October 1, 2018
Washington Update
WateReuse Supports Legislation to Extend NPDES Permits to 10 Years
WateReuse and Partners to Highlight Membrane Technology in Washington, DC
State Updates and Member Profile
Welcome New Members!
The WateReuse Association welcomes the following new member:
California: Study Documents Municipal Wastewater Discharges to Coastal Water Bodies
WateReuse Association member Heal the Ocean announced the release of The Inventory of Municipal Wastewater Discharges to California Coastal Water Bodies, an online interactive study that documents the 417 billion gallons of treated municipal wastewater discharged at fifty-seven coastal locations in the 2015 calendar year. The study notes that if California had recycled 63.3% of total municipal wastewater flows to coastal waters in 2015, it would have made its 2020 recycled water production goal. Learn More.
California: Padre Dam Hosts Successful Water Reuse Festival
WateReuse Association member Padre Dam Municipal Water District hosted more than 400 visitors during the East County Water Festival in Santee to celebrate water and learn about the East County Advanced Water Purification Program that will create a new drought proof drinking water supply using state-of-the-art technology to purify East San Diego County’s recycled water. The East County Advanced Water Purification Project is a regional partnership with Padre Dam, Helix Water District, City of El Cajon and the County of San Diego. Read More.
Florida: St. Johns River Makes Water Reuse a Budget Priority
WateReuse Association member the St John’s River Water Management District has set a budget of $142.5 million for 2018-19, covering projects including water reuse and aquifer recharge initiatives, and public-private partnerships. The budget provides for $54.92 million in cooperative funding, including up to $3.5 million to support water projects in economically disadvantaged rural communities and for innovative technologies, spring and priority water body protection and restoration, water conservation initiatives, and projects to enhance the use of reclaimed water. Read More.
Oregon: Clean Water Services Introduces Pure Water Wagon This Week
WateReuse Association member Clean Water Services introduces its new Pure Water Wagon at WEFTEC in New Orleans this week. Based in Hillsboro, Clean Water Services will take this wagon to public and industry events to provide a close-up look at technology that transforms what that goes down our drains into water that is clean and safe to reuse. Clean Water Services has been a leader in innovation and was the first utility to introduce reuse beer in 2015. Read More.
New York: New Facility Will Charge Electric Buses, Clean Buses with Reclaimed Water
U.S. Senators Charles E. Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand announced last week $2 million in federal U.S. Department of Transportation funding for the Rochester Genesee Regional Transportation Authority to help construct a new $10 million Advanced Environmental Service Building. The building will both support charging of new, low-pollution electric buses and use reclaimed water to clean buses to reduce the environmental impact and lower operational costs. The U.S. Department of Transportation provided this funding through the Bus and Bus Facilities Infrastructure Investment Program. Read More.
Texas: New Research Center to Study Better Water Purification Methods
A new multi-university research center headquartered in The University of Texas at Austin’s Cockrell School of Engineering will seek more creative approaches — and new materials — to use and reuse existing water and improve upon existing water purification methods. The Center for Materials for Water and Energy SysTems (M-WET) unites researchers from UT; the University of California, Santa Barbara; and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. The center has been launched through a four-year, $10.75 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy and is part of the DOE’s Energy Frontiers Research Centers program. Read More.
Conferences and Events
Webcast: Reducing the Cost of Concentrate Disposal: Using a Novel Hybrid NF-RO to Enhance Sodium Chloride Removal
Concentrate disposal is a major cost for desalting operations, and for many water-recycling applications only partial desalting is needed, often targeting sodium chloride specifically. Please join us on November 14 at 2 p.m. to learn about a pilot study that was conducted to demonstrate the viability of a two-pass system, combining an NF pass with a second RO pass and blending the NF concentrate with the RO permeate. Findings indicate that sodium chloride can be preferentially removed from the recycled water, chemical and power consumption can be reduced when operated at system recoveries comparable to typical RO systems, and much higher recoveries are achievable with modest increases in power and chemical usage. Register Now!
Call for Abstracts: 2019 WateReuse California Annual Conference
WateReuse California is accepting abstracts through October 8, 2018 for a place on the program at the 2019 WateReuse California Annual Conference on March 17-19, 2019 at the Hyatt Regency Orange County in Garden Grove, CA. The conference is designed for individuals, organizations, and agencies that are associated with or interested in the use, design, management, and operation of water recycling facilities and projects in California. The conference will feature more than 40 technical presentations, poster presentations, technical tours, receptions, an awards luncheon, the annual Gordon Cologne Breakfast, and the ever-popular exhibition component. Submit an abstract!
Upcoming Events
Please join Washington insiders to examine what’s on the congressional agenda for 2021 and what water-related priorities the Biden Administration is likely to push in its first year.
Join Us!
2:00 – 3:00 pm ET| 11:00 am – 12:00 pm PT
WateReuse Members: Free
Others: $49
January 2021 marks the beginning of both a new administration in the White House and a new Congress. While Congress passed a number of key pieces of legislation in the final days of 2020, much work remains to be done, including the reauthorization of important water recycling programs. At the same time, the Biden Administration is coming in with an ambitious agenda related to climate change, the environment, and infrastructure, among other issues.
