News

EPA WSD Releases Vaccination Information for Water & Wastewater Workers

The EPA Water Security Division (WSD) released an updated website with Center for Disease Control (CDC) vaccination information for essential workers. The CDC recommends states and local jurisdictions develop a phased approach for COVID-19 vaccinations. In defining essential workers, CDC references the Department of Homeland Security’s Guidance on the Essential Critical Infrastructure Workforce: Ensuring Community and National Resilience in COVID-19 Response Version 4.0 (PDF). This document recognizes water and wastewater workers, as well as the manufacturers and suppliers who provide vital services and materials to the water sector, as essential workers. The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices’ (ACIP) Updated Interim Recommendation for Allocation of COVID-19 Vaccine (December 22, 2020) recommends non-frontline essential workers, including water utility workers, receive priority vaccination under Phase 1c. Although the CDC and ACIP provide vaccination recommendations, the final decisions for vaccine planning and distribution occur at state and local levels. Water utility personnel should check with their local and state health departments (PDF) to confirm that they consider the water sector workforce as qualifying for vaccination under Phase 1c. The EPA website is available here.

Sewer Overflow and Stormwater Reuse Municipal Grant Program – State Allocation Formula

On February 24, 2021, EPA published a Federal Register Notice establishing the allocation formula for the upcoming Sewer Overflow and Stormwater Reuse Municipal Grant Program. This formula describes how the agency will distribute program funds for the states, District of Columbia, and the U.S. territories to provide grants to manage stormwater flows, combined sewer overflows, and sanitary sewer overflows. For additional information, please contact Michael Goralczyk at Goralczyk.Michael@epa.gov.

House Subcommittee Meets for Wastewater Infrastructure Hearing

On Tuesday, the House Subcommittee on Water Resources and the Environment met to discuss our country’s wastewater infrastructure. An EPA survey from 2016 referenced several times during the hearing estimates that approximately $271 billion over 20 years is needed to maintain and improve wastewater systems – and, as noted by David Mallino, Legislative & Political Director at Laborers’ International Union of North America, that figure is nearly a decade out-of-date and has likely increased since the survey was first released.

Other testimony made on behalf of the National Association of Clean Water Agencies by Oluwole McFoy, General Manager of the Buffalo Sewer Authority, noted that the federal government’s estimated share of U.S. infrastructure funding is less than 5%. Mayor Dave Berger of Lima, Ohio echoed this concern, adding that “local governments are stuck on an unsustainable financial treadmill… [with] decisions made by the federal government to eliminate or reduce financial assistance without restricting costly mandates [that] have placed a severe financial burden on us.”

Upon hearing testimony from local governments, tribes, and other stakeholders, members of the Subcommittee agreed that major investments are needed. However, some are divided on how to pay for it. Rep. Peter DeFazio says he will “push for a very ambitious number” and figure out how to pay for it later (though he also suggested a financial transaction tax that could raise up to $77 billion per year). Others, such as Rep. Dave Rouzer, would prefer to seek new revenue sources while collaborating with the private sector, re-evaluating current regulations, and including investments on the federal, state, and local levels.

Notably, Rep. Grace Napolitano’s statements and questioning specifically focused on the Clean Water SRF program. She announced her intention to introduce legislation to reauthorize the CWSRF, which has hardly increased in decades and left local governments and tribes with the burden of funding most wastewater treatment projects.

SNC Help Desk – ECHO/Dashboard SNC Tools and Basic/Related ICIS-NPDES Questions

EPA has officially launched the Clean Water Act (CWA) Significant Noncompliance (SNC) Help Desk to help state and EPA users with understanding and using the new and old electronic tools EPA has available for assisting in reducing NPDES SNC. There are a variety of tools that exist for analyzing NPDES SNC data and the CWA SNC Help Desk now will be available to support use of these very valuable tools. Topics the CWA SNC Help Desk can assist with are:

Questions about or issues related to the following ECHO/dashboard SNC tools (“How do I use this tool to do X?”)
- NPDES Early Warning Dashboard
- SNC Violation Tracker
- NPDES DMR Non-Receipt Status Tool
- NPDES SNC/Category 1 Violations Dashboard
Basic SNC-related ICIS-NPDES questions, e.g., what original data in ICIS-NPDES is producing an SNC designation showing up in ECHO or one of the SNC tools?

