HomeMy WebLinkAbout15.a. (Handout) Board Member Williams Report and Announcements Item 15.a.
(Handout)
Report on NACWA Conference July 23-26, 2018
David R. Williams
attended the National Association of Clean Water Agencies annual conference in
Boston, MA from July 23-26, 2018. The following is a summary of my conference
activities and key information presented. Please share with the entire Board.
Joint Legal Affairs and Climate & Resiliency Committee
-governments are getting sued for climate change liability since it is hard to
target other parties who contribute to climate change
-plaintiffs are shifting to other types of claims to get around sovereign
immunity. Shifts to statutory or constitutional claims e.g. flood roadway prevents
access to property; release of water from dam that floods property
-"standard of care" is the key consideration; what data was available and
was it reasonable to consider
-there are currently 87 climate change litigation cases on-going, many suing
the government for failure to prevent climate change
Facility and Collection System Committee
-EPA is pursuing a Rule Making on blending
-meeting scheduled for September 13t", NACWA sending seven
representatives, focus on 1. Operational best practices, 2. Public health, and 3.
Emerging technology
-Discussion on EPA's compliance vs. enforcement. NACWA's position is
compliance first then only enforce if necessary
-Discussion on use of epidemiology for tracking use of illegal drugs in sewer
systems, very difficult
Page 1 of 4
-Wipes update; guidelines have been published by the International Water
Services Flushability Group. Australia is developing a flushable standard; NACWA
has developed draft legislation and hoping that California will introduce a bill; the
cost of wipes study is underway
Water Quality Committee
EPA led discussion on the use of variances as allowed under the Clean
Water Act; what type of information is needed in order to gain a variance
-Discussion on the use of the TST test for toxicity testing; SCAP has sued
EPA but EPA is trying to dismiss the lawsuit; NACWA is proposing a study to show
the concerns with the use of the TST test
-Nutrients Update; EPA is conducting a national survey on possible
reduction of nutrients as existing plants, survey to be released in October;
NACWA is planning a webinar on the topic; data from survey will be made
available to the public
Legislative and Regulatory Policy committee
-WRDA; bills have been introduced in both the House and Senate; they
include language on promoting integrated planning
-Affordability: the 2% median household income standard is still in effect;
EPA has been asked by Congress to review the affordability standard
-Funding: FY 18 and 19 budgets include funding for water infrastructure;
EPA working on streamlining the SRF
-Farm Bill: opportunity to advance conservation and nutrient reductions
-Workforce: Brookings Institute has released report on workforce issues;
e.g. Camden N.J. has 10% unemployment in a very poor community while the rest
of the country has very low unemployment, need for increasing skill levels
-Biosolids: CASA is proposing research on use of biosolids on fire ravaged
lands
-Emerging Contaminants: EPA has released a report on trash free ocean
waters
-Dental Amalgam Rule: issue of who enforces on dentists, lot of workload
being placed on POTWs
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Plenary Session
-Presentation on communication and the importance of body language in
effective communication
-Roundtable discussion on International Perspectives on Governance:
discuss several case studies on consolidation efforts; reverse privatization where
communities took back their utilities from private operations
Plenary Session II
-Discussion on the future of the US water sector. Case study on hardships
facing small utilities after disaster strikes, costs of new regulations
-Discussion on innovation in the Clean Water Community: difficulty in being
the first to try an innovative process, presentation by vendors of innovative
technologies
Plenary Session III
-Discussed practices and business models for an economically viable future:
highlights of utilities that are making progress; presentation on contract delivery
models such a P3 drivers include
-need to accelerate project delivery
-reduce capital and O&M costs
-transfer risk
-funding alternatives
-accountability
Key success factors Include:
-public sector champion
-detailed contract
-balanced risk allocation
-overcoming public perception
-stakeholder support
-choosing the right partner
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Case studies were presented
-Discussion of Sustainable Governance: need to share services when appropriate;
opportunities for consolidation are being pursue by EPA; importance of
regionalization
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