Top Washington water sector lobbyists will discuss the status of key legislation and explain the opportunities to advance a water reuse policy agenda. Whether you plan to participate in our Virtual Water Week in the spring or are interested in what to expect from Congress and the new Administration in 2021, this webcast will be a national advocacy primer for water professionals.
Register Now!
Join Us!
2:00 – 4:00 pm ET| 11:00 am – 1:00 pm PT
Fee: Complimentary
Join a group of stormwater management leaders from around the US to discuss stormwater capture motivations and drivers, barriers to progress, and future directions. This group will touch on questions like- Why are communities pursuing stormwater capture for use now? How do community interests in stormwater harvesting vary across the country? What factors get in the way of progress? Where do we want to be with stormwater capture in 20 years? The audience will learn about the different motivators, unique strategies, and opportunities to market and advance stormwater capture across the U.S.
Presenters
- Randy Bartlett, Fairfax County VA
- Sharlene Leurig, Texas Water Trade/Austin Water Forward
- Mark Doneux, St. Paul, MN Capitol Region Watershed District
- James Moore, Georgia Association of Water Professionals
- Enrique Zaldivar, City of Los Angeles
- Lynn Broaddus, Water Environment Federation
- Drew Wenzel, Google
This webinar will be the first of a series of four webinars as part of the National Water Reuse Action Plan, Action 2.3.3. Co-sponsors include the WateReuse Association, U.S. EPA, National Association of Municipal Stormwater Agencies (NMSA), Re-Inventing the Nation’s Urban Water Infrastructure (ReNUWIt), Water Environment Federation, and Johnson Foundation at Wingspread (JFW).
Save the Date
Join us for the second webinar in this series.
Developing Stormwater Treatment Standards – Where’s the Action?
February 23, 2021
2:00 – 4:00 pm ET
Join Us!
9:00 am – 10:00 am Pacific | 12:00 – 1:00 pm Eastern
WateReuse Members: Free
Others: $49
PDHs: 1
Wastewater-based epidemiology was utilized to detect SARS-Cov-19 in the wastewater of student dorms upon re-entry of University of Arizona students in the fall semester of 2020. Positive wastewater samples allowed for subsequent targeted clinical testing of dorm students and the identification of both symptomatic and asymptomatic Covid-19 infections. Early detection of infected individuals resulted in reduced exponential spread of Covid-19 and allowed the university to remain open throughout the semester.
Presenter
Ian Pepper, Director, WEST Center & Professor, Environmental Science
Dr. Pepper is an environmental microbiologist whose research has focused on the fate and transport of pathogens in air, water, soils and municipal wastes. More recently, he has investigated the potential for real-time detection of contaminants in water distribution systems. Dr. Pepper is Professor in the Community, Environment, and Policy Department in the UA College of Public Health, as well as Professor in the Department of Agricultural & Biosystems Engineering. In addition to his duties at the WEST Center, he is director of the National Science Foundation Water Quality Center at the UA.
He also teaches a graduate level laboratory class on Environmental Microbiology, and an undergraduate class on Pollution Science. He has co-authored numerous books and journal articles on Environmental Microbiology and Pollution Science, and is a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the American Academy of Microbiology, the American Society of Agronomy, and the Soil Science Society of America.
He received his Ph.D. in Soil Microbiology from The Ohio State University, M.S. in Soil Biochemistry from Ohio State, and B.S. in Chemistry from the University of Birmingham, Great Britain.
Join Us!
2:00 – 3:00 pm ET| 11:00 am – 12:00 pm PT
WateReuse Members: Free
Others: $49
As more communities face water quantity challenges, water reuse is a viable option to expand drinking water sources. Although all water is recycled as it moves through the environment, the practice of treating wastewater to be used for potable water is sometimes met with skepticism. Some of this stems from the “toilet to tap” campaigns that may have led to more rejection of water reuse than acceptance.
Quantitative microbial risk assessment (QMRA) is a framework that evaluates the many factors impacting water reuse practices and management, as well as those influencing community perception. With the emergence of new pathogens, such as SARS-CoV-2, the acceptance of water recycling as part of a community’s drinking water sustainability plan may be even more challenging. This webcast will describe how QMRA may be used to communicate with stakeholders – including healthcare providers – the human health safeguards associated with water reuse implementation.
Presenters
- Karla Mendez, PhD Candidate, UTHealth Houston School of Public Health, El Paso campus
- Kristina Mena, MSPH, PhD, Regional Dean and Associate Professor, UTHealth Houston School of Public Health, El Paso campus
First Quarter:
Remote – Zoom
Friday, March 12, 2021
11:00 am to 2pm EST // 10 to 1 CST // 9:00 to 12 MST // 8:00 to 11 PST
36th Annual WateReuse Symposium: Redefining Resiliency
March 15-25, 2021
Join us for a series of live and on demand virtual roundtables!
Second Quarter:
Remote – Zoom
Friday, June 4, 2021
11:00 am to 2pm EST // 10 to 1 CST // 9:00 to 12 MST // 8:00 to 11 PST
Third Quarter:
Los Angeles, J.W. Marriott L.A. LIVE
Friday, Sept 17, 2021
11:00 am to 2pm EST // 10 to 1 CST // 9:00 to 12 MST // 8:00 to 11 PST