EPA is issuing a proposed 2008 Construction General Permit (CGP) for public comment. To find the proposed permit, information on submitting comments, and more information on the relationship of this permit to the Effluent Guideline, please visit www.epa.gov/npdes/stormwater/cgp

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Because EPA is also in the process of developing a national regulation, called an Effluent Limitations Guideline for the Construction and Development Industry, the Agency is proposing to issue this 2008 CGP for a period of two years using the same terms and conditions as the 2003 CGP (which expires on July 1, 2008). Upon completion of the Effluent Guideline, the Agency will develop and issue a new (and improved) CGP that incorporates the provisions of the Effluent Guideline as soon as possible and not later than July 2010. EPA is the pemitting authority in five states and most territories and Indian Country lands. This proposed permit is available for public comment for 30 days. To find the proposed permit, information on submitting comments, and more information on the relationship of this permit to the Effluent Guideline, please visit www.epa.gov/npdes/stormwater/cgp

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This week both the House and Senate voted overwhelmingly to approve the conference report to the $300+ billion farm bill that authorizes dozens of agriculture, forestry, energy, nutrition, food stamps, conservation and rural development programs for the next 5 years. Negotiators have been working on a Farm Bill reauthorization package for almost 2 years now and finally have crafted an agreement that a majority supports. President Bush continues to threaten to veto the package because it does not go far enough to limit the crop subsidies, spending levels and sugar support programs. The House voted 318-106 to approve the bill and the Senate voted 81-15 to back the bill.

Details are provided below:


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Conservation Title:
Promotes new Conservation and Rewards Stewardship Program (renamed from Conservation Stewardship Program) which is focused on providing incentives for new conservation, while simultaneously rewarding producers for achieving high levels of stewardship and addressing priority resource concerns in their area. The program will enroll nearly 115 million acres by 2017.

Increases support to working land conservation by providing an increase in funding of $3.4 billion in budget authority over the next 10 years to the Environmental Quality Incentives Program.

Revised procedures for valuing property and streamlines review processes for the Wetlands Reserve Program to make it easier to enroll fragile wetland acres. The bill provides $1.3 billion for this program, enough to enroll 1.22 million acres of wetlands over the next 5 years.

Creates a new Cooperative Conservation Partnership Initiative where 6% of all conservation program funds (other than CRP, GRP, WRP, and FPP) will be available for carrying out cooperative projects that bring together producers, states, non-profits and other groups.

Creates new initiatives focused on restoring the Chesapeake Bay and addressing the unique environmental and conservation challenges of the surrounding region.

Enhances the Grassland Reserve program so that 1.22 million acres of fragile grazing land is not converted to cropland and is protected from development.

Doubles funding for the Farmland Protection program.
Wildlife Habitat incentives Program is reauthorized.

Limits eligibility in conservation programs to individual’s with an adjusted gross income less than $1 million, unless at least 2/3 of that income is derived from farming, ranching or forestry.


Rural Development Title:
Reduces the backlog of unfunded pending rural development water and wastewater loan and grant applications by providing $120 million in mandatory funding for pending qualified applications. Lower interest rates for most water and wastewater loans are made permanent.

 
Expands broadband service in rural areas.

 
Creates a new rural micro enterprise assistance initiative for low and moderate income individuals to help develop the skills necessary to establish new small businesses in rural areas.

Creates a new rural collaborative investment program which authorizes federal financial assistance for self-identified rural areas, generally encompassing more than 25,000 people, collaboratively develop plans to maximize quality jobs and improve the quality of life in an areas with particular emphasis on increasing local investment.

Forestry Title:
Establishes a new community forest and open space conservation program which will provide matching funds to help county or local governments or non-profits purchase from willing sellers private forests that are threatened by conversion to non-forest use and are economically, culturally and environmentally important to the community.

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Join us for our second webcast on Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) issues. This webcast will focus on the nine key elements of a CSO Long Term Control Plan (LTPC).  May 28, 2008 12pm to 2pm EST.
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Long Term Control Plans are being developed by over 800 communities nationwide. Addressing the complex issues surrounding the reduction of sewage overflows from combined municipal wastewater systems and documenting the steps that a community will take to meet water quality goals can be a challenging task. This webcast will provide information and guidance on developing elements of an LTCP, including: system characterization, monitoring and modeling, public participation, evaluation of alternatives, and cost/performance considerations.

To register for this free webcast, please visit www.epa.gov/npdes/training

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The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is leading the effort to modernize the Nation’s flood hazard data and maps, and the Multi-Year Flood Hazard Identification Plan (MHIP) describes the strategy for this effort. The MHIP is FEMA’s national plan for providing updated digital flood hazard data and maps for areas with greatest flood risk in support of the National Flood Insurance Program. This latest version of the MHIP (Version 3.0) is now available, and amends MHIP Version 2.0 dated September 2006 and Version 2.5 dated April 2007.


