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The Water Resources Coalition was
established in 2007 to promote the development, implementation and
funding of a comprehensive national water resources policy. With
member organizations representing state and local governments,
conservation, engineering and construction, ports, waterways and
transportation services, the Coalition works to ensure that a
comprehensive, national water resources policy is developed,
implemented and funded to provide a sustainable, productive economy;
a healthy aquatic ecology; and public health and safety.
For more
information, visit the Water Resources Coalition Web site.
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WRC Urges Disaster Relief Package
The Water
Resources Coalition sent a letter sent a letter to President Obama
urging him to send a disaster relief package to Congress in the wake of
Hurricane Irene and the historic flooding that struck the Midwest
recently. The WRC is asking for a package that will provide funding for
the Corps of Engineers, FEMA, the Department of Agriculture, and other
agencies charged with leading recovery and response efforts.
The Federal agencies tasked with
leading the response and recovery effort are currently lacking the
appropriated funds necessary to carry out this mission. Federal
Emergency Management Agency's Disaster Relief Fund is now down below $1
billion, requiring FEMA to move Midwest recovery funds to meet the
immediate response needs in the wake of Hurricane Irene, rather than
long-term rebuilding. The Army Corps of Engineers alone will need in
excess of $3 billion for repairs to inland and coastal infrastructure.
FEMA is reported to have exhausted its available funds and is also in
need of additional funding. Unless repairs are made to the water
resource infrastructure that has been damaged, the risk to public
safety will remain enormous. Hundreds of miles of levees must be
inspected and repaired, while scores of East Coast ports and waterways
need restoring to their authorized depths and dimensions.
A Disaster Relief package will not
only protect hundreds of thousands of lives, it will provide the
long-term infrastructure investment our country needs.
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Water Resiliency Bill Introduced
Representative Lois Capps (D-CA) introduced the Water
Resiliency and Sustainablilty Act of 2011 (HR 2738) at the
begining of August. The bill would make grantsavailable
from the Environmental Protection Agency for the purpose of helping water systems
respond to ongoing or forecasted changes in their hydrologic
environment. The term "water system" is used more broadly
here than some are used to, and it includes community (drinking)
water systems, wastewater treatment works and municipal storm
water systems, decentralized domestic wastewater treatment, groundwater
storage and replenishment, irrigation and conservation water
conveyances, and floodwater controls. The bill would authorize $50
million a year for the program for fiscal years 2012 through 2016.
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EPA Postpones Greenhouse Gas
Reporting Deadline
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said last
week that it is postponing the reporting deadline for data elements
that are used by direct emitter reporters as inputs to emission
equations under the Mandatory Greenhouse Gas Reporting Rule.
The deadline for reporting some of these data
elements is deferred to March 31, 2013, and the deadline for reporting
others is deferred to March 31, 2015. The final rule does not
change any other requirements of the Mandatory Greenhouse Gas Reporting
Rule. The deadline change rule is effective on September 9.
"On October 30, 2009, EPA published the Mandatory
Greenhouse Gas Reporting Rule for requiring data reporting regarding
greenhouse gas emissions from a broad range of industry sectors,"
the agency notice said. "Under [the 2009 rule], EPA will
require reporting of data from certain facilities and suppliers above
specified thresholds. The data to be reported include information
on GHG emissions and GHGs supplied, including information necessary to
characterize, quantify, and verify the GHG emissions and GHGs supplied
data."
The reporting rule covers a broad class of U.S. industrial
facilities, including food processing plants, coal mines, pulp and
paper mills and solid waste landfills.
The deferral notice is located here.
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Although a Water Resources Development Act (WRDA)
traditionally has been enacted every two years-with some
exceptions--since 1986, no legislation authorizing new water resources
projects carried out by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has been
enacted since November 2007. No WRDA bills have been introduced in the
112th Congress to authorize new projects due to the continuing
congressional controversy over whether the practice of authorizing
individual projects is a form of "earmarking" of federal
funds. There may be efforts to write new WRDA legislation in the House
and Senate in early 2012, but we understand the bills may emphasize
water resources policy over project authorizations.
Congress authorizes new projects by enacting
recommendations in the "chief's reports" to the House
Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and the Senate Environment
and Public Works Committee. These have been slow in coming. The Chief
of Engineers has submitted a total of 10 new chief's reports to
Congress since the last WRDA bill was enacted in November 2007. The
first was submitted in August 2009, nearly two years after WRDA 2007
was enacted. The most recent report was submitted in January 2011.
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Congressional Super Committee Takes Shape
House and Senate leadership have named members to the 12
person Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction, or "Super
Committee," as many are referring to it. The committee will be
composed of three Senate Democrats, three Senate Republicans, three
House Democrats, and three House Republicans. Senate Majority Leader
Harry Reid (D-NV) was the first to appoint his participants, calling on
Patty Murray (WA) to co-chair, Finance Committee member John Kerry
(MA), and Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (MT). Senate Minority
Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) quickly followed suit naming Minority
Whip Jon Kyl (AZ), and Freshmen Rob Portman (OH) and Pat Toomey (PA).
On Wednesday House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) also appointed his
members, naming Jeb Hensarling (TX) to co-chair, Chairman of the Energy
and Commerce Committee Fred Upton (MI), and Chairman of the Ways and
Means Committee David Camp (MI). House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi has
named Assistant Democratic Leader James Clyburn (SC), Ways and Means
Committee member Xavier Becerra (CA), Budget Committee Ranking Member
Chris Van Hollen (MD).
All of the Republican appointees to the committee have
already signed a pledge to not raise additional revenues in order to
alleviate the deficit. However, the group is tasked with finding at
least $1.2 trillion in deficit reduction by the end of the year. If
raising revenues is immediately taken off the table, serious cuts will
be made to government programs.
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University Reviewing National Dam Safety Program
The University of Maryland Water Resources Collaborative
has been awarded a grant by the Federal Emergency Management Agency to
conduct a review and evaluation of the National Dam Safety Program' s
cost, effectiveness and potential for improvement and its relationship
to related supporting and supported programs such as the National
Inventory of Dams and State dam safety programs. The review will
be conducted between August 1 and October 25, 2011. Individuals
interested in providing comments on the NDSP should send these comments
to Dr. Gerry Galloway, PE, at the University of Maryland (gegallo@umd.edu) as soon
as possible. The review team will be also be meeting with
representatives of associations, non-governmental organizations
and federal and state agencies. Any questions concerning the review can
be sent to Dr. Galloway.
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Brian Pallasch and Marco Giamberardino
Water Resources Coalition
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