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 23, 2007

Provided by the Water Environment Federation, Alexandria, VA

EPA Infrastructure Conference Attracts Strong Interest and Debate
This week, a conference organized by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA),Paying for Sustainable Water Infrastructure: Innovations for the 21st Century, attracted over 600 attendees in Atlanta.  A diverse group of federal and state officials, consultants, and municipal agency representatives discussed federal and non-federal approaches to address future capital costs for water and wastewater facilities.  Keynote speakers included EPA Administrator Steve Johnson and Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin.  Johnson described the success of the existing Drinking Water and Clean Water State Revolving Fund (SRF) programs and reiterated the Bush Administration’s support for the “Four Pillars” sustainable infrastructure strategy first articulated in 2003.  Johnson said that improved utility management, increased water efficiency, and the use of innovative financing and public-private partnerships should all be employed to help close the water infrastructure investment “gap.”  He highlighted the Administration’s support for increased use of Private Activity Bonds (renamed “Water Enterprise Bonds”), which provide tax subsidies for private investment in water and wastewater projects.

In contrast, Mayor Franklin called for a renewed federal financial commitment to complement the local efforts of cities like hers.  Franklin, who said she is proud to be called Atlanta’s “Sewer Mayor,” said cities cannot wait for federal funding to pay for water infrastructure needs.  She pointed out that Atlanta had initiated a $4 billion capital improvement program at a time when federal funding was “sinking like a stone.”   This required historic rate increases and a municipal sales tax increase in a city where one-third of the residents are below the poverty line.  Franklin’s comments about federal funding were echoed by Ken Kirk, Executive Director of the National Association of Clean Water Agencies (NACWA), who said that improved management and innovative financing would at most solve only 17% of a gap that has been estimated to be as high as $1 trillion.  Kirk called for the establishment of a national Clean Water Trust Fund that would utilize revenues from a yet-unspecified source to bolster the existing Clean Water SRF and provide funds for other solutions including grants, research, and management improvement initiatives.  The conference was co-sponsored by a range of organizations including WEF.   EPA said that copies of all speaker presentations will be made available on the conference web site at www.payingforwater.com (TW)

WEF Holds Congressional Briefing on Compounds of Emerging Concern
On Friday, March 23, in cooperation with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), WEF sponsored a congressional briefing titled, Compounds of Emerging Concern (CECs):  An Evolving Water Quality Issue.  The briefing was intended to inform the public and policy makers about CECs, the wide array of substances that offer improvements in industry, agriculture, medical treatment, and common household conveniences but may adversely impact the environment.  Present in the environment at low levels, CECs in the water environment have recently been the focus of media attention and public concern.  Speakers included Orange County Sanitation District’s Senior Scientist Dr. Jeff Armstrong, USGS’s Dana Kolpin from the Toxic Substances Hydrology Program, and U.S. EPA’s Dr. Ed Ohanian from the Office of Science and Technology.  Issues such as the sources of CECs, means of transport, occurrence in the water environment, linkage between exposure levels and ecological effects, and the need for more research and public education were highlighted by the panel. Visit http://toxics.usgs.gov/regional/emc/ to access detailed information about studies conducted by the USGS Toxic Substances Hydrology Program.  The briefing presentations will be available on WEF’s website next week at http://www.wef.org/GovernmentAffairs/Legislative/.  (MB)

Vice President Gore Urges Congress to Freeze Carbon Dioxide Emissions
On March 21, Vice President Al Gore called on Congress to develop legislation that would immediately freeze carbon dioxide emissions, ban construction of new coal-fired power plants, and impose a carbon tax on industries to mitigate the impacts of human-induced global warming. Appearing before both houses of Congress, the Vice President recommended a 10-point plan that included increasing the fuel economy standard for cars and trucks, requiring corporate financial reports to disclose risks stemming from climate change, strengthening global climate change treaties, and supporting homeowners' efforts to reduce energy usage. Mr. Gore conceded, however, that global warming cannot be curtailed solely by the United States. "The best way — and the only way — to get China and India on board is for the U.S. to demonstrate real leadership," he said in written testimony prepared for both hearings. "As the world’s largest economy and greatest superpower, we are uniquely situated to tackle a problem of this magnitude." The Vice President's testimony comes 20 years after Gore, then a Tennessee Congressman, held the first hearings in Congress on global warming.  (SRT)

