News

August 18, 2008

ACWA Pretreatment committee meeting-Thursday, August 21, 2008

9:00am to Noon. Meeting held at Clean Water Services, 2550 SW Hillboro Hwy, Hillsboro, OR. Teleconferencing details in the agenda.

August 07, 2008

DEQ Sets Up SB 737 Update System

DEQ has set up a dedicated page on its web site for information on SB 737. The page includes a feature to sign up for automated information updates on SB 737. ACWA members interested in SB 737 may want to subscribe to the service...

The information is at http://www.deq.state.or.us/wq/SB737/index.htm

August 07, 2008

Funding for Clean Diesel Available

DEQ has up to $430,000 in grant funding for retrofitting diesel engines to burn cleaner and pollute less. Grants as available for up to 100% of the diesel engine retrofit costs, and municipalities and districts are eligible for funding.

Also, tax credits that municipalities or districts can sell through the Oregon Business Energy Tax Credit are also available.

More about the grant and tax credit programs, along with application forms, are found on the website at http://www.deq.state.or.us/aq/diesel/clean.htm

The appropriate DEQ staff contacts are listed also. The grant application deadline is September 1, so you might want to move quickly if you would like access to these dollars to reduce particle emissions from your diesel-burning fleet.

August 01, 2008

DEQ Permit that EPA Likes…

EPA is often critical of the Oregon DEQ water quality permitting program, and is currently in the midst of reviewing the Oregon DEQ water quality permitting program for compliance with federal requirements.

EPA recently highlighted to DEQ that the attached permit for a landfill in Douglas