To request CWA Help Desk support, follow these three easy steps:

Navigate to the contact form and scroll to the bottom of the page, to the section titled, “Ask a Question or Report a Technical Issue;”
Complete all the fields; in the “Category” field select, “CWA Significant Noncompliance”;
In the message box, indicate that you’d like assistance from the CWA SNC Help Desk with an SNC issue (one of the two SNC topics listed above) – this will ensure your request is correctly routed to the CWA SNC Help Desk. Then type in your question.

The CWA Help Desk turnaround time for a response to your question will be two business days.

Questions about CWA SNC Help Desk capabilities should be directed to Rusty Wasem at wasem.russell@epa.gov.

USGS Studies Quantify Chemical Mixtures in Streams, Lithium in Tapped Groundwater

Two recent USGS studies have generated important information for water resource and public health decisionmakers.

In the first new study, researchers concluded that mixtures of organic chemicals are ubiquitous in small U.S. streams. 3 to 12 water samples were taken from 305 small streams across four major CONUS regions (Northeast, Southeast, Pacific Northwest, and Coastal California) as part of the USGS Regional Stream Quality Assessment. Mixtures were detected at least once at 303 of the 305 stream sites. Further, a chemical mixture was detected in at least half of the samples collected at 252 sites with some urban or agricultural development in the watershed. These results indicate that exposure to multiple organic contaminants is common for small streams in developed watersheds. The study found a moderate risk of acute toxicity to aquatic invertebrates at 44% of sites and 20% of sites for nonvascular plants, respectively; and moderate risk of sub-lethal effects to vertebrates at 99% of sites.

The second new USGS study reports that about 45% of U.S. public-supply wells and about 37% of domestic supply wells have concentrations of lithium that could present a potential human-health risk. While lithium has some therapeutic uses, all dosages can cause adverse health effects—primarily impaired thyroid and kidney function—and lithium was added to the EPA’s proposed Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule in January 2021. Elevated levels of lithium were found primarily in drinking-water wells in arid regions and in “old” groundwater (i.e., recharged before 1953). The most elevated lithium sample concentrations were present in unconsolidated clastic aquifers in the western U.S., in particular the High Plains, Rio Grande, Stream-valley, and Basin and Range basin-fill aquifer systems. Nearly 10 million people rely on groundwater in these four aquifer systems for drinking water. To contextualize the values, USGS and EPA calculated a nonregulatory Health-Based Screening Level (HBSL) for drinking water of 10µg/L and a second “drinking-water-only” benchmark of 60µg/L for when it is assumed that the only source of lithium exposure is from drinking water (other sources include eggs, dairy products, soft drinks, and beer); this higher benchmark was exceeded in 9% of samples from public-supply wells and in 6% of samples from domestic-supply wells. To collect data representative of drinking water sourced from groundwater in the US, the USGS compiled data for lithium in untreated groundwater from 1,464 public-supply wells and 1,676 domestic-supply wells during 1991–2018. The aquifers sampled represent 80% of groundwater used for public supply in the U.S., a source of drinking water for about 100 million people.

Stream Chemical Mixtures Study Citation: Bradley, P.M., C.A. Journey, K.M. Romanok, S.E. Breitmeyer, D.T. Button, D.M. Carlisle, B.J. Huffman, B.J. Mahler, L.H. Nowell, S.L. Qi, K.L. Smalling, I.R. Waite, P.C. Van Metre. Multi-region assessment of chemical mixture exposures and predicted cumulative effects in USA wadeable urban/agriculture-gradient streams. 2021. Science of the Total Environment, vol. 773, 2021, 145062. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.145062. Data used in this study can be accessed here.

Groundwater Lithium Concentrations Study Citation: Lindsey, B.D., Belitz, K., Cravotta, C.A. III, Toccalino, P.L., and Dubrovsky, N.M., 2021, Science of the Total Environment, v. 767. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.144691. Data used in the study can be accessed here.

EPA Moves Forward with PFOA, PFOS Regulatory Determination, Range of PFAS in Proposed UCMR 5

On February 22, 2021 , EPA reissued final regulatory determinations for contaminants on the fourth Contaminant Candidate List (CCL 4; Regulatory Determination 4). EPA made final SDWA determinations to regulate PFOS and PFOA in drinking water and to not regulate 1,1-dichloroethane, acetochlor, methyl bromide (bromomethane), metolachlor, nitrobenzene, and RDX.

