August 2024

WateReuse Florida continues to navigate through the busy spring and early summer months. In addition to our state section planned activities, preparation for the 2025 WateReuse Symposium to be held in Tampa on March 16-19, 2025, will mark its 40th anniversary!

In 1985, water professionals first convened in San Diego to discuss emerging water reuse technologies and strategies. Today, water reuse drives prosperity, sustainability, and public health for communities worldwide. In Tampa, we will reunite to turn the tide toward the next 40 years of water reuse. Our National President Bart Weiss representing Hillsborough County, Florida and the WateReuse Florida board is leading the way to what will be another excellent conference.

WateReuse Joins The “Be Water Positive” Ocean Racing Team to Share the Value of Reuse

Our oceans, rivers, and streams support our communities, industry and general quality of life, and increasingly, we are using water recycling to give back to these precious resources. To supercharge this message, the Canadian Vendee Global ocean racing team skippered by Scott Shawyer is sailing under the Be Water Positive message.

The WateReuse Association recently cheered him on for exhibition races on the Hudson River at the foot of the Statute of Liberty. WateReuse Association President and WateReuse Florida board member Bart Weiss joined Scott’s crew to sail the 60’ long Vendée Globe racing vessel, while WateReuse's Executive Director Pat Sinicropi joined hosts from WateReuse member H2O Innovation and others to watch.

The WateReuse Association will carry forward the #BeWaterPositive message!

Michael Sweeney, Ph.D.
WateReuse Florida President

The WateReuse Florida Summit meeting held at the University of South Florida on May 22 was our best Summit yet! Eighty-five members, sponsors, and guests were in attendance at the Marshall Student Center. It was held in conjunction with Florida Water Reuse Week (May 19-25) and exemplified our partnership with utility organizations across the state to commemorate the importance of water reuse within our state.

Tampa Mayor Jane Castor kicked off the Summit and WateReuse Association Executive Director Pat Sinicropi and representatives from utilities, consultancy, and regulators were an essential part of the program. Participation from our regulatory community was a welcomed addition, especially participating in the panel discussion on current reuse rulemaking. Our second annual student research presentation contest featured five “contestants” and judges had a challenge deciding on a ranking due to the high quality of work presented.

Thank you again to our generous sponsors Tetra Tech, Freese and Nichols, Hazen, Plummer, Black & Veatch, Jacobs, Carollo, Dewberry, and Haskell.

The WateReuse Florida Board of Directors is finalizing a job description for the section's first managing director. This individual will be responsible for leading WRFL into a new chapter to better engage members, advocate for policies, and further establish water recycling in Florida. An announcement is forthcoming and will be distributed in an upcoming email and on WRFL's LinkedIn.

If you are interested or have any questions, please contact Mike Sweeney.

In May, a workshop “retreat” with our Executive Committee and 10 board members was held at Dewberry’s offices in Lakeland to review and build upon draft goals and action plans. Our facilitator, WateReuse Florida past president John Shearer, facilitated the meeting and several subsequent ones. A draft was produced that included our mission, vision and guiding principle statements and ensured alignment with the WateReuse Association strategic plan recently adopted at the national level. Consensus was reached on the draft but the remaining work includes fine-tuning and incorporating new draft action plans that emerged. The goal is to finalize the plan for final approval at the Annual Meeting on December 5.

On July 15, 2024, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) held a workshop covering potable reuse rule development. FDEP provided a general summary of the rule changes to Chapters 62-550, 555, 610 and the new Chapter 62-565 dedicated to potable reuse. The DEP reiterated that the potable reuse rule changes should not affect Florida utilities that are not implementing either a direct or indirect potable reuse project. Some clarifying questions were posed and no one provided comments with strong opposition to the rules. The workshop lasted about one hour and the recording is posted on DEP's website.

A Congressional staff briefing virtual meeting took place on May 13 arranged by Greg Fogel, the WateReuse Association’s Director of Government Affairs and Policy, and coordinated by President Bart Weiss. The subject was Florida SB 64 and water recycling. Florida SB 64 calls for the elimination of non-beneficial surface water discharges by 2032, which is a very tight (and expensive) deadline to meet. A unique opportunity exists for Congress to provide financial support to Florida and other states to focus investment in recycling projects and pilot a program that will ultimately lead to lasting benefits rather than the undesirable alternative of building projects that dispose of high quality water in injection wells and/or other means to meet the deadline.

The request to Congress is:

• $25 million for the Pilot Program for Alternative Water Source Grants, which would become the first nationwide program dedicated to advancing water recycling;
• $2 billion each for the Clean Water and Drinking Water State Revolving Fund Programs;
• $76 million for the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) Program.

Also mentioned was a request to support the passage of HR 7944 and SB 1430 – Water Systems PFAS Liability Protection Act.

Thanks to President Elect Kerry Kates, Past President Lynn Spivey, WateReuse Association President Bart Weiss and WateReuse Florida President Mike Sweeney for presenting their perspectives. Christine Owen and Laura Donaldson also provided their considerable expertise

Please mark your calendar for Thursday, December 5, for the WateReuse Florida Annual Meeting, which will convene in the morning before the annual AIF Florida Water Forum to be held at the Rosen Shingle Creek Hotel in Orlando. More information will be coming soon. Space is limited.