Imagine a Day Without Water
Imagine a Day Without Water
Today, October 21, CASA is proud to participate in the national education campaign, Imagine a Day Without Water, and we encourage our members to join us in highlighting how water is essential, invaluable, and in need of investment. It is not too late to sign up! Visit the website to participate, learn more about the history of this campaign, the resources available, who else is involved, and get social media templates here. The US Water Alliance will also be hosting a One Water Webinar today from 11:00 am – 12:00 pm, which will focus on state and local policies and programs that water leaders across the country report are making a difference in their communities. In addition, the webinar will showcase the Recovering Stronger Knowledge Map, a new digital tool from the Alliance designed to help participants dive deeper into One Water projects in their regions. Webinar registration is free and can be found here. 
State Legislative Update
The final state legislative deadline for the year was October 10th, when Governor Newsom issued his final actions on legislation passed to him during the 2021 legislative session. There were several bills of significant interest to CASA that the Governor signed in the weeks leading up to the final deadline, including the following:
 
AB 818 (Bloom): Disposable Nonwoven Products Labeling
We are happy to report that AB 818 (Bloom), CASA’s sponsored wipes labeling bill, has been signed by Governor Newsom. It goes into effect on January 1, 2022.  

SB 273 (Hertzberg): Stormwater Authority
We are also pleased to announce that the Governor has signed SB 273 (Hertzberg), another CASA co-sponsored bill with California Coast Keepers Alliance, which provides all wastewater treatment agencies the authority to divert, treat and dispose of stormwater and urban runoff.  
Federal Legislative Update
USEPA Releases PFAS Strategic Roadmap
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) has released its PFAS Strategic Roadmap, which outlines how the Agency will take a wholistic approach to address PFAS pollution. Upon the roadmap's release, USEPA Administrator Michael Regan stated that the roadmap will deliver protections to the public by advancing actions that address the full lifecycle of these forever chemicals. A copy of the roadmap can be accessed here. Following the release of the roadmap, USEPA will engage with stakeholders to identify collaborative solutions and will hold two national webinars on October 26 and November 2 that are open to the public. To attend the webinars, RSVP using the hyperlinked dates above.
 
Of importance to CASA are the roadmap's actions to address and manage PFAS contamination in wastewater, under CERCLA, and establishing national PFAS testing and monitoring methods. The below is a selected summary of the roadmap, highlighting key actions that are of importance to CASA priorities. 
USEPA and USACE Send WOTUS Proposed Rule to White House
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) sent a Waters of the U.S. (WOTUS) proposed rule to the White House's Office of Management and Budget (OMB) that revises the definition of a "water of the U.S." As of this writing, a copy of the proposed rule has yet to be released, so it is still unknown how the Biden Administration revises the definition. However, USEPA has stated that it wants to craft a WOTUS rule that endures future Administrations. USEPA and USACE has also requested input on potential location selections for the ten WOTUS roundtable sites. The roundtables are intended to represent the perspectives of the varying regions across the country and to listen to stakeholders’ experiences under past WOTUS regulatory decisions. In a press release, USEPA explained that the purpose of the roundtables is to understand the differing regional perspectives of how the regions are affected by the previous WOTUS definitions, learn about the experiences, challenges and opportunities of stakeholders under various definitions, and facilitate engagement across diverse perspectives to inform the development of a durable and workable WOTUS definition.
In Case You Missed It
Governor Newsom Expands Drought Emergency Statewide, Urges Californians to Redouble Water Conservation Efforts
Following the second driest year on record and with near record low storage in California’s largest reservoirs, Governor Gavin Newsom issued a proclamation extending the drought emergency statewide and further urging Californians to step up their water conservation efforts as the western U.S. faces a potential third dry year. The proclamation authorizes State Water Board to ban wasteful water uses to boost conservation efforts. Read more in the press release.
Ongoing Cyber Threats to U.S. Water and Wastewater Systems
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Agency (CISA), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the National Security Agency (NSA) released a joint advisory on October 14 to highlight ongoing malicious cyber activity—by both known and unknown actors—targeting the information technology (IT) and operational technology (OT) networks, systems, and devices of U.S. Water and Wastewater Systems (WWS) Sector facilities. This activity—which includes attempts to compromise system integrity via unauthorized access—threatens the ability of WWS facilities to provide clean, potable water to, and effectively manage the wastewater of, their communities. Note: although cyber threats across critical infrastructure sectors are increasing, this advisory does not intend to indicate greater targeting of the WWS Sector versus others. Information above from the Department of Homeland Security. Read more here.
Webinars, Workshops & Events
CFCC Free Virtual Funding Fair
The California Financing Coordinating Committee (CFCC) is hosting a free virtual funding fair on October 21 and 28, 2021. The funding fair will provide the opportunity to learn more about available grant, loan, and bond financing options for infrastructure projects from federal, state, and local agencies. Representatives from water industry professionals, including city managers and planners, economic development and engineering professionals, officials from privately owned facilities, water and irrigation district managers, financial advisors, and project consultants are encouraged to attend. For more information about CFCCC, please visit the website at www.cfcc.ca.gov. 
Recycle the Runoff Workshop
On November 10, at 9:00am, join the LA County Sanitation Districts and the Council for Watershed Health for a virtual workshop exploring stormwater diversions as tools to improve water quality and capture dry-weather and wet-weather flows for treatment. The workshop will offer a roadmap for stormwater permittees interested in planning and implementing stormwater diversions in LA County. Expert panelists will cover the requirements, permitting needs, costs, benefits, and limitations of diversion projects. Other agencies considering stormwater diversions under SB 273 will get an in-depth look at the evaluation and acceptance process used by LA County Sanitation Districts, a large agency with extensive experience in stormwater diversion.

Municipalities and institutions interested in sewer diversions, designers developing detailed diversion plans, and other agencies looking for information on how to accept sewer diversions are encouraged to attend. Register here.
PPIC Water Policy Center Conference  
The Public Policy Institute of California’s annual November water policy conference, “Seizing the Drought: Water Priorities for Our Changing Climate” event will include three late morning webinars (11:00 AM –12:00 PM) on November 15, 16, and 17. At the conference, the PPIC Water Policy Center will convene a diverse group of experts to discuss how to tackle the highly disruptive effects of climate change on our water system, including immediate actions we can take to boost the state’s resilience. Be sure to register today!
Save the Date!
Be sure to save the date for CASA’s Winter Conference 2022, on Wednesday, January 19 - Friday, January 21 in Palm Springs! Stay tuned for more details in future editions of Connects.
CASA represents more than 125 local public agencies engaged in the collection, treatment and recycling of Wastewater and biosolids to protect public health and the environment. Our mission is to provide trusted information and advocacy on behalf of California clean water agencies, and to be a leader in sustainability and utilization of renewable resources.