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MHIP Version 3.0 provides: detailed tables of flood map production targets; stakeholder input information; a summary of FEMA’s progress in meeting Key Performance Indicators for the Flood Map Modernization program; and appendices that provide a detailed listing by State and county for all map production activities, scheduled and completed.

MHIP Version 3.0, as well as previous versions, is available on FEMA’s Flood Hazard Mapping Web site at www.fema.gov/plan/prevent/fhm/mh_main.shtm.

 Interested parties with questions pertaining to the updated flood map production sequencing in MHIP Version 3.0 are encouraged to contact their appropriate local and State officials, who are working with one of FEMA’s 10 Regional Offices.

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Communities, State agencies, and Federal agencies may construct new levee systems to address flood hazards and reduce flood risks to structures and people in a particular community or particular area of a state. Likewise, these communities and agencies may undertake a project to restore the flood protection capability of a levee system that had previously been credited with providing a 1-percent-annual-chance level of flood protection to that level of protection, thereby reducing the flood risk to the people and structures located behind the levee or levee system.

When communities, State agencies, and Federal agencies undertake such projects to provide a 1-percent-annual-chance level of flood protection, they likely will want to submit the appropriate data and documentation to FEMA, so that FEMA may present updated, accurate flood hazard and risk information on the maps and related documents. To this end, FEMA has developed and implemented regulatory and procedural requirements for levee systems that are being constructed for the first time or that are being restored to provide 1-percent-annual-chance flood protection.

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To explain the regulatory and procedural requirements of the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) and various entities’ responsibilities, FEMA has created Levee Construction and Restoration Projects pages as part of its levee information Web pages. The pages summarized below provide resource materials and information on Zones AR and A99.
FEMA also has updated the “Introduction” page for levees and the stakeholder-specific pages to allow users to navigate easily throughout all of the levee system-related pages.

New Levee Pages on FEMA’s Website

Levee Construction and Restoration Projects The required data and documentation for levee construction or restoration project will vary, depending on the type of determination that the community would like FEMA to make regarding the project and the flood insurance risk zone designation that the community would like FEMA to include on the effective NFIP map for that community. Before deciding on these options, however, it is important for communities to know the requirements, responsibilities, and impacts that these options will have on community residents and business owners.
http://www.fema.gov/plan/prevent/fhm/lv_conres.shtm

Flood Protection Restoration (Zone AR) Requirements In accordance with Section 65.14 of the NFIP regulations, the flood protection restoration determination (Zone AR) process can be used when a Federal flood protection system, such as a levee system, that was previously credited with providing a 1-percent-annual-chance level of flood protection on an effective NFIP map no longer provides that level of flood protection.
http://www.fema.gov/plan/prevent/fhm/lv_ar.shtm

Adequate Progress (Zone A99) Requirements Once a flood protection project (i.e., levee system) that is intended to provide a 1-percent-annual-chance level of protection has reached certain completion milestones, a community may submit the data and documentation required by Section 61.12 of the NFIP regulations and request an “adequate progress” determination from FEMA.
http://www.fema.gov/plan/prevent/fhm/lv_a99.shtm

Updated Levee Pages on FEMA’s Website

Levee Information for Stakeholders
http://www.fema.gov/plan/prevent/fhm/lv_intro.shtm

 
Homeowners and the General Public
http://www.fema.gov/plan/prevent/fhm/lv_home.shtm

State and Community Officials
http://www.fema.gov/plan/prevent/fhm/lv_state.shtm

Floodplain Managers, Surveyors, Engineers, and Architects http://www.fema.gov/plan/prevent/fhm/lv_fpm.shtm

Real Estate, Insurance, and Lending Industry Professionals http://www.fema.gov/plan/prevent/fhm/lv_ins.shtm

Map Makers and Cooperating Technical Partners (CTPs) http://www.fema.gov/plan/prevent/fhm/lv_ctp.shtm

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The latest issue of the Clean Water Exchange is now available.
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http://www.apwa.net/DR/index.asp?ID=585

 

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EPA released a new web-based program, PNiWriter, to help public water systems comply with the public notification requirements of the Safe Drinking Water Act. Public notification is intended to ensure consumers are immediately alerted if there is a serious problem with their drinking water which may pose a risk to public health. The PNiWriter provides a fast, user-friendly format for creating public notices that meet all federal requirements.
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After users log in they will see a series of questions about the violation or situation requiring public notice. After answering questions and filling in blanks they will be able to print or download the public notice, an instruction sheet, and public notice certification. The program is free and can be accessed at http://www.pniwriter.org. Users may also access the program from the EPA web site at: http://www.epa.gov/safewater/publicnotification/compliancehelp.html 

The PNiWriter is a companion product to the CCRiWriter. Since its release in 2002, the CCRiWriter has helped users generate more than 10,000 Consumer Confidence reports, also known as Water Quality Reports, that public water systems annually provide to customers to inform them about their drinking water. The CCRiWriter can be accessed at: http://www.epa.gov/safewater/ccr/tools.html.