Drinking Water and Sanitation Issues are Focus of World Water Day Event
On March 22, Water Advocates sponsored a World Water Day panel session where foundations, environmental organizations, civic groups, businesses, and faith-based groups congregated to discuss new initiatives addressing water-related public health challenges.  The wide range of water interest groups focused on unsafe drinking water and inadequate sanitation issues. Monitored by Water Advocates’ John Oldfield, panelists included Water is Key photographer Gil Garcetti, Rotary International’s Ron Denham, and Global Water Challenge’s Tanvi Nagpal. Senator Sam Brownback (R-KS) and Representative Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) opened the session, addressing water availability as the main vector of change to improve health, gender equality, education, and job security in the developing world. Some panelists spoke of how the recent Water for the Poor Act (H.R. 1973) provides the framework but still lacks the appropriate funding to enable the U.S. to become a global water steward.  WEF worked with many of the organizations represented at the event to pass the Water for the Poor Act and continues to support adequate funding for its implementation.  The full listing of panel members is at http://ww.pennnet.com/display_article/287722/41/ARTCL/none/none/WaterBriefs:-US-leaders-to-speak-out-on-World-Water-Day/.  Additional information about the Water for the Poor Act is at http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=h109-1973.  (MB) 

Water Associations Urge House to Increase Funding for Farm Bill Conservation
A group of water associations sent a letter on March 20 to the Chairman and Ranking Member of the House Budget Committee, Reps. John Spratt (D-SC) and Paul Ryan (R-WI), urging them to support increased levels of farm bill conservation funding within the budget resolution so that the agriculture authorizing committees have the necessary resources to add money to conservation provisions.  “Ongoing reauthorization of the Farm Bill presents a unique opportunity to build important partnerships between the water industry and agricultural communities to address water quality issues throughout the country,” the letter states.  “The benefits of conservation activities would accrue not only to agriculture but to the entire nation, particularly in areas of improved water and air quality, public health protection, income for agriculture producers, and environmental stewardship.”  Organizations that signed the letter included the Association of Metropolitan Water Agencies, Association of California Water Agencies, National Association of Clean Water Agencies, National Association of Water Companies, American Water Works Association, Western Coalition of Arid States, and WEF.  (SRT)
 
Groups Call on EPA to Support Green Infrastructure
On March 16, 26 organizations representing wastewater utilities, environmental groups, states, public works utilities, and architects submitted a "Green Infrastructure Statement of Support" to EPA, calling on the Agency to establish a plan of action to better focus resources on promoting green infrastructure as a way of improving water quality. In the Statement, the group asserts that "Green infrastructure can be both a cost effective and an environmentally preferable approach to reduce stormwater and other excess flows entering combined or separate sewer systems in combination with, or in lieu of, centralized hard infrastructure solutions." According to the National Association of Clean Water Agencies and Natural Resources Defense Council, co-authors of the statement, "There are communities across the country that are now looking for efficient and effective ways to reduce stormwater pollution, minimize combined sewer overflows, and ensure that there will be safe and clean water resources for the future that are stymied due to lack of data, lack of modeling tools, lack of familiarity with these approaches by regulators and the public, and other roadblocks." The Statement is available at http://www.nacwa.org/getfile.cfm?fn=2007-02-16green.pdf.  (SRT)

EPA Releases Drinking Water Compliance Manuals for Small Public Water Systems
On March 16 the U.S. Environment Protection Agency (EPA) released new manuals to help small public water systems understand the Stage 2 Disinfectants and Disinfection Byproducts Rule (Stage 2 DBP) and Long Term 2 Enhanced Surface Water Treatment (LT2) Rules.  "EPA is committed to helping small and rural communities continue to provide safe and affordable drinking water for their citizens," said Benjamin H. Grumbles, Assistant Administrator for Water.  In addition to providing an overview of the rules, the manuals provide step-by-step guidance on how small systems (those serving fewer than 10,000 people) can comply with the rule.  The manuals also provide helpful worksheets and examples of actions systems might take to comply with the rules.  The Stage 2 DBP manual is available on the EPA website at http://www.epa.gov/safewater/disinfection/stage2/compliance.html. The LT2 manual is available at http://www.epa.gov/safewater/disinfection/lt2/compliance.html. Both documents and other STEP guides are also available on EPA's small water systems at http://www.epa.gov/safewater/smallsys/ssinfo.htm. (SRT)

Quote of the Week:
“You can’t build a great city without clean, accessible water”
 ~Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin, in her keynote address at the Paying for Sustainable Water Infrastructure conference, in Atlanta on March 22. 

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; MB - Mya Buchanan, mbuchanan@wef.org. This Week in Washington is available on-line at  http://www.wef.org/GovernmentAffairs/TWIW/.