On the same day, the proposed fifth Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule (UCMR 5) was resigned. UCMR 5 as proposed would require sample collection to detect 29 PFAS as well as lithium between 2023 and 2025 using analytical methods developed by EPA and consensus organizations. The data will improve EPA’s understanding of the frequency that 29 PFAS are found in the nation’s drinking water systems and at what levels. EPA will accept public comment on the proposed UCMR 5 for 60 days, following publication in the Federal Register. EPA will also hold a virtual stakeholder meeting twice during the public comment period. As proposed, all PWSs serving 3,300 or more people, and 800 representative PWSs serving fewer than 3,300, would collect samples for the PFAS and lithium during a 12-month period from January 2023 through December 2025.

Learn more and review supporting materials about PFAS in the proposed UCMR 5 here. Learn more and review supporting materials about the SDWA Regulatory Determination here.

Relatedly, FDA recently posted a new webpage including information about PFAS in cosmetic and personal care products. The site provides labeling information on common PFAS used as ingredients in certain cosmetic products, research to date, and outlines FDA’s efforts to monitor the relevant scientific literature.

Two EPA ICR Extensions Published to Federal Register

(1) National Study of Nutrient Removal and Secondary Technologies: Publicly Owned Treatment Works (POTW) Screener Questionnaire was published on 2/24 and can be found here.

Summary: EPA plans to submit an ICR, “Information Collection Request for the National Study of Nutrient Removal and Secondary Technologies: Publicly Owned Treatment Works (POTW) Screener Questionnaire (Renewal)” (EPA ICR No. 2553.01, OMB Control No. 2040 0294) to OMB for review and approval in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA). Before doing so, EPA is soliciting public comments on specific aspects of the proposed information collection as described [in the Federal Register notice]. This is a proposed extension of the ICR, which is currently approved through July 31, 2021.
The goals of this study are to establish a baseline of nutrient performance nationally for secondary treatment facilities and to document the capability of POTWs to reduce nutrient discharges by implementing changes to operations and maintenance, without making extensive capital investments. The full study would be conducted in multiple phases, allowing for interactions with stakeholders and experts in each phase. The first phase of the study is a screener questionnaire, the renewal of which is the focus of this ICR. Due to multiple delays, most notably postponements in fielding the screener questionnaire due to circumstances associated with the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, EPA is proposing to renew the ICR for the screener questionnaire. EPA seeks to continue to update existing information on the universe of POTWs in the U.S., including tribally owned facilities, and collect basic information on the characteristics of these POTWs. The conventional secondary plants would be the focus of the second phase of study to determine how efficiently these plants remove nutrients and how enhancements to operation and maintenance have improved their performance. EPA expects to conduct future surveys of a statistically representative sample of the population of secondary treatment plants, but the exact format of these collections will be informed by the data received from this screener questionnaire
Comments must be submitted on or before April 26, 2021.

(2) EPA’s WaterSense Program (Renewal) was published on 2/24 and can be found here.

Summary: EPA plans to submit an ICR, “EPA’s WaterSense Program (Renewal)” (EPA ICR No. 2233.08, OMB Control No. 2040-0272) to OMB for review and approval in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act. Before doing so, EPA is soliciting public comments on specific aspects of the proposed information collection as described [in the Federal Register notice]. This is a proposed extension of the ICR, which is currently approved through June 30, 2021.
Data collected under this ICR will assist WaterSense in demonstrating results and carrying out evaluation efforts to ensure continual program improvement. In addition, the data will help EPA estimate water and energy savings and inform future product categories and specifications. All shipment and sales data submitted by WaterSense manufacturer and retailer/distributor partners are collected as confidential business information (CBI) using the procedures outlined in the WaterSense CBI security plan under Clean Water Act.
Comments must be submitted on or before April 26, 2021.

Association Updates

2021 ACWA Mid-Year Meeting Registration is Live!

Registration for the 2021 ACWA Mid-Year Meeting has opened! To register, please log into your Member365 Portal and click the Event tab in your navigation menu.

Upon your registration, you will be provided with links to sign up for the first and second days of virtual sessions. Please do not share these links with anyone, as these are closed sessions for states, interstates, and EPA staff only. If you have a colleague who would like to attend, please direct them to contact Rosie Kay who will create their Member365 account (if necessary), or to log in and register through this event.

