At a budget hearing this morning Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt announced that the Trump administration would issue a proposed rulemaking action today.
What Does It Mean for a Water Body to Be Protected by the Clean Water Act?
For example: Wastewater dischargers and sewage plants may not dump into such waters without pollution-limiting permits; Facilities storing significant amounts of oil near covered waters must develop oil spill prevention and response plans; States must identify and prepare plans to clean up protected waters that don’t meet state water quality standards; Industrial and commercial developers ordinarily must obtain approval before discharging solid material into protected waters, destroying valuable wetlands and degrading lakes and streams, and these dischargers sometimes must mitigate their impact by creating, preserving, or enhancing other water resources; Nobody may discharge “any radiological, chemical, or biological warfare agent, any high-level radioactive waste, or any medical waste” into covered waters; and Entities disposing sewage sludge that could pollute such waters must abide by pollution control standards.
How Was the Clean Water Rule Developed?
The agencies then developed a rule that relies on this strong scientific basis and specifies that the Clean Water Act can protect those kinds of waters that have meaningful water quality impacts downstream.
During the comment period, EPA met with more than 400 stakeholders and received more than one million comments, 87% of which were supportive of the rule.
The agencies, led by EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt, have started planning actions that would do just that.
They are racing to repeal the rule before a court can independently review its basis in science and the law.
Ultimately, the Administration’s clean water rollback plan means that fewer streams, wetlands, and other waters would be protected by the Clean Water Act’s oil spill prevention program, its requirement to develop cleanup blueprints for polluted waters, its pollution control standards for industrial dischargers, its protections against burying streams and wetlands, and numerous other safeguards.
It means more pollution to the lakes and streams we rely on for drinking water supply or for fishing and swimming, and a green light for the rampant destruction of wetlands that prevent dangerous flooding.

Letter: We can’t tolerate contaminated water.
Water is only safe for drinking and contact when under 6 parts per billion.
All of this is caused by runoff of phosphorus from sewage, manure and fertilizer.
This high level of contamination causes kidney toxicity, diarrhea, vomiting and death.
We should have learned a grave lesson after the toxic algae bloom in 2014 in Lake Erie that left half a million people without clean drinking water for weeks.
Apparently, we have not.
Ohioans need to let Sens.
Sherrod Brown and Rob Portman know that this type of contamination is unacceptable.
We need to call, write, rally, protest and use whatever means necessary to urge them to address this issue and make changes.
We do not want to become another Flint, Michigan.

In a move to help build thriving communities, Kenya Breweries Limited in collaboration with AMREF Health Africa in Kenya, Tuesday commissioned Kerwa-Nduma Water Project in Kikuyu Constituency, a novel initiative aimed at providing clean and safe drinking water to over 20,000 residents of Kikuyu Constituency.
The water project to be managed by Kerwa Water Project Welfare Association (KWPWA) comprises of a 4Km water distribution line, a 225,000litre rehabilitated water tank, a borehole, a water pump house and a water kiosk.
Speaking at the inauguration ceremony, Diageo Corporate Relations Director, Dan Mobley said, “As a company, we seek to contribute to the communities by way of implementing innovative projects in the areas of access to clean drinking water, water conservation and management as underpinned by Diageo 2020 Sustainability Blueprint.” A World Bank study on water revealed that by 2050 over 40% of the global population will live under severe water stress; and as global population increases, so will tensions among different water uses.
Today, 18 million Kenyans have no access to water and sanitation services, therefore Nduma Water Project is fundamental in bridging the existing difference.
As a responsible corporate citizen, passionate about doing its part to respond to this societal need, KBL, through EABL Foundation is committed to invest in water projects within water-stressed communities such as Nduma,” said EABL Corporate Relation Director, Eric Kiniti.
“This is a project that is directly impacting people’s lives.
It is indeed changing people lives in a big way.
The residents will not only be able to access clean drinking water, but the water will promote economic activities,” added Mr. Ichungwah.
The program is part of a larger plan, dubbed “Water of Life” under which the Foundation has implemented over 78 community water projects in areas encountering a perennial water shortage across Kenya.
According to a study released in April 2016 by the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) and the Society for International Development (SID), only 35 per cent of Kiambu County’s population use improved sources of water, a situation that exacerbates sanitation-related illnesses.

