The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee has issued a letter kicking off the solicitation process for the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) of 2010. WRDA is a comprehensive water resources law, typically authorized every two years, therefore it is time for Congress to develop WRDA for the 111th Congress.

 

Any projects submitted to the 110th Congress will have to be resubmitted and it is recommended that you contact your local US Army Corps of Engineers office regarding any potential requests.

 

The information necessary to submit a completed and valid WRDA project request includes:

The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee staff has been continuing work toward forming a system that plans comprehensively for all aspects of watershed projects.

 

A draft of the "Sustainable Watershed Planning Act" has been circulated this summer and would create a Cabinet level council and a President - appointed director to "carry out the policies and programs of the federal government affecting sustainable water resources management." The Cabinet level council would consist of the EPA Administrator, the secretaries of Agriculture, Commerce, Energy, Housing and Urban Development, Transportation, Interior, and U.S. Army; the chiefs of the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission; and state and tribal leaders. Additionally, the bill would establish regional watershed planning boards that would produce five-year plans for water use and conservation. Finally, regional watershed planning boards would have federal, state, local, and stakeholder representatives and states would be eligible for grants of up to $1.5 million a year to set up their own water planning boards or to support existing planning efforts.

 

The draft continues to be a work in progress and still has no firm date set for completion.

The Water Resources Coalition sent a letter to the Secretary of the Interior, Ken Salazar, on August 21st, requesting at least $1.2 billion in the FY 2011 Presidential budget for the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation's Water and Related Resources account. The letter, which was signed onto by several related organizations, also urges Secretary Salazar to support $100 million for the Bureau's Title XVI Water Recycling program, as well as funds to address aging water infrastructure and rural water needs throughout the West.

 

The letter stresses the impact that investing in our aging water infrastructure can have on the economy. According to a study by the Clean Water Council, a $1 billion investment in water and wastewater infrastructure results in the creation of 27,000 jobs and triples the demand for goods and services. Additionally, the Bureau of Reclamation Commissioner, Mike Conner, stated in his July 21, 2009 testimony to the House Subcommittee on Water and Power, that there is a backlog of $600 million unfunded Title XVI projects. Meaning that we now have a unique opportunity to create jobs and provide a near-term solution to water supply challenges in our country.

 

To read the full letter click here. 

The Federal Advisory Committee on Water Information's (ACWI) Subcommittee on Ground Water (SOGW) announces the release of a final document A National Framework for Ground-Water Monitoring in the United States. This document is the result of efforts over the last three years toward implementation of a National Ground Water Monitoring Network (NGWMN).

The NGWMN is a critical element in the Nation's ability to assess the quantity of ground-water reserves as constrained by ground-water quality in the country's principal, major or other important aquifers.

The Framework Document recommends a limited pilot program (Pilot Projects) to test NGWMN components as the next step in determining the feasibility and resources necessary to implement the national network. Additional information on opportunities for state, regional and local agencies, tribal government, and other organizations that manage and operate statewide or regional ground-water level and/or quality monitoring networks to participate in Pilot Projects will be available in the next several weeks.

If you have questions on the Framework Document, please contact William Cunningham at 703/648.5005, or wcunning@usgs.gov

To access the USGS fact sheet, please go to http://pubs.usgs.gov/fs/2009/3015

The National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program of the U.S. Geological Survey is conducting a regional analysis of water quality in the principal aquifers in the southwestern United States. The Southwest Principal Aquifers (SWPA) study is building a better understanding of the susceptibility of basin-fill aquifers in the region to ground-water contamination by synthesizing the baseline knowledge of ground-water quality conditions in 15 basin-fill aquifers previously studied by the NAWQA Program. The improved understanding of aquifer susceptibility and vulnerability to contamination is assisting in the development of tools that water managers can use to assess and protect the quality of ground-water resources. This fact sheet provides an overview of the basin-fill aquifers in the southwestern United States and description of the completed and planned regional analyses of ground-water quality being performed by the SWPA study.

If you have questions, please contact Susan Thiros (sthiros@usgs.gov ; 801-908-5063) or David Anning (dwanning@usgs.gov ; 928-556-7139). Please feel free to distribute this information to your colleagues.

The Association of State Floodplain Managers will have their annual meeting May 16 - 21, 2010 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Throughout the week, over 200 of the industry's experts will conduct educational sessions and share the state of the art techniques, programs, and resources available to reduce flood risk and accomplish flood mitigation, watershed management, and other community goals.

 

The Water Policy Institute and the University of California, Berkley, are sponsoring a Symposium on Water and Economics on Monday, October 19th, between 12pm and 4pm. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator, Lisa Jackson, has been invited to speak at the event, while former NJ Governor and former EPA Administrator, Christine Todd Whitman, will moderate. The Symposium will be held at the UC Washington Center and for further information, please contact kshea@hunton.com.

The National Water Quality Monitoring Council (NWQMC) is hosting its 7th National Monitoring Conference, Monitoring from the Summit to the Sea, in Denver, CO from April 25-29, 2010. The conference will focus on the many facets of water quality and quantity monitoring for improved understanding, protection, and restoration of our natural resources and communities. It will also provide a unique forum for water practitioners from all backgrounds.

 

The NWQMC is requesting abstracts for oral and poster presentations that are applicable to the monitoring of all waters from the summit to the sea, including rivers, streams, lakes, groundwater, wetlands, estuaries and the ocean.

 

Abstracts should be submitted via the Internet by logging onto acwi.gov/monitoring/ and clicking on "2010 National Monitoring Conference." Follow the instructions provided on the abstract-submittal page.

 
Authors of abstracts accepted for oral and poster presentations will be notified by January 8th, 2010 and will receive further guidelines for preparation of presentations, papers, and posters. All presenters must register for the conference.