September 16, 2024

The WateReuse Awards for Excellence recognize WateReuse members, their projects and their partnerships that have made significant contributions in support of greater adoption of water reuse. Don’t wait to submit! Winners will be celebrated during the 40^th Annual WateReuse Symposium, March 16-19, 2025 in Tampa, Florida.

The Bureau of Reclamation has released its FY25 Notice of Funding Opportunity for the Desalination and Water Purification Research Program. The purpose of this funding is to promote research on the development of innovative technologies and methods for desalinating and reusing water sources. Funding may be used to improve membrane technologies, concentrate management, treatment byproduct recovery, system performance monitoring and measurement, cost and energy efficiency, and more. This round of cooperative agreements is expected to disperse a total of ten awards. Pilot-scale project awards, to be completed in three years, have a ceiling of $800,000 per award. Laboratory-scale projects, to be completed in two years, have a $250,000 ceiling. Pilot-scale includes projects that scale up larger technology and projects using natural water sources with a flow rate above one gallon per minute. Laboratory-scale projects are bench-scale studies or modeling studies with small flow rates. Eligible applicants for this opportunity include state, county, city, special district, and tribal governments, as well as nonprofits, for-profits, academic institutions, and individuals. The deadline to apply is November 13 at 4pm MST.

At the beginning of the month, the White House released its Per and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) Federal Research and Development Strategic Plan. This plan follows a March 2023 PFAS Report, which highlighted the state of the science and identified gaps and needs related to PFAS research in the US. The strategic plan outlines five primary strategies for future management of PFAS:

• Understanding exposure pathways
• Developing more robust measurement tools for PFAS
• Understanding of exposure risks to PFAS
• Developing PFAS disposal/destruction technologies
• Identifying PFAS alternatives

The plan includes actionable tasks within each strategy. The National Defense Authorization Act requires that this plan be updated every three years.

The Interagency Water Workforce Working Group—comprised of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Department of Agriculture, U.S. Department of Labor, U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs, and U.S. Department of Education—released a report detailing workforce challenges and opportunities facing the water sector. With an aging workforce and simultaneously aging infrastructure, the need for recruitment and retention in the water workforce is clear. The water sector has seen a range of workforce challenges, including a lack of diversity, insufficient training programs, limited visibility of water careers and their impact, and a lack of nationally standardized operator certifications. According to the Working Group’s report, potential solutions include improved recruitment through campaigns that show the value of water workforce positions, more training programs, retention through competitive salary and support services, and the fostering of strong partnerships between water sector organizations, water workforce programs, and utilities. WateReuse Association is committed to supporting water workforce development through K-12 outreach programs such as our 2025 Student Art Contest, as well as with professional development and networking opportunities for young professionals.

On September 5, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released its updated Meaningful Engagement Policy, which seeks to improve transparency between the agency and stakeholders, increase equity, and establish a clear process for outreach and public participation in EPA actions and activities, including activities related to water recycling. The policy does not mandate EPA actions, but rather provides a range of public engagement tools and practices that EPA staff can use in their outreach and information collection activities. WateReuse Association is committed to engaging and educating diverse audiences including in our many partnerships with the EPA to ensure our members’ interests are considered in Agency actions.

WateReuse members Washington County Water Conservancy District and Stantec announced a partnership to implement a regional water reuse program, consisting of $1 billion for more than 30 projects to improve the efficacy of local water supplies. Washington County is one of the fastest-growing counties in Utah’s warmest, driest region. Stantec will help implement the program including preliminary design, environmental permitting, state agency permitting support, and project set-up and coordination. The program includes non-potable reuse projects for agriculture and irrigation, as well as a Regional Reuse Purification System for indirect potable reuse. 

Contact us at info@watereuse.org