Meetings and Webinars

EPA’s Integrated Planning Virtual Roundtable March 2, 2021

Date: March 2, 2021 | 11:30AM-2:30PM

Registration: Only those who have not registered previously should contact Robyn DeYoung

EPA’s Integrated Planning Virtual Roundtable has been rescheduled for next week. If you registered for (using Zoom) the originally scheduled session on January 13, 2021, EPA already has your registration information. You do NOT need to register again. If you are already registered, your calendar should have received a new MS Teams meeting invitation for the new date. The agenda for the roundtable includes the following:

State experiences with incorporating a municipality’s integrated stormwater and wastewater plan in NPDES permits:

Shelly Shores-Miller from the Kansas Department of Health and Environment
Michael Abbott from the Missouri Department of Natural Resources
Adam Eller from the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality
Small-group breakout sessions to answer questions and discuss ideas for making it easier to review and incorporate integrated plan elements in NPDES permits or other Clean Water Act obligations

Second Public Information Webinar on 2021 Multi-Sector General Permit (MSGP)

Date: March 4, 2021 | 1:00-3:00PM Eastern Time

Registration: Click here

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) signed and issued the 2021 Multi-Sector General Permit (MSGP) for industrial stormwater discharges on January 15, 2021. The 2021 MSGP will become effective on March 1, 2021 and will replace the 2015 MSGP. For more information, see EPA’s 2021 MSGP.

EPA will host a second public informational webinar on Thursday, March 4, 2021, from 1:00 PM EST – 3:00 PM EST on the new 2021 MSGP. This webcast will cover industrial stormwater program basics, discuss the structure and requirements of the new permit, including how to renew coverage or get coverage for the first time, and highlight new provisions and changes from the 2015 MSGP. EPA will take questions from the public during the webcast. Existing and new permittees, industry consultants, and other interested stakeholders are encouraged to attend. This webinar will cover the same content covered in the February 18, 2021 webinar, so if you attended that session, please let others register for this one!

Exchange Network Grant Webinars

Tribal SN Webinar Date: March 1, 2021 | 3:00-4:30PM Eastern Time

General SN Webinar Date: March 8, 2021 | 11:00-12:30PM Eastern Time

Registration: See below

In support of the FY 2021 Exchange Network (EN) Grant cycle, EPA is currently hosting webinars to assist interested applicants. There are two sessions scheduled, one on March 1st (for tribal applicants) and one on March 8th (for all applicant types). Potential applicants are also encouraged to review the FAQs posted to this section of the website.

Please direct any questions to Erika Beasley, Exchange Network Grants Program Manager, at beasley.erika@epa.gov.

Although not mandatory, EPA would appreciate if you would pre-register for webinar sessions by sending an email to Shela Poke-Williams (Poke-williams.shela@epa.gov) indicating the session you plan to attend and listing the participant name(s), organization, and state, tribe, or territory. Please note that EPA will maintain these records internally and they will not be shared with any third parties.

Creating the Water Workforce of the Future Webinar Series: Cultivating a Positive Workforce Culture From Apprenticeship to Career

Date: April 1, 2021 | 12:00-1:30PM Eastern Time

Registration: Click here

A career in the water sector offers meaningful and challenging work that makes a difference in local communities. By building an inclusive and supportive workplace that encourages employee growth, the sector can attract and retain the qualified candidates it needs. Please join EPA on April 1, 2021 to hear from leaders in the water sector who are embracing the challenge of “Creating the Water Workforce of the Future.”

Joone Lopez from Moulton-Niguel Water District will describe her organization’s journey to build a culture that allowed MNWD to become recognized as one of the outstanding water utilities in the country. Tim Friday and Eric Dunker from Castle Rock Water and Arapahoe Community College will then describe a utility/community college partnership that trains and places students into jobs in the water workforce.

Job Opportunities

Watershed Analysis and Implementation Support Workgroup Leader | Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment

Location: Denver County, Colorado

Closing Date: March 2, 2021

This position leads the Watershed Analysis and Implementation Support Workgroup within the Water Quality Control Division’s Restoration and Protection Unit. The position’s primary responsibility is managing team resources to develop Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) reports and alternative approach plans and provide technical support for implementing TMDLs and alternative approach plans. The position ensures TMDL and alternative approach plan priorities are identified and addressed.