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EPA's Watershed Academy has added a new online training module on Developing a Sustainable Finance Plan.
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The training module is designed to help watershed organizations develop and implement sustainable funding plans. Case studies are included throughout the module to provide real examples of finance strategies employed by nonprofit watershed organizations in the U.S. This module was developed by EPA's Office of Wetlands, Oceans and Watersheds Sustainable Finance Team in cooperation with the Watershed Academy.

To view the module visit: http://www.epa.gov/watertrain/sustainablefinance
Fifty other training modules on a wide variety of watershed topics are also available at http://www.epa.gov/watertrain

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 On Thursday, May 8, EPA will be hosting a free webcast from 2:30 to 4:30 pm EDT to discuss EPA's Draft National Water Program Strategy: Response to Climate Change.
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The agency recently distributed this draft strategy and is now seeking comment until May 27, 2008. The draft strategy represents an initial effort by EPA's National Water Program to identify potential impacts of climate change for clean water and drinking water programs, and to define actions both to adapt water programs to these impacts as well as to mitigate the release of greenhouse gases. The free webcast will highlight some of the key impacts on water resources and water programs, and key actions we are proposing. If you are interested in participating in this webcast or want a copy of the draft strategy go to http://www.epa.gov/water/climatechange/

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EPA's Office of Wetlands, Oceans, and Watersheds released a online document this week to help communities, watershed organizations, and local, state, tribal, and federal environmental agencies develop and implement watershed plans to meet water quality standards and protect water resources.
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The "Handbook for Developing Watershed Plans to Restore and Protect Our Waters" is designed to help anyone undertaking a watershed planning effort, but should be particularly useful to persons working with impaired or threatened waters. It contains in-depth guidance on quantifying existing pollutant loads, developing estimates of the load reductions required to meet water quality standards, developing effective management measures, and tracking progress once the plan is implemented. New materials were added to the handbook including ways to protect important elements of the landscape and aquatic habitats within a watershed. The document is available on the web at http://www.epa.gov/owow/n ps/watershed_handbook/

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Free technical assistance available!

Are you trying to encourage specific smart growth techniques like transit-oriented development? Or direct your state department of transportation investments to better support smart growth? Are you looking to use smart growth to reach greenhouse gas reduction goals? Do you need help analyzing guidelines for school investments that best fit your state or community? Do you need to retrofit a commercial corridor?
Or coordinate your community's smart growth design with an active aging program?

The Development, Community, and Environment Division in U.S. EPA's Office of Policy, Economics, and Innovation is responding to this need by issuing a request for applications for the Smart Growth Implementation Assistance program. Through this program, a team of multidisciplinary experts will provide free technical assistance to communities, regions, or states that want to develop in ways that meet environmental and other local or regional goals.

Communities, regions, and states around the country are interested in building stronger neighborhoods, protecting their environmental resources, enhancing public health, and planning for development, but they may lack the tools, resources, or information to achieve these goals. EPA can help applicants overcome these roadblocks by providing evaluation tools and expert analysis.

EPA is soliciting applications from communities that want help with either policy analysis or public participatory processes. Selected communities will receive assistance in the form of a multi-day visit from a team of experts organized by EPA and other national partners to work with local leaders. Applications will be accepted until May 8, 2008.

For more information and application materials, please go to www.epa.gov/smartgrowth/sgia.htm.

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The Development, Community, and Environment Division in U.S. EPA's Office of Policy, Economics, and Innovation is responding to this need by issuing a request for applications for the Smart Growth Implementation Assistance program. Through this program, a team of multidisciplinary experts will provide free technical assistance to communities, regions, or states that want to develop in ways that meet environmental and other local or regional goals.

Communities, regions, and states around the country are interested in building stronger neighborhoods, protecting their environmental resources, enhancing public health, and planning for development, but they may lack the tools, resources, or information to achieve these goals. EPA can help applicants overcome these roadblocks by providing evaluation tools and expert analysis.

EPA is soliciting applications from communities that want help with either policy analysis or public participatory processes. Selected communities will receive assistance in the form of a multi-day visit from a team of experts organized by EPA and other national partners to work with local leaders. Applications will be accepted until May 8, 2008.

For more information and application materials, please go to www.epa.gov/smartgrowth/sgia.htm.

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EPA’s Water Laboratory Alliance Forum is hosting a meeting on May 17, 2008 for water sector represenatives at the  Hilton at the Ballpark Hotel , St. Louis, MO.  There is no cost to attend the forum.  http://www.aphl.org/conferences/08Conferences/EPAWLAForum/Pages/default.aspx

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The forum will discuss EPA’s developing Water Laboratory Alliance (WLA) program, which will be designed to provide the water sector (e.g. states, utilities, and the EPA Regional laboratories) with an integrated nationwide network of laboratories with the analytical capabilities to support monitoring surveillance, response, and remediation in response to an intentional and unintentional contamination event.

