On February 26, the WateReuse Association team had productive in-person meetings with the US Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Assistant Administrator for the Office of Water (OW), Jessica Kramer, as well as the Bureau of Reclamation’s (Reclamation) Acting Commissioner, Scott Cameron. Officials from other offices within OW, Reclamation, and the U.S. Department of Interior also participated.
The meeting with Jessica Kramer and her team covered water reuse priorities spanning from industrial reuse to continued support and partnership on the National Water Reuse Action Plan. The WateReuse Association team highlighted the newly created Alternative Water Source Grants Program, federal funding challenges within the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) program, and changes to EPA’s Proposed Rule redefining “Waters of the United States," among other issues.
Acting Administrator Scott Cameron and his team expressed interest in learning more about the Association’s portfolio of work, including our industrial water reuse work and how reuse connects back to Reclamation’s work on the Colorado River. Acting Administrator Cameron noted that water recycling must absolutely be part of the solution to Western water challenges. WateReuse advocated for the release of congressionally appropriated funding for the Title XVI Water Reuse Grants Program as well as the Large-Scale Water Reuse Projects Competitive Grants Program. We also pressed Reclamation to execute outstanding awards under both programs.
WateReuse members and other communities across the West have been left in limbo as a result of a year-long delay in finalizing agreements and releasing new funding opportunities. The team also urged Reclamation to increase the per-project funding cap for Title XVI projects in line with inflation. Overall, the meeting was productive, and we were left hopeful that the issues we raised will be resolved in short order. We are pursuing agreed-upon follow-up and will be meeting again with Reclamation staff soon. | 
