Trump Declares War on Clean Water with Rule Repeal Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Scott Pruitt, has announced that he will be repealing the 2015 Clean Water Rule.
“President Trump and his crony Scott Pruitt are declaring war on clean water and putting the entire nation at risk by attacking this important rule.The clean water rule provides important protections for wetlands that filter pollutions, habitats for fish and wildlife, and floodwater absorption.
It will leave vital parts of our water infrastructure like wetlands and the drinking water sources for more than 117 million Americans at risk of pollution and destruction.Given Christie’s attacks on wetlands and our water, this a one-two punch against clean water.” Every person has the unquestionable right to clean water for our health, environment, and enjoyment.
We support WOTUS as a method to preserve drinking water, health, the environment and recreational opportunities across the country.
The Waters of the United States safeguard would prevent polluter from being able to take advantage of the confusion of the Supreme Court and instead protects our waterways.
“This latest announcement is a continuation of the Trump Administration’s attack on the environment by overturning this important rule which is critical to protect wetlands.
This rule would close dangerous loophole to help preserve wetlands, protect us from future storms and clean up waterways,” said Jeff Tittel.
WOTUS would ensure that our streams, wetlands, and waterways are protected from pollution.
WOTUS for all of us because these waters belong to all of US,” said Jeff Tittel, Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club.
“Undoing the WOTUS will mean more pollution in our waterways and more contaminated drinking water in our communities.

U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, D-Scranton, wrote to U.S. Sen. John McCain, R-Arizona, on Tuesday, urging McCain to help fund a nationwide health study for Americans exposed to perfluorinated compounds in their drinking water.
McCain is the chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee, and Casey requested he use his stature to include funding for a study in the 2018 National Defense Authorization Act.
The letter also was addressed to U.S. Sen. Jack Reed, D-Rhode Island, who is the ranking Democrat on the committee.
An appropriations bill determines the annual military budget, while the authorization act provides the legal authority to spend the money.
That process is taking place this week, and Casey’s office said McCain has stated he’d like to see the full Senate vote on the authorization bill sometime in July or August.
Casey also revealed in his letter that acting Assistant Secretary of Defense Peter Potochney wrote to him in February stating that “The DoD supports the development of a nationwide health effects strategy by the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention and the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (CDC/ATSDR) for PFOS and PFOA.” The number of exposed people is estimated to be as many as 15 million.
Many, such as an estimated 70,000 current residents of Bucks and Montgomery counties, were exposed when firefighting foams used at military bases degraded over decades into toxic chemicals PFOS and PFOA and entered water supplies.
The military is engaged in a widespread response, investigating potential contamination at hundreds of bases across the country and setting aside billions of dollars for cleanup.
Previous studies conducted by independent researchers or as the result of lawsuits have found some links to a variety of illnesses, including some cancers.
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In June, the Department of National Defence (DND) sampled off-site residential water supplies near 22 Wing North Bay for PFAS and of 27 results received so far, two tested residences exceed the Health Canada screening values for drinking water.
BayToday has requested the actual numbers from DND.
Once confirmed, results will be made available.
"Acceptable levels for PFAS are guided by Health Canada drinking water screening values.
Screening values are established at a level designed to protect the health of Canadians, including children, based on a lifetime’s exposure to the substance.
The five remaining water sample results are expected shortly.
DND says it will immediately notify homeowners of any results that exceed the Health Canada screening values for drinking water, and will contact residents within one to two weeks of receiving validated results that are within the Health Canada screening values.
The last round of water testing, conducted in June, was to monitor for seasonal variability and to expand the sampling program in certain areas.
Residents that have not been contacted by DND regarding water sampling, are not in the affected area," says a DND release.
From the early 1970s to the mid-1990s, DND used extinguishing substances containing Perfluoroalkylated substances at former firefighting training areas at the North Bay Airport.

An estimated 1,680 villages in Sistan-Baluchistan Province lack piped water, according to the provincial governor general.
“Water in 1,300 villages is being supplied via tankers, and another 380 are on the list for the current season,” said Ali Owsat Hashemi at a recent meeting with provincial government representatives and Mohammad Baqer Nobakht, the government spokesman and head of the Management and Planning Organization.
Water supply from Afghanistan could increase the chances of cholera in Iran, which has been free of cholera for over two years.
But threats still exist from the two adjacent countries of Afghanistan to the east and Iraq in the west.
Over the last few years sources of drinking water supply in Iran have improved in many rural areas.
According to Ali Asghar Qane,’ deputy head of the National Water and Wastewater Engineering Company, 3,000 villages with a total population of two million were connected to water supply networks in the last fiscal year that ended in March.
A budget of $500 million from the National Development Fund of Iran (NDFI) was allocated for implementation of piped water projects.
“A threat to the water resources would mean higher chances of residents deserting the province,” he noted, lamenting that due to the difficulties related to supplying water through tankers, there are few takers for year-long contracts.
Statistics show that in 1956, the rural population in Iran comprised 70% of the population of 19 million.
Results of the National Population and Housing Census released in February show that during the past five years, 3.9 million people migrated from rural to urban areas, of which 20.2% moved to the overcrowded capital Tehran.