This meeting will be held the day before the APHL Annual Meeting and Second State Environmental Laboratory Conference. Registration for this Forum is required separately from the Annual Meeting. Please download the registration form below, complete it and fax/email it as directed on the form. There is no registration fee for this Forum.

http://www.aphl.org/conferences/08Conferences/EPAWLAForum/Pages/default.aspx

 

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Ever wonder what to do with your old computer? Want to know if your community rewards you for recycling? The newly published Resource Conservation Challenge Update highlights how EPA, the states, and its RCC program partners are answering these questions. Our partners are not only strengthening our nation’s infrastructure to reduce, reuse, and recycle, they are also realizing significant environmental benefits, including greenhouse gas reductions and energy savings.


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This year’s update showcases recent efforts and accomplishments in reducing, reusing and recycling municipal solid waste, industrial materials, and electronics, and reducing the amount of toxic chemicals released into the environment. The achievements of our RCC partners within the first five years of the program are demonstrating the value of what we once thought of as waste.

We invite everyone—businesses, communities, and individuals—to join us managing materials for a sustainable future. For a copy of the full report, please visit:
<http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/osw/conserve/resources/rcc-rpt3.pdf>. For more information on the Resource Conservation Challenge, please visit:
www.epa.gov/rcc.

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Pollution can be minimized if neighborhood behaviors and business operations are changed to promote greater stewardship. Since individuals and businesses should have every opportunity to learn how to become better stewards of their watersheds, the Center for Watershed Protection is now making available Manual 8: Pollution Source Control Practices of the Urban Subwatershed Restoration Manual Series  permanently for free download.


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This manual first outlines a series of methods to discover pollution sources in your community. It then details how education, training, direct municipal service, subsidies, and recognition can positively reinforce pollution reduction, and then addresses permits, ordinances, inspections and enforcement that are needed for the most severe stormwater pollution sources.

There are profile sheets that describe 21 specific stewardship practices for residential neighborhoods, and 15 pollution prevention techniques for control of stormwater hotspots. This manual can prove useful for the city stormwater manager or a watershed association looking to educate their community.

This Manual, released in 2005, now joins Manuals 1, 2, 3, and 4 in the Manual Series that are now available for free download.

Download these five Manuals by visiting the Urban Subwatershed Restoration Manual Series website. Visit the  Center for Watershed Protection website: http://www.cwp.org/  or download the PDF at http://www.cwp.org/Downloads/ELC_USRM3.pdf

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This Resource Typing Manual was written to provide guidance to water and wastewater utilities when they request and provide mutual aid and assistance resources during and after an emergency.

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The resources described in this manual are those anticipated to be needed up to the first thirty days following an incident, emergency, disaster, or catastrophe. While mutual aid and assistance between water and wastewater systems is valuable in all phases of an incident, it is most valuable during the initial response and recovery phase, before many resources from other levels of government and private contractors can be mobilized.
http://www.apwa.net/DR/index.asp?ID=578

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The Water Security Division has received a number of questions regarding NIMS compliance for the water sector. 

 Homeland Security Presidential Directive 5 "Management of Domestic Incidents" requires that states, territories, local jurisdictions and tribal entities adopt the National Incident Management System (NIMS). NIMS enables responders from a variety of jurisdictions and disciplines to work together effectively when responding to an emergency. The private sector, including water and wastewater treatment systems, also plays a vital role in NIMS. The implementation of the NIMS creates a baseline capability that, once established, will be the foundation for the nation’s prevention, preparedness, response, and recovery strategies.

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The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is charged with maintaining and supporting the National Incident Management System. As part of their efforts, FEMA releases compliance objectives and metrics for each fiscal year. The FY08 document was released in February and contains updated information on what FEMA is requiring for NIMS compliance.

One of the reasons for becoming NIMS compliant is that federal preparedness funding requires the recipient to be NIMS compliant. In order to help determine whether an entity is NIMS compliant, FEMA has developed a tool called NIMSCAST - http://www.fema.gov/nimscast/index.jsp. NIMSCAST is an online tool that guides the user through a series of questions related to the NIMS compliance metrics. Based on the answers to the questions the user receives a report describing the elements of NIMS compliance that are fulfilled and which ones require additional action.

Additional benefits of NIMS compliance include:
· Strengthened response capabilities by following a nationally adopted, standard practice for emergency response · Improved mobilization, deployment, utilization, tracking, and demobilization of needed resources · Established protocols for improved communication with other levels of response · Reduced time delay to access mutual aid/assistance

Specific information about what is required for 2008 NIMS Compliance can be found on this website:
http://www.fema.gov/emergency/nims/compliance/2008.shtm

FEMA recommendations for private sector NIMS compliance activities can be found on this website:
http://www.fema.gov/emergency/nims/compliance/ps_implement.shtm

For additional information on NIMS, please contact EPA’s NIMS Coordinator, Roberta Runge, runge.roberta@epa.gov, or John Whitler with the Water Security Division, whitler.john@epa.gov. 

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EPA Releases New Tools to Improve Drinking Water Monitoring and Reporting

Small water systems, particularly those that serve very small populations or tribal communities, can be challenged in understanding the regulatory requirements that apply to them. EPA is releasing a new set of placards that summarize day to day monitoring requirements for small drinking water systems.

