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  • EPA Rescinds 2019 PFAS Groundwater Memo

    EPA has published a Notice of Rescinded Guidance for its 2019 memorandum “Interim Recommendations to Address Groundwater Contaminated with Perfluorooctanoic Acid and Perfluorooctanesulfonate.” EPA rescinded the memo because it no longer reflects the best, currently available science. The rescission will allow CERCLA and RCRA site managers to investigate contaminated groundwater at levels below the previous screening level of 40 ppt and preliminary remediation goal of 70 ppt for PFOA and PFOS in sources (or potential sources) of drinking water.

    EPA suggests that site managers use existing processes or relevant and appropriate requirements (ARARs), such as state drinking water Maximum Contaminant Levels (MCLs), if available. If not available or protective, EPA recommends they use the Risk Assessment Guidance for Superfund (RAGS) to screen for PFOA and PFOS, develop risk-based preliminary remediation goals and establish final cleanup levels. EPA has also created Regional Screening Levels for certain PFAS, and may use EPA’s drinking water MCL for PFOA and PFOS when finalized as potential ARARs. For more information, visit the EPA website.

  • ASDWA HABs Webinar: CyAN Potential Satellite Monitoring of Drinking Water Sources

    On Tuesday, September 19, 2023, from 4:00 – 5:00 pm (eastern time), ASDWA will hold a webinar about the Cyanobacteria Assessment Network (CyAN) potential for satellite monitoring of drinking water sources. CyAN is a multi-agency project among US EPA, NASA, NOAA, and USGS to develop a satellite early warning indicator system for cyanobacterial blooms in U.S. freshwater systems. This webinar will provide an overview of the pros and cons of satellite imagery as an additional tool for monitoring drinking water sources. The webinar speakers are:

    • Blake Schaeffer, Research Scientist, US EPA
    • Bridget Seegers, Research Scientist, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
    • Megan Coffer, Research Scientist, NOAA and Global Science & Technology, Inc
    • Julie Harvey, Drinking Water Protection Program Coordinator, Oregon Department of Environmental Quality
    • Daniel Sobota, Senior Water Quality Specialist, Oregon Department of Environmental Quality

    During the webinar, speakers will discuss how to easily access the satellite data, how the data may be used to monitor source water at drinking water intakes, how satellite data compared to responses of the fourth Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule, and highlight a use case with the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality.

    ASDWA HABs Webinar Series: This is the third of three HABs webinars in the ASDWA series for state drinking water programs and partners. For more information and to view the previous webinar recordings and presentations, go to www.asdwa.org/habs.

    REGISTER FOR THE WEBINAR HERE

  • Office of Water Corrects Guide on SRF Audits in Response to OIG Findings

    In an August 15 report, EPA’s Office of Inspector General outlined findings that the Agency’s Office of Water policy memorandum, titled Updated Single Audit Act Borrower Audit Collection Policy, issued in September 2021, “incorrectly advised states that they do not have to review single audits of nonfederal entities that borrow money from state revolving funds.” The Office of Water’s memo was intended to reflect the changes the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) made to the Uniform Guidance in August 2020. The Uniform Guidance “requires any nonfederal entity that expends $750,000 or more in federal funds in a fiscal year to undergo a single audit of its financial statements and federally funded programs.” However, EPA’s Office of Water misinterpreted OMB’s changes. Its policy for states went directly against the Single Audit Act, which requires independent nonfederal auditors to conduct single audits and write reports summarizing the results of their audits, which are maintained in a repository called the Federal Audit Clearinghouse, and assist federal agencies in providing oversight of entities that receive federal funds.

    For example, OIG found that the Mississippi State Department of Health (MSDH) did not review the single audit reports for the City of Jackson, a nonfederal entity that borrowed money from MSDH’s Drinking Water State Revolving Fund. This decision was made due to the Office of Water’s policy memorandum stating they did not need to do so. The OIG’s report noted that this policy was putting federal funding at risk. OIG’s findings were brought to the Office of Water in June. In response, EPA issued a second memorandum titled Clarification of Single Audit Requirements Under the Clean Water and Drinking Water State Revolving Fund Programs. The memo “clarified the requirement for single audits, federal funds, and the responsibilities of recipients of state revolving fund assistance and state programs.” Because this memorandum addressed OIG’s concerns, the office made no recommendations in its final report. 

  • ASDWA Provides Support for EPA’s Proposal to Regulate PCE Under TSCA

    On August 14, ASDWA submitted comments providing broad support for EPA’s proposed rule to regulate certain uses of perchloroethylene (PCE) under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). In line with numerous other comments to the Agency, ASDWA argues that a comprehensive and holistic risk assessment and evaluation approach is needed to consider potential impacts to drinking water, human health, and the environment. The association agrees with EPA’s conclusion that “TSCA is the only regulatory authority able to prevent or reduce unreasonable risk of PCE to a sufficient extent across the range of conditions of use, exposures and populations of concern.”

    PCE has been regulated under the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) at five parts per billion since 1991, which ASDWA points to when asking EPA to “ensure that the Agency uses all its regulatory authorities, such as phasing out and limiting the uses of PCE under TSCA, to ensure this contaminant does not adversely impact sources used for drinking water.” ASDWA’s comments support EPA’s proposed 10-year phaseout of the use of PCE for dry-cleaning activities and asks the Agency to use its regulatory authorities to ensure that the 17 remaining uses of PCE do not adversely impact drinking water sources.