Drinking water crisis ends in Mt.
Shasta.
“Repeat samples show no E.coli or fecal coliform bacteria in the Mt.
Shasta spring source,” Andrew DiLuccia, a spokesman for the State Water Resources Control Board, said Tuesday.
The city of Mt.
Some restaurants reportedly closed because they couldn’t ensure diner’s safety.
The believers come by the thousands, searching and exploring the giant peak’s myth and magic.
They come from around the world, from more than 50 countries, to explore the giant peak, 14,180 feet tall and 17 miles across.
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The importance of investing in water delivery systems.
The need to invest in water delivery systems over the years has only increased and is a more pressing issue.
The problem is not just aging pipes.
The sources of the drinking water are also becoming out-of-date, which include depleted aquifers and inadequate storage.
As water systems age and little investment is made into water delivery systems, the country is paying a costly price.
One important program to help states update their water infrastructure is the Drinking Water State Revolving Loan Fund (DWSRF), which serves as a federal-state financial assistance program in which states receive federal grants and contribute an additional 20 percent in matching funds.
The DWSRF acts as an infrastructure bank to provide low interest loans for drinking water infrastructure projects.
Through 2016, state revolving loan funds have provided more than $30 billion for water infrastructure projects.
President Trump recognizes the importance of this program for infrastructure projects, and his budget proposal calls for increasing federal funds for this program.
More funding for this program will greatly benefit states like Missouri to help update its water delivery systems.

An estimated 1,680 villages in Sistan-Baluchistan Province lack piped water, according to the provincial governor general.
“Water in 1,300 villages is being supplied via tankers, and another 380 are on the list for the current season,” said Ali Owsat Hashemi at a recent meeting with provincial government representatives and Mohammad Baqer Nobakht, the government spokesman and head of the Management and Planning Organization.
Water supply from Afghanistan could increase the chances of cholera in Iran, which has been free of cholera for over two years.
But threats still exist from the two adjacent countries of Afghanistan to the east and Iraq in the west.
Over the last few years sources of drinking water supply in Iran have improved in many rural areas.
According to Ali Asghar Qane,’ deputy head of the National Water and Wastewater Engineering Company, 3,000 villages with a total population of two million were connected to water supply networks in the last fiscal year that ended in March.
A budget of $500 million from the National Development Fund of Iran (NDFI) was allocated for implementation of piped water projects.
“A threat to the water resources would mean higher chances of residents deserting the province,” he noted, lamenting that due to the difficulties related to supplying water through tankers, there are few takers for year-long contracts.
Statistics show that in 1956, the rural population in Iran comprised 70% of the population of 19 million.
Results of the National Population and Housing Census released in February show that during the past five years, 3.9 million people migrated from rural to urban areas, of which 20.2% moved to the overcrowded capital Tehran.

Man ‘shocked’ by First Nations water crisis running across Canada to raise awareness.
According to a Government of Canada website, there are more than 100 long-term drinking water advisories in First Nations communities across Canada.
Hasan Syed hopes that through his efforts he can help ensure every community in Canada has access to safe drinking water.
‘I always viewed Canada as a safe haven’ Syed moved with his family to Canada from Pakistan when he was 10 years old, and he has firsthand experience of not having access to clean water.
That’s why, in his last year of studying nursing, Syed was shocked to learn that people struggle to access clean drinking water across Canada as well.
"I always viewed Canada as a safe haven, a developed nation for all," said Syed.
The discovery ignited a passion in Syed, and he felt compelled to do something about it.
Challenged by run Syed started his journey in April and planned the run to last 150 days to commemorate Canada’s 150th birthday, but the journey is more difficult that he imagined.
Syed will be speaking about his journey at Wesley United Church in Regina at 7 p.m. CST on Tuesday.
With files from CBC Radio’s Morning Edition

Man ‘shocked’ by First Nations water crisis running across Canada to raise awareness.
According to a Government of Canada website, there are more than 100 long-term drinking water advisories in First Nations communities across Canada.
Hasan Syed hopes that through his efforts he can help ensure every community in Canada has access to safe drinking water.
‘I always viewed Canada as a safe haven’ Syed moved with his family to Canada from Pakistan when he was 10 years old, and he has firsthand experience of not having access to clean water.
That’s why, in his last year of studying nursing, Syed was shocked to learn that people struggle to access clean drinking water across Canada as well.
"I always viewed Canada as a safe haven, a developed nation for all," said Syed.
The discovery ignited a passion in Syed, and he felt compelled to do something about it.
Challenged by run Syed started his journey in April and planned the run to last 150 days to commemorate Canada’s 150th birthday, but the journey is more difficult that he imagined.
Syed will be speaking about his journey at Wesley United Church in Regina at 7 p.m. CST on Tuesday.
With files from CBC Radio’s Morning Edition

China revises law on water pollution prevention and control.
The law was adopted after a second reading at the bi-monthly session of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress.
Submitted to the committee for a first reading in December 2012, the new version strengthens government responsibility and supervision.
The law stipulates that emergency and back-up water resources should be set up in cities with single water sources and governments above the county-level should make public information of drinking water quality at least once a quarter.
Those who build sewage outlets in protected drinking water source areas will face a maximum fine of one million yuan.
At the beginning of the session, lawmakers also reviewed the first soil pollution prevention and control law.
According to the draft, all entities and individuals must prevent soil pollution, and will be held accountable for damage caused.
There will be national standards for soil pollution risk control.
China revised its law on air pollution in 2015, restricting various sources of smog and making environmental data more transparent.
The Air Pollution Control Law stipulates that a gasoline quality standards should be established and matched with restrictions on major pollutants.