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Having monitoring requirements readily available in an easy to read format should improve monitoring and reporting compliance at small systems. These placards provide step by step instructions for conducting monitoring under the Total Coliform Rule, Surface Water Treatment Rules and Nitrate regulations. The placards are formatted to be printed 11x17 to hang on the wall for quick reference by drinking water operators. The placards and other tools for small systems are available at http://www.epa.gov/safewater/smallsys/ssinfo.htm. They are also available on a page dedicated to tribal water systems at http://www.epa.gov/safewater/tribal.html.

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National Groups Launch "Your Water. Your Decision." Campaign for Local Officials Interested in Protecting Drinking Water.

 

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The Source Water Collaborative (SWC) is launching a campaign, "Your Water. Your Decision.", to help local decision-makers take advantage of opportunities to protect sources of drinking water, understand the costs involved, and consider ways to pay for it. The SWC, a group of 16 national organizations and three federal agencies including EPA, was formed with the joint signing of a vision statement in February 2006 to further the goal of protecting sources of drinking water.

As part of this initiative, the SWC has developed a guide for community leaders and a toolkit for using the guide. The "Your Water. Your Decision." guide is intended as a quick source of key information on local options for protecting drinking water, including development, stewardship, and budgeting. Using the theme, ?how you govern can determine what you drink,? the guide was developed as a tool to enable local officials to take action within their communities and with neighboring communities. The local officials guide and more information on the "Your Water. Your Decision." Campaign can be found at: http://www.ProtectDrinkingWater.org

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Nexus Between Energy Use and Water Infrastructure Reducing climate impacts, saving money, and saving water are the goals of recent Office of Water efforts to make the most of the nexus between energy use and water infrastructure. Providing drinking water and wastewater services to citizens across the nation requires a lot of energy. The ENERGY STAR program estimates that about $4 billion is spent annually for energy costs to run drinking water and wastewater utilities. Agency efforts on water and energy include our broad outreach to promote water efficiency through the WaterSense program, as well as a suite of activities and tools that focus on energy use at utilities. In our work with the water utility industry, we can encourage them to identify approaches to integrate energy efficient practices into their daily management and long-term planning.


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The following are links that highlight the connection between water and energy:

Memorandum from the Assistant Administrator for Water to the Regional Administrators http://www.epa.gov/waterinfrastructure/pdfs/memo_si_bengrumbles_nexus-between-water-energy_02142008.pdf

We have developed a one-stop page for information on infrastructure and energy. See http://www.epa.gov/waterinfrastructure/bettermanagement_energy.html

For information on the benefits of water efficiency including energy savings, see the WaterSense program at http://www.epa.gov/watersense/water/benefits.htm

A step-by-step workbook for utilities entitled "Ensuring a Sustainable Future: An Energy Management Guidebook for Wastewater and Water Utilities" and workshops on the workbook. More information will be posted on http://www.epa.gov/waterinfrastructure/bettermanagement_energy.html, 
http://www.peercenter.net, and http://www.energystar.gov

The ENERGY STAR program recently added drinking water and wastewater treatment facilities to its Portfolio Manager - an interactive energy management tool that can be used to track and assess energy and water consumption.
See http://www.energystar.gov/waterwastewater

Combined heat and power is a reliable, cost-effective option for wastewater treatment facilities that have, or are planning to install, anaerobic digesters. Biogas flow from these digesters can be used as "free" fuel to generate reliable electricity and power. For a guide that highlights the opportunities and benefits see http://www.epa.gov/chp/markets/wastewater.html 

For fact sheets that describe various alternative energy sources that utilities may want to consider see http://www.epa.gov/owm/mtb/mtbfact.htm

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EPA is providing tools and timely information to help communities improve sustainability of their water systems. Two new documents that describe how EPA is carrying out efforts to help are the "National Capacity Development Strategic Plan" and "Analysis on the Use of Drinking Water State Revolving Fund Set-Asides: Promoting Capacity Development."

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The "National Capacity Development Strategic Plan" describes how EPA, state drinking water programs, drinking water system owners and operators, and technical assistance providers will work together to achieve the objectives and anticipated outcomes of the national capacity development program. The strategy outlines how EPA and its partners will promote proactive communication and outreach to help ensure that water systems have the capacity to demonstrate long-term sustainability. Funding made available through the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF) program can be critical in advancing capacity development programs at the state level.

