October 2, 2023

WateReuse members have until next Wednesday, October 11 to register at the exclusive Super Saver rate!

The WateReuse Association mourns the passing of Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), who for decades has been an unwavering champion of water recycling in California and across the country. In recent years, WateReuse worked with Senator Feinstein to secure $1 billion in grant funding for water reuse projects, and to introduce legislation aimed at reauthorizing and enhancing critical water reuse programs. WateReuse celebrates Senator Feinstein's life and her tenacious support for water recycling across the decades.

Late on Saturday, September 30, President Biden signed a short-term funding extension, known as a continuing resolution (CR), to fund the Federal Government through November 17. In the end, 209 Democrats joined 126 Republicans to pass the CR in the House of Representatives, sending the legislation to the Senate where it passed 88–9. Passage of the CR averts a Federal Government shutdown, which most observers anticipated would occur beginning on October 1. House and Senate leaders now have until November 17 to negotiate a final spending package for FY2024 using the funding bills passed by the House and Senate Appropriations Committees earlier this year. For a refresher on the funding levels for water reuse programs contained in the House and Senate bills, view our Appropriations Chart.

Last week, the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee held a hearing on “Clean Water Infrastructure Financing: State and Local Perspectives and Recent Developments.” During the hearing, three of the four witnesses spoke about the importance of water recycling in helping communities modernize their infrastructure and address water resource challenges. WateReuse submitted a statement for the record noting the importance of federal financing for water recycling infrastructure. Witnesses included Lori Johnson, Assistant Chief of Financial Services for the Oklahoma Water Resources Board; Todd Swingle, CEO and Executive Director of WateReuse member Toho Water Authority; James Proctor, Senior Vice President and General Counsel of McWane Inc., and Rebecca Hammer, Deputy Director of Federal Water Policy for the Natural Resources Defense Council.

During her opening remarks, Water Subcommittee Ranking Member Grace Napolitano (D-CA) explained how communities in California are tapping into federal financing to help produce clean, safe, and sustainable water supplies through water recycling. Todd Swingle of Toho Water Authority spoke about his agency’s water recycling program and its role in creating a sustainable, diverse water supply. Both Rebecca Hammer of NRDC and James Proctor of McWane, Inc. also addressed the need to invest in water recycling, including industrial water reuse, as a resiliency tool. WateReuse continues to advocate for federal investments in water recycling through programs such as the Pilot Program for Alternative Water Source Grants, Title XVI Water Reuse Grants Program, Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act Program, and the Clean Water and Drinking Water State Revolving Fund Programs.

Last week, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published a final rule under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) that requires manufacturers of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and PFAS-containing articles to report information related to PFAS identity, uses, volumes made and processed, byproducts, environmental and health effects, worker exposure, and disposal. EPA initially proposed the rule in June 2021 at the direction of Congress. In addition to requiring reporting, the rule expands on the definition of PFAS in the proposed rule to include 41 additional PFAS that were identified as being of concern. Data is due to EPA within 18 months of the effective date of the final rule, with an additional six months for reports from small businesses that are solely reporting data on importing PFAS contained in articles.

A recent story from the Walton Family Foundation’s Waterline series tells a tale of recycled water, agriculture, and righting historical wrongs. In 1908, the US Supreme Court ruled that tribes including the Gila River Indian Community (GRIC), just south of Phoenix, had a right to water for their reservations. But the water from the Gila River rarely flows all the way to GRIC due to upstream diversions. It wasn’t until 2004 that Arizona legally enshrined GRIC with a water budget of 653,500 acre-feet, in large part from the Colorado River via the Central Arizona Project. Shortly after this victory, GRIC launched a novel water exchange program with nearby cities including WateReuse Association member City of Chandler, swapping part of its allotment for a larger portion of non-potable recycled water. The article explores the latest challenges and planned infrastructure upgrades in the Gila River community from the larger perspective of agricultural water reuse in the United States, quoting WateReuse Association Executive Director Patricia Sinicropi: “The old paradigm of the farmer just putting a pipe in the ground and pumping up the water and not thinking about it, those days are over,” she says.

In September, the European Union’s Environmental Committee voted in favor of a new position affirming the importance of reusing water from all urban wastewater treatment plants, especially in water-stressed areas. The committee members also agreed to set up a system of extended producer responsibility targeting medicinal and cosmetic products, and source control measures including a legal requirement to install microfiber filters in new washing machines. Talks with national governments on the final form of these requirements can begin once the European parliament adopts its negotiating mandate in its October plenary session.