We now also realize that New Hanover County and the Cape Fear Public Utility Authority have little real authority concerning what pollutants are dumped into the Cape Fear River above our drinking water intake.
We do little, however, to protect our groundwater.
The county and CFPUA should exercise their powers and work together to further develop the following programs: Wellhead protection regulations to tightly protect the immediate areas around public drinking water wells; Groundwater pumping restrictions to protect the sustainability of public wells; Full disclosure by industries of anticipated groundwater use and other externalities.
Dave Weaver, Wilmington Editor’s note: The writer, a retired New Hanover assistant county manager, serves on the county planning board.
Disparity in health care EDITOR: African-Americans have a higher risk of heart failure than Caucasians, but lower rates of heart transplantation.
This did not occur in North Carolina and the other states that did not opt for the expansion, thus serving as a control group.
Bottled not best option EDITOR: The article “Where does bottled water come from and how is it treated?” (StarNews, June 21) stated that bottled water manufacturers must adhere to FDA regulations, but local residents should be aware those requirements are very limited.
In fact, bottled water is monitored less frequently and for fewer contaminants than public tap water.
While water treated with reverse osmosis prior to bottling may provide temporary peace of mind when high levels of a harmful compound like GenX are found in the local tap water, installing a home filtration system is a more surefooted and sustainable way for residents to protect their health until the Chemours facility’s discharge of GenX is cleaned up once and for all.
Katie Hicks, Asheville Editor’s note: The writer is associate director of Clean Water for North Carolina.

Two Danish students have developed "SolarSack" for inexpensive and environmentally friendly water purification.
Anders Løcke and Louise Ullmann, who study Architecture and Design at Aalborg University (AAU), have designed a better and cheaper system for purifying drinking water in developing countries.
The product, known as SolarSack, is a special bag that is filled with four liters of water and placed in the sun for four hours.
The user can then drink the water and reuse the bag for water purification.
But where a SolarSack supplies at least 500 liters of clean drinking water for a dollar, a bucket of coal provides less than 100 liters of water.
As part of their studies in Architecture and Design at Aalborg University, Anders Løcke and Louise Ullmann went to East Africa to investigate the problem.
There is plenty of sunlight in Africa, and it’s free," says Anders Løcke, AAU.
The two students behind the project just graduated from their program at AAU, and Anders Løcke will now work full time as CEO of SolarSack.
The Red Cross is also interested in the project.
The plan is to get SolarSack into production and distribute the product to NGOs and the private sector in East Africa.

Three Ways To Find Safe Drinking Water.
Tags boilsbottled water banchlorine in waterCommunitycontaminated waterfluoride in waternaegleria in drinking waterpublic healthUS waterswaterwater conservationwater shortagewater supply Having safe water to drink is something that many people take for granted.
If you own a home and have water, whether it’s city water or well water, you’re usually lucky enough to be able to safely drink that water (although, not always).
You need water and it’s said that a human cannot live without water (from some source, even foods that are rich in it can help) for more than three days, although some people have tripled that (but why try?).
Check With Your Community Water System If you have city water and you suspect there is something wrong with it, or just want to know what might be lurking within each glass of it you drink, you can contact the purveyors of your local water system.
If you have a well and feel that something is amiss with your drinking water, it’s all on you.
Buy A Filter Some of the normal things that are found in water systems, like iron and arsenic (in very low amounts), can be filtered out.
There are tap connecting water filtration systems that allow you to get filtered water right from the tap.
Purchase Bottled Water Or Boil Water You could purchase bottled water in a pinch when fresh drinking water isn’t available.
Boil it, let it cool to room temperature and then refrigerate it until it’s cold enough to drink or add in some ice cubes.

Two Danish students have developed "SolarSack" for inexpensive and environmentally friendly water purification.
Anders Løcke and Louise Ullmann, who study Architecture and Design at Aalborg University (AAU), have designed a better and cheaper system for purifying drinking water in developing countries.
The product, known as SolarSack, is a special bag that is filled with four liters of water and placed in the sun for four hours.
The user can then drink the water and reuse the bag for water purification.
But where a SolarSack supplies at least 500 liters of clean drinking water for a dollar, a bucket of coal provides less than 100 liters of water.
As part of their studies in Architecture and Design at Aalborg University, Anders Løcke and Louise Ullmann went to East Africa to investigate the problem.
There is plenty of sunlight in Africa, and it’s free," says Anders Løcke, AAU.
The two students behind the project just graduated from their program at AAU, and Anders Løcke will now work full time as CEO of SolarSack.
The Red Cross is also interested in the project.
The plan is to get SolarSack into production and distribute the product to NGOs and the private sector in East Africa.