EPA's report titled "Analysis on the Use of Drinking Water State Revolving Fund Set-Asides: Promoting Capacity Development" provides information on how states have used their funds and will help state drinking water personnel, drinking water system owners and operators, and technical assistance providers to better understand how the DWSRF can support supporting capacity development programs and EPA's sustainable infrastructure initiative. For information about capacity development: http://www.epa.gov/safewater/smallsys/ssinfo.htm

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Virginia Tech's Center for Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) and Watershed Studies has developed an on-line database to house selected TMDL-related information and documents in one central location.
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The searchable clearinghouse contains three types of resources: TMDL guidance documents, reviews and summaries of TMDL-related technical and trade literature, and state-by-state summaries of TMDL programs across the nation. State summaries are updated regularly for all 50 states and include the approach and methodology used to develop TMDLs in that state. In total, about 500 documents are available within this database, which was funded, in part, by an EPA grant. The TMDL Knowledgebase Clearinghouse can be accessed via the Center's Web site at: http://www.tmdl.bse.vt.edu/site/knowledgebase/

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EPA is asking for public comment on a list of 104 possible drinking water contaminants that may need to be regulated in the future to ensure the continued protection of drinking water. Under the Safe Drinking Water Act, EPA includes on the draft Contaminant Candidate List (CCL) currently unregulated contaminants that are known or anticipated to occur in public water systems and which may require regulation. This draft CCL, which is the third such listing, lists 93 chemical contaminants or groups and 11 microbes, and describes the process and basis for selecting these contaminants.



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The CCL process was established by the 1996 Amendments to the Safe Drinking Water Act as a mechanism to determine if new regulations are needed to protect drinking water. Under this process EPA conducts extensive research into the occurrence and health effects of the listed contaminants before issuing new regulations or standards. In developing the draft CCL 3, the agency implemented a new approach for selecting contaminants which builds upon evaluations used for previous lists and is based on substantial expert input early in the process and recommendations from a larger number of different groups including stakeholders, the National Research Council and the National Drinking Water Advisory Council.

The draft list includes chemicals used in commerce, pesticides, biological toxins, disinfection byproducts, and waterborne pathogens. The agency evaluated approximately 7,500 chemicals and microbes and selected 104 candidates for the final draft list based on their potential to pose health risks through drinking water exposure. The comment period is open for 90 days beginning the day of publication in the Federal Register. Information on the CCL 3: http://www.epa.gov/safewater/ccl/ccl3.html

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President Bush’s fiscal year 2009 (FY09) budget request for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) represents $50.5 billion in funding, which is an increase of 6.8 percent over the 2008 fiscal year level – excluding funds provided in emergency supplemental funding. The request targets five areas that are essential to preserving freedom and privacy, meeting future challenges, and fulfilling the Department's mission of securing America.

The Department is improving its capabilities and preparing those who respond to acts of terror and other emergencies by incorporating lessons learned from Hurricane Katrina, other disasters, and the 9-11 Commission Recommendations. The President’s Budget requests funding for the following initiatives that support strengthening the department’s ability to build an effective emergency response system and culture of preparedness:
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President Bush’s fiscal year 2009 (FY09) budget request for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) represents $50.5 billion in funding, which is an increase of 6.8 percent over the 2008 fiscal year level – excluding funds provided in emergency supplemental funding. The request targets five areas that are essential to preserving freedom and privacy, meeting future challenges, and fulfilling the Department's mission of securing America.

The Department is improving its capabilities and preparing those who respond to acts of terror and other emergencies by incorporating lessons learned from Hurricane Katrina, other disasters, and the 9-11 Commission Recommendations. The President’s Budget requests funding for the following initiatives that support strengthening the department’s ability to build an effective emergency response system and culture of preparedness:

* An increase of $64.5 million in funding to support the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) Vision- Shape the Workforce program. Phase II of FEMA’s transformation will strengthen FEMA’s ability to marshal an effective national response, deliver service of value to the public, reduce vulnerability to life and property, and instill public confidence.

* Total funding of $2.2 billion will support FEMA’s state and local assistance programs, which prepares state and local governments to prevent or respond to threats or incidents of terrorism and other catastrophic events. This funding will support existing Homeland Security grants, Port and Rail Security grants and Emergency Management Performance grants.

* The Pre-Disaster Mitigation (PDM) Fund has been reduced to $75 million in grants - a substantially lower number than the $178 million in estimated spending for FY08. APWA had joined with other association in requesting that the funding levels remain unchanged.

* The Flood Map Modernization program has been reduced by $70 million, with a FY09 request of $150 million.

However, on a more positive note, total funding of $2.2 billion will support FEMA’s state and local assistance programs, which prepares state and local governments to prevent or respond to threats or incidents of terrorism and other catastrophic events. This funding will support existing Homeland Security grants, Port and Rail Security grants and Emergency Management Performance grants.
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The FY 2008 Program Guidance and Application Kits are now available online at http://www.fema.gov/grants.
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Program Guidance and Application Kits are available for the following six programs, representing over $3 billion in available FY 2008 grant funding:

