Pharmaceuticals in Water Discovered

Senators Frank Lautenberg and Barbara Boxer, both chairs of water works-related Senate committees, have requested that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) set safety limits for pharmaceuticals in public drinking water supplies after a recently released report by the Associated Press indicated that there are trace amounts of pharmaceutical drugs in the water supplies of 24 to 28 tested major metropolitan areas. The report was the result of a 5-month long investigation in urban and rural areas in all 50 states.

The senators would like a detailed summary of plans the EPA has for researching, monitoring and requiring public disclosure of levels of these products in water. The request also asked whether the agency will set new standards for testing, use and disposal of these products, as well as regulate the treatment of related sewage and sludge.

Chemical Security Legislation Approved

The House Homeland Security Committee has approved draft legislation that would extend and modify federal authority to regulate the security of U.S. chemical plants, including water and wastewater treatment plants. The measure would require any facility that produces, stores or uses chemicals of concern to submit vulnerability assessments and facility security plans to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for approval.

Additionally, the measure includes inherently safer technology provisions that require chemical facilities to evaluate whether a safe alternative chemical could be substituted for a particular chemical used by the facility. Other amendments approved by the committee include one that would bar DHS from requiring a publicly owned drinking water or wastewater facility to implement methods to reduce the consequences of a terrorist attack unless that facility receives DHS grant funding.

The committee voted 15-7 to approve the Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Act, which would make permanent the interim chemical security regulations issued by DHS in April 2007, with some changes. The legislation has been referred to the House Energy and Commerce Committee because of that committee’s long-standing jurisdiction over matters involving chemicals and hazardous substances.

Operating Plan for The Colorado River

Secretary of the Interior Dirk Kempthorne has issued the 2008 Annual Operating Plan for the operation of the Colorado River reservoirs and distribution of Colorado River water to Arizona, Nevada and California. A letter transmitting the approved Annual Operating Plan was sent to the governors of each of the seven Colorado River Basin States.

The Annual Operating Plan normally is issued in December, but was delayed this year to allow the incorporation of new interim river operating guidelines. Those guidelines, contained in the Record of Decision for Colorado River Interim Guidelines for Lower Basin Shortages and the Coordinated Operations for Lake Powell and Lake Mead, were approved by the Secretary in December 2007.

The Interim Guidelines are supposed to ensure that the Colorado River will be managed to protect and conserve its water supplies for current and future generations. Developed through a collaborative effort by the Interior Department, the basin states and other interested stakeholders, the guidelines encourage water conservation, allow planning for potential shortages, implement closer coordination of Lake Powell and Lake Mead, and provide the flexibility to deal with such potential challenges as climate change and persistent drought.

Under the 2008 Annual Operating Plan, Arizona, California and Nevada will be entitled to take their basic Colorado River entitlements in water year 2008, while also providing for some modifications of these deliveries. The Annual Operating Plan also makes available 1.5 million acre-feet of water for delivery to Mexico in accordance with the 1944 United States-Mexico Water Treaty.

The Interim Guidelines will be used to develop the Annual Operating Plan through 2026.

Three-part Water Legislation Package

North Carolina governor Mike Easley announced a three-part legislative package to modernize public water systems, mandate water conservation and efficiency, and upgrade the response to water emergencies. This legislation is intended to help North Carolina’s public water systems improve their services to customers, and be better prepared to deal with future droughts.

One of the key proposals to modernize the state’s more than 600 public water systems includes local water systems developing thorough water shortage plans, conducting regular leak detection and repair audits, and moving toward conservation, based on pricing, to be eligible for state funds. Priority for state funding will go to projects that improve a community’s ability to manage water supplies during a drought.

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources will get staff and funding to develop a detailed and up-to-date map that shows all water-system interconnections, alternative water supplies, ground water status and other information.

The legislative package also would make changes to water conservation and efficiency mandates, such as prohibiting rate structures that cut the rates for users when they use more water, and developing guidelines for water-rate structures that encourage people to use less water. The package also includes adopting water-efficiency standards for new in-ground irrigation systems, and changing the rules so that gray water can be used in homeowners’ yards.

Finally, the legislation works to improve the state’s ability to respond to water emergencies, including giving the governor more power to take action prior to a declaration of a public health and safety emergency. 
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