Seneca Nation, town of North Collins sign water agreement.
IRVING — Thanks to an agreement between the Seneca Nation and the Town of North Collins, residents in the hamlet of Lawtons will finally see the end to long-standing issues on drinking water quality in their community.
The agreement, which was approved by both the Seneca Nation Council and the North Collins Town Board, allows for the Town’s Lawtons Water District to purchase water from the Seneca Nation to provide to residents in the Lawtons community.
The Nation will provide the Lawtons Water District, through the Nation’s present system of water mains, an average of up to 20,000 gallons per day of potable water.
Lawtons Water District will construct, provide and maintain any additional necessary water mains and service connections within its service area.
“Water is life, and having access to safe drinking water should not be a concern for the people of our community,” said Seneca Nation President Todd Gates.
“The Seneca Nation is proud to work with the Town of North Collins and the Lawtons Water District to provide this much-needed solution for our neighbors in Lawtons.” Lawtons was one of three locations in Erie County recently cited by a Natural Resources Defense Council report detailing health threats in tap water across nearly 5,000 community water systems nationwide.
The Lawtons service area has experienced long-standing issues with water quality, likely connected to the shallow, nearly century-old well serving the roughly 95 residents in the area.
“I would like the thank President Gates and the Seneca Nation for their help in bringing clean drinking water to our community.” The Nation’s provision of water to the Lawtons Water District will be based on an annual base rate established by the Nation.
The rate will not exceed the existing rate at the time set by the Erie County Water Authority for general metered purposes, or other such rates as may be applicable to the Nation’s water supply.

Startup of the Week: Tern Water to Tackle the Drinking Water Crisis Faucet by Faucet.
Start Date: Early 2016 One Sentence Pitch: Products and services to help users get access to smart, sustainable, and healthy water.
The team’s first clean water awareness project—“Know Your Water”—is already underway.
Mo Zerban, the 22-year-old founder and CEO of Tern Water, has been working on sustainable innovation since his high school years in Alexandria, Egypt.
“I realized that there is a bigger awareness problem than there is a technology problem,“ says Zerban.
So far, Tern has tested over 200 Know Your Water capsules during the service’s pilot phase, and expects many more customers once they begin to aggressively publicize the project in the coming weeks.
The tests allow the company to construct a database of private water supplies in the area, provided by the people who will likely become their first customers when the Tern Faucet is available for sale.
“[Know Your Water] is helping us directly understand what the consumers want.” What consumers want, explains Zerban – citing the years-long tragedy over undetected lead in the Flint, Michigan drinking water – is reassurance.
He wants his startup to provide a means to both.
Tern comes from the word “pattern,” “and at Tern,” explains Zerban, “we are working to keep clean water in the normal pattern of life.”

"We are pleased to allocate state revolving funds for important projects like wastewater, stormwater and drinking water treatment facility upgrades, and rehabilitation of aging infrastructure," said Trina Vielhauer, director of the Division of Water Restoration Assistance.
The project will minimize energy consumption and reduce phosphorous at the city’s wastewater treatment facility before discharge into Holmes Creek, part of the Choctawhatchee basin.
As a qualifying community, a majority of this loan will not have to be repaid.
Grand Ridge will be awarded a $50,000 planning loan for the installation of solar panels at the wastewater treatment facility and lift stations throughout the town.
As a qualifying community, a majority of this loan will not have to be repaid.
Some examples of recently selected 2016-17 DWSRF projects include: Citrus County will be awarded a $5.2 million construction loan for transmission main interconnection along the Suncoast Parkway Florida Department of Transportation extension project to connect the Sugarmill Woods and Charles Black water treatment facilities.
Connecting these water treatment facilities will improve the level of water services for the area.
Fairpoint Regional Utilities System, Inc. will be awarded a $5.1 million construction loan for the installation of a new water supply well with a treatment facility for pH adjustment, disinfection and stabilization, as well as nearly 3 miles of distribution lines to connect the new well to the system.
The state’s CWSRF and DWSRF programs combined have awarded more than $5 billion in funding since their inception.
Joint CWSRF and DWSRF public meetings are held four times per year in August, October, February and May, to obligate funding for eligible water projects.