• FY 2008 Homeland Security Grant Program (HSGP)
• FY 2008 Urban Areas Security Initiative (UASI) Nonprofit Security Grant Program (NSGP)
• FY 2008 Operation Stonegarden (OPSG)
• FY 2007 and 2008 Regional Catastrophic Preparedness Grant Program (RCPGP)
• FY 2008 Emergency Management Performance Grants (EMPG)
• FY 2008 Infrastructure Protection Program (IPP)
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The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released the National Response Framework (NRF) on January 22, 2008, successor to the National Response Plan. The NRF, which focuses on response and short-term recovery, articulates the doctrine, principles and architecture by which our nation prepares for and responds to all-hazard disasters across all levels of government and all sectors of communities. The NRF is responsive to repeated federal, state, local and private sector requests for a streamlined document that is less bureaucratic and more user-friendly. The NRF also focuses on preparedness and encourages a higher level of readiness across all jurisdictions. APWA has been part of the NRF planning process at all levels of development.
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The NRF is being released following an extensive process of outreach and coordination between DHS and key stakeholders representing federal, tribal, state and local governments, non-governmental agencies and associations (including APWA), and the private sector. The latest public comment period for the base document of the NRF closed on Oct. 22, 2007 and the comment period for the support annexes closed on Nov.10, 2007. The final documents reflect the nearly 5,700 comments received from participants of the process.

“The National Response Framework is an essential tool for emergency managers at all levels,” said Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff. “It helps define the roles, responsibilities, and relationships critical to effective emergency planning, preparedness and response to any emergency or disaster. Today’s release reflects the culmination of many months of hard work and collaboration within the nation’s emergency management community.”

The NRF is intended for senior elected and appointed leaders, such as federal department and agency heads, state governors, mayors, tribal leaders, city managers and the private sector. Simultaneously, it informs emergency management practitioners by explaining the operating structures and tools routinely used by first responders and emergency managers at all levels of government.

The NRF is designed to:

* be scalable, flexible and adaptable;
* always be in effect; and
* articulate clear roles and responsibilities among local, state and federal officials.

In addition to releasing the NRF base document, the Emergency Support Function Annexes and Support Annexes will be released and posted at the NRF Resource Center (www.fema.gov/nrf), an online repository of the entire component parts of the NRF. The annexes are a total of 23 individual documents designed to provide concept of operations, procedures and structures for achieving response directives for all partners in fulfilling their roles under the NRF.

Upon finalization and publication of the NRF base document and the annexes, a large focus will be to initiate an intensive nationwide training and exercise program to embed the NRF into the nation’s preparedness and response cycle. Implementation of the NRF training and exercise strategy will include awareness training, position-specific training, exercises (tabletop and functional), and sustainment training.

To make the NRF a living system that can be revised and updated in a more nimble, transparent fashion, the NRF Resource Center was developed. The Resource Center will allow for ongoing revisions as necessary to reflect real-world events and lessons learned.

The NRF and the annexes will go into effect 60 days after publication in the Federal Register.
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EPA’s popular webcast series for municipal stormwater professionals will resume again on February 6, 2008.

 

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This year will feature five webcasts on a variety of topics, including BMP Performance, Stormwater Retrofits, Finding and Fixing Illicit Discharges, and MS4 Program Performance.
Based on many requests, we will also offer a Stormwater 101 Course in the Summer. As in past years, this year’s line up will feature speakers who are national experts and each webcast will build upon the array of information covered in past webcasts. To see the new schedule (and to access recorded versions of past webcasts), please visit www.epa.gov/npdes/training
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On Dec. 26 President Bush signed into law the much anticipated $555 billion omnibus spending bill, which will fund eleven appropriations bills that had yet to be passed at the end of the fiscal year.
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On Dec. 26 President Bush signed into law the much anticipated $555 billion omnibus spending bill, which will fund eleven appropriations bills that had yet to be passed at the end of the fiscal year. The law did not include the $460.3 billion which had already been approved in the National Defense Authorization Act (H.R. 1585). The appropriations law (HR 2764) includes the following items that should be of interest to public works professionals and their departments.

The Environmental Protection Agency was appropriated $7.5 billion, below are several examples of how the funds were allocated.

• The Clean Water State Revolving Fund received $689 million, $411 million less than the amount approved by the House in June and $395 million below FY 2007 levels.

• $133 million was provided for sewer and water grants (STAG grants) to help communities with drinking water and wastewater infrastructure projects.

• $384 million was appropriated for EPA enforcement activities.

• EPA’s budget also includes $49 million for a new program to reduce pollution by retrofitting or replacing diesel engines and $217 million for grants for state and regional efforts to implement the Clean Air Act.

• $153 million was appropriated to clean up America’s waterways, specifically the Great Lakes and the Chesapeake Bay Watersheds.

• Finally, the EPA budget provides $38 million for basic research on climate change and its effects.

The following Homeland Security and Emergency Management items were also included in the law.

• FEMA State and Local Programs
- $950 million was appropriated for the State Homeland Security Grant Program.
- $35 million shall be for Regional Catastrophic Preparedness Grants.
- $15 million was appropriated for the Citizens Corps Program.
- $50 million shall be for the Interoperable Emergency Communications Grant Program.
- $299.3 million was appropriated for training, technical assistance, and other programs.

