EPA to Address PAHs Found in Coal Tar Based Sealants
Senator Jim Jeffords (I-VT) and Senator John Warner (R-VA) sent a letter to EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson this week asking him to review regulations allowing exemption of coke product residues, including coal tar, from being classified as a hazardous waste under the Resource Conservation Recovery Act (RCRA).  The Senators took this action in response to a recent study by the United States Geological Survey (USGS) and the City of Austin, Texas, which show that pavement sealcoats that use coal tar as an ingredient is the primary contributor to extremely elevated levels of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in stream run-off.  The elevated PAH levels in streams around the City of Austin were found to be the primary cause of death to aquatic life living in those streams.   As a result of these findings, the City banned the use of coal-tar sealants in November 2005.   According to studies conducted by the USGS of 38 reservoirs and lakes sampled in 18 metropolitan areas across the nation from 1996 – 2001, PAHs in lakes and rivers are increasing.  The biggest increases are in areas with watersheds affected by urban sprawl.  In 1992, the EPA excluded coke product residues, including coal tar, from classifications as hazardous wastes if they are recycled.  As a result, under the Resource Conservation Recovery Act (RCRA), these coal-tar sealants are considered products that contain recycled coal tar and are therefore not regulated as a hazardous waste.  The Senators also requested Administrator Johnson explain what additional action the agency is undertaking to control the use of this substance in other areas of the country. (PS)
 
New Manifest Form Required for All Hazardous Waste Handlers
EPA announced on September 5 that all hazardous waste generators and treatment, storage, and disposal facilities must use EPA's standardized hazardous waste manifest form. Since 1980, the manifest form has provided a complete paper trail of a waste's progress from generation to disposal. It also identifies the type, amount, and toxicity of hazardous waste being shipped. The standardized form that is being implemented today, will save waste handlers and regulators time and money, while guaranteeing the continued, safe management of hazardous waste.  The standardized form reduces or eliminates many of the variables in state requirements. EPA's new manifest form also provides check boxes and adds fields that allow for better tracking of complicated shipments, such as container residues, rejected wastes, and interstate shipments. The new form also makes it easier to collect data for hazardous waste reporting. EPA has ensured uniformity by authorizing printers and providing them with precise specifications. Like the old form, each standardized form carries a unique preprinted manifest tracking number. The standardized form also allows multi-state waste handlers to register and use their own manifest forms everywhere they do business.  EPA estimates about 139,000 businesses in approximately 45 industries ship about 12 million tons of hazardous wastes annually. These businesses use between 2 and 5 million hazardous waste manifests.  For more information on the Standardized Manifest Form, visit: http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/hazwaste/gener/manifest/. (SJH)
 
EPA Marks Tenth Anniversary of Compliance Assistance Centers
EPA announced on September 6 that its sponsored, Web-based Compliance Assistance Centers have completed ten years of helping regulated facilities, particularly small businesses and local governments, understand environmental regulations. In a decade, the number of centers has grown from 3 to 14, and together they attract more than one million visitors a year. In a recent centers' survey, 78 percent of regulated businesses and governments said they had improved their environmental management practices as a result of using the critical information provided by the centers.  The original centers supported the printing, metal finishing and automotive service and repair sectors. EPA has since funded centers for chemical manufacturers, local government, printed wiring board manufacturers, transportation, agriculture, paints and coatings, federal facilities, automotive recyclers, construction, US/Mexico/Canada border issues, and health care sectors.  To view all the Compliance Assistance Centers, visit: http://www.assistancecenters.net/.  (SJH)

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/GovernmentAffairs/TWIW/.