July 17, 2023

Last week, the House Interior-Environment Appropriations Subcommittee released its draft spending bill for FY 2024, which includes funding for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the programs that it administers. WateReuse Association is pleased to report that the proposed bill includes first-time funding of $3 million for the Pilot Program for Alternative Water Source Grants, which WateReuse has been advocating for as a top funding priority in FY 2024. In addition to funding the Alternative Water Source Grants Pilot Program, the bill leaves funding largely intact for the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) Program, which is an important financing mechanism for water recycling projects across the country. Unfortunately, the bill also makes deep cuts to the EPA including reducing discretionary funding for the Clean Water and Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (SRF) Loan Programs by 67 percent and 59 percent, respectively. Funding provided for the SRF programs by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021 (also known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law) is left intact. WateReuse Association is now focused on ensuring that the Senate includes robust funding for each of these programs in its own version of the appropriations bill.

The Bureau of Reclamation is extending the deadline to submit project proposals under phase two of its Lower Colorado River Basin System Conservation and Efficiency Program (LC Conservation Program). Colorado River Basin water entitlement holders and their partners, including Lower Colorado River Basin states, tribes, water users, and NGOs now have until August 18, 2023, to submit proposals.

As we previously reported, Reclamation announced the second phase of its LC Conservation Program on May 24, 2023, via a letter to interested parties. The letter announced funding opportunities for long-term durable system improvements that result in quantifiable, verifiable water savings in Lake Mead based on a recent history of use.

Last week, WateReuse Association submitted comments on draft legislation being considered by the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works (EPW). The legislation aims to help communities protect public health and the environment from per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). In our comments, we thank the Committee for its important work and urge it to adopt a “polluter pays” approach to PFAS control and remediation and to protect utilities from PFAS liability under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA).

WateReuse has been discussing the package with EPW Committee staff since the fall of 2022. While the legislation directs the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to finalize Maximum Contaminant Levels for certain PFAS, it is largely non-regulatory in nature. Instead, it aims to help address PFAS contamination by advancing technology and treatment solutions, supporting better risk communication, and helping to fill gaps in the science on PFAS.

Key congressional offices have indicated to WateReuse that the EPW Committee will seek to protect utilities from PFAS liability under CERCLA, though the draft legislation includes no such provision. It remains to be seen whether the Committee will integrate a CERCLA liability shield into the larger PFAS package, or whether it will seek a different legislative vehicle. Click here to view the full legislative text.

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) recently released a study indicating that almost half of U.S. water supplies are contaminated with PFAS. With a sample size of 716 locations that include rural, suburban, and urban areas, scientists tested for 32 different types of PFAS. The study indicated that urban areas are more likely to contain PFAS in their drinking water systems than rural areas. Many of the technologies used to remove PFAS from drinking water were pioneered for water recycling, and in many cases the same advanced treatment systems can help address both contamination and water supply challenges. The WaterReuse Association has and will continue to track developments on this issue and will continue to leverage our membership and relevant committees to guide regulations that address contaminants of emerging concern.

Last week the California State Water Resources Control Board (Water Board) released an advanced copy of the highly anticipated Direct Potable Reuse (DPR) regulations. A 45-day comment period will formally begin on July 21. The Water Board is planning to conduct a workshop on the regulations on Thursday, September 7, with final approval planned for the second week in December.

The WateReuse California (WRCA) Direct Potable Reuse Working Group has been guiding the development of these regulations for the past two years and has made significant progress. WRCA is currently analyzing the regulations and comparing them to the June 2022 version and will hold an informational briefing for members soon. Below are some preliminary observations:

• The draft regulations provide new flexibility in specific sections. Of note, they now define pathogen control credits for DPR projects using reservoirs, groundwater aquifers, and blending. WRCA requested these modifications to help differentiate the public health benefits provided by raw water augmentation and treated water augmentation projects that use these features.
• WRCA requested a broadening of the “alternatives clause” to cover more than the chemical control criteria. The Water Board did not include a broad-reaching clause.
• Regulations continue to require that each DPR project sponsor conduct a quantitative risk assessment on chemical contaminants. WRCA has requested that a single entity responsible for uniform guidance conduct risk assessments for potential chemical contaminants. 
• The draft regulations allow greater flexibility in Biological Activated Carbon design. Projects can either use a default 15-minute empty bed contact time or propose an alternative based on the results of pilot testing.
• Modifications to the monitoring requirements include a reduction in the frequency of Total Organic Carbon measurements from once every five minutes to once every fifteen minutes.
• The initial review suggests that sewershed surveillance within the collection system may now not be a requirement. It appears that DPR projects can monitor for chemical peaks at the treatment facilities instead. This is still under review.

For more information, please contact Jennifer West at jwest@watereuse.org. You can also hear from Jennifer as well as the leaders of other state efforts to advance DPR regulations during our July 27 webcast: The Road to DPR: State Policy Approaches and Outcomes.

Data Instincts, a longtime WateReuse Association member, is celebrating 25 years at the forefront of the recycled water industry in California and throughout the West. Since it got its start with the City of Santa Rosa’s Geysers Recharge Project in 1998, the Windsor-based firm has coordinated public outreach for more than $2 billion worth of recycled water projects, from purple pipe to potable reuse.