  • ASDWA, AMWA, AWWA, and ACWA Provide Support for EPA’s Proposed TSCA Amendments

    On August 8, ASDWA, the Association of Metropolitan Water Agencies (AMWA), the American Water Works Association (AWWA), and the Association of Clean Water Agencies (ACWA) submitted comments to EPA supportive of the Agency’s proposed rule to amend the new chemicals procedural regulations under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). These amendments are intended to align the regulatory text for new chemical review with the amendments to TSCA contained in the 2016 Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act and to improve the efficiency of EPA’s review processes.

    The associations were generally supportive of the proposed rule requirements, which would increase transparency by making the list of new chemical submissions received available in one place on the Agency’s website, requiring information from manufacturers and users related to each site where a chemical substance will be manufactured, processed, or used, and a requirement to provide detailed information regarding the potential environmental releases at each site, among others changes. The letter emphasizes that “TSCA is the first line of defense for protecting drinking water sources and other environmental media from emerging contaminants” and that “preventing contaminants at the source from entering the environment is more effective and less expensive than removing these pollutants from much larger streams like drinking water or contaminated watersheds.”

  • ASDWA, ECOS, and ASTHO Send Letter to President Biden Seeking Support from Federal Agencies to Remove Sources of PFAS

    Today (8/10), ASDWA, along with the Environmental Council of the States (ECOS) and the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO), sent a letter to President Biden requesting that the administration focus additional federal resources and support to federal agencies and the actions they are undertaking to address PFAS contamination. The associations argue that “[b]ecause PFAS are used prolifically across manufacturing processes, successful management of PFAS chemicals will require a wide range of federal actions to reduce the daily release of PFAS into the environment and the corresponding risks to public health.” The letter emphasizes that federal agencies, including EPA, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Food and Drug Administration, and the Department of Defense, must prioritize using their combined regulatory authorities to reduce or eliminate the introduction of PFAS into the environment, and to remediate PFAS contamination that already exists.

    Similarly, the associations request that federal agencies continue prioritizing work to deepen our understanding of PFAS health effects. Additionally, the associations note that federal agencies “must provide support to states, territories, and localities in communicating about these public health risks with water systems and their communities.” Finally, the associations request that the Biden administration prioritize federal resources and support to state and territorial agencies and their efforts to address PFAS contamination. Referencing EPA’s recently proposed PFAS drinking water regulation, the associations argue that “we cannot fully address PFAS in drinking water without tackling the widespread PFAS contamination throughout the environment.”

  • Public Comment for NIST Cybersecurity Framework (CSF) Update

    The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has released a draft version of the Cybersecurity Framework (CSF) 2.0, which it first released in 2014 to help organizations understand, reduce and communicate about cybersecurity risk.This is the first significant revision since 2014 and reflects changes in the cybersecurity landscape to make it easier for organizations to implement the CSF. The most significant portion of the revision is the addition of “govern” as an over-arching element of the CSF, i.e., the CSF incorporates an appropriate recognition by the governing body of the importance of cybersecurity.

    NIST is accepting public comment on the draft framework until Nov. 4, 2023. NIST does not plan to release another draft. A workshop planned for the fall will be announced shortly and will serve as another opportunity for the public to provide feedback and comments on the draft. The developers plan to publish the final version of CSF 2.0 in early 2024.

    View the Cybersecurity Framework (CSF) 2.0 here: CSWP 29, The NIST Cybersecurity Framework 2.0 | CSRC

    Feedback on this CSF 2.0 Public Draft and the related Implementation Examples draft may be submitted to cyberframework@nist.gov by Friday, November 4, 2023.

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  • Updated 2023 ASDWA Annual Conference Agenda Now Available

    Register now to attend ASDWA’s Annual Conference being held on October 23-25, 2023, at the Hyatt Regency in Greenville, South Carolina. The updated agenda is now available. This year’s Conference will include presentations and in-depth discussions on topics including lead service line inventories, emergency response, small system PFAS treatment challenges, IIJA implementation and earmarks technical assistance, cybersecurity, and more. Please note that all the sessions on Wednesday, October 25, are for states and EPA only, so make your travel plans accordingly. You can view the updated Conference Agenda here.

    Visit the ASDWA 2023 Annual Conference web page to register for the conference and off-site event at FireForge on Monday night, reserve your hotel room, and find information to reserve an exhibit booth. Please regularly check the event page for the most up-to-date information. For questions, please email Kevin Letterly of ASDWA at (kletterly@asdwa.org). We look forward to seeing you in Greenville!

  • New Water Systems Community Lifeline for Disaster Response Operations

    On August 1, FEMA modified its Community Lifelines construct to include an eighth Lifeline called ‘Water Systems.’ Previously, drinking water and wastewater had been included in the ‘Food, Water, and Shelter’ Lifeline. EPA and Water Sector Partners, represented by the Water Sector Coordinating Council and Government Coordinating Council, have for several years strongly advocated for this type of structural change to better identify and represent the water sector in existing emergency response procedures, protocols, and frameworks.

    The creation of this new Water Systems Community Lifeline will emphasize the importance of drinking water and wastewater service restoration for community recovery.

    The community lifelines are designed to increase effectiveness in disaster operations and better position the response to catastrophic incidents. Lifelines allow emergency managers to characterize the incident, identify the root causes of priority issue areas, and distinguish the highest priorities and most complex issues from other incident information.

    More information is available on the FEMA public website.

  • Save the Date: August 2024 National Capacity Development and Operator Certification Workshop

    Save the date for the Seventh National Capacity Development and Operator Certification Workshop that will be held on August 7-9, 2024, at the Madison Concourse Hotel in Madison, Wisconsin. This workshop is being co-hosted by EPA and ASDWA for state drinking water programs, EPA, tribes, and technical assistance providers. For more information, view the workshop flyer. For questions, please contact Alison Flenniken of EPA at Flenniken.Alison@epa.gov.