• Flood Map Modernization
- For necessary expenses under section 1360 of the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968, $220 million, and such additional sums as may be provided by State and local governments or other political subdivisions for cost-shared mapping activities. To remain available until expended, provided that total administrative costs shall not exceed three percent of the total amount appropriated.

• National Flood Mitigation Fund
- $34 million to remain available until September 30, 2009, for activities designed to reduce the risk of flood damage to structures pursuant to such Act, of which $34 million shall be derived from the National Flood Insurance Fund.

• National Pre-disaster Mitigation Fund
- $114 million to remain available until expended for a predisaster mitigation grant program.

Finally, the appropriations law provides $103.6 billion for transportation and housing programs in FY 2008. Below are several examples of important transportation items that were included.

• $40.2 billion allocated for highway funding, which remains unchanged from the level approved in the transportation appropriations bill, it is also $1.25 billion more than funding enacted last year.

• Allocates $195 million in emergency funds to replace the I-35 bridge in Minneapolis, MN.

• Provides an additional $1 billion for bridge repairs.

• Federal Transit Administration funding is reduced from $9.7 billion to $9.4 billion from the approved transportation appropriations bill.

Full text of the Act can be viewed at http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/getdoc.cgi?dbname=110_cong_bills&docid=f:h2764enr.txt.pdf

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President Bush signed the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (H.R. 6) into law on Dec. 19. The bill is intended to move the United States toward greater energy independence and security by implementing tougher fuel economy standards.
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President Bush signed the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (H.R. 6) into law on Dec. 19. The bill is intended to move the United States toward greater energy independence and security by implementing tougher fuel economy standards.

The new law directs the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), beginning in 2011 to increase Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards to 35 miles per gallon by the year 2020. The law also requires an increase in the renewable fuels standard to 36 billion gallons by 2022.

Finally, the bill includes provisions to improve energy efficiency requirements for Federal agencies in hopes to lower greenhouse gas emissions. New federal buildings will have to eliminate any fossil fuel-generated electricity by 2030.

For Full Text of the Bill go to http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/getdoc.cgi?dbname=110_cong_bills&docid=f:h6enr.txt.pdf
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On Dec. 12, APWA President Larry Frevert sent a letter to mayors and civic leaders in Washington and Oregon, as well as APWA members in the region, extending sympathy and support following the massive flooding in the two states, and offered APWA’s full resources and expertise in their recovery efforts. In particular, he highlighted response efforts and encouraged the continued recognition of the key role played by public works officials as they work alongside rescue and other emergency personnel to ensure roads are clear from debris and critical infrastructure systems are fully operational.
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On Dec. 12, APWA President Larry Frevert sent a letter to mayors and civic leaders in Washington and Oregon, as well as APWA members in the region, extending sympathy and support following the massive flooding in the two states, and offered APWA’s full resources and expertise in their recovery efforts. In particular, he highlighted response efforts and encouraged the continued recognition of the key role played by public works officials as they work alongside rescue and other emergency personnel to ensure roads are clear from debris and critical infrastructure systems are fully operational.

As a result of the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) recently signed between APWA and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), APWA is able to keep an open line of communication with FEMA during the course of large-scale disasters to ensure affected members are provided the most accurate and up-to-date information regarding federal aid and other assistive programs.

As of mid-December, FEMA Administrator David Paulison named federal officers in Washington and Oregon to coordinate the federal response efforts in both states. Surveys of the damaged areas were taking place to determine the extent of the assistance needed for disaster recovery. Press releases about

FEMA’s response to the flooding are available at: http://www.fema.gov/news/recentnews.fema.

For questions about federal aid programs, FEMA contact information or other details relating to this disaster, contact Dan Jensen at djensen@apwa.net.
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Following is a summary of key federal disaster aid programs that can be made available as needed and warranted under President Bush's Emergency disaster declaration issued for California.
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Following is a summary of key federal disaster aid programs that can be made available as needed and warranted under President Bush's Emergency disaster declaration issued for California.

http://www.fema.gov/news/newsrelease.fema?id=41427

"Emergency" is any occasion or instance in which the president determines that federal assistance is needed to supplement state and local efforts to save lives and protect property and public health and safety or to avert the threat of a catastrophe in any part of the United States.

Assistance for the State and Affected Local Governments Can Include as Required:

*Payment of not less than 75 percent of the eligible costs for removing debris from public areas and for emergency measures taken to save lives and protect property and public health. (Source: FEMA funded, state administered.)

*Initial FEMA-administered aid is limited to $5 million. If limit is exceeded, the president reports on the nature and extent of continuing emergency assistance requirements to Congress before approving further federal aid.

How to Apply for Assistance:

*Application procedures for local governments will be explained at a series of federal/state applicant briefings with locations to be announced in the affected area by recovery officials. Approved public repair projects are paid through the state from funding provided by FEMA and other participating federal agencies.

FEMA coordinates the federal government's role in preparing for, preventing, mitigating the effects of, responding to, and recovering from all domestic disasters, whether natural or man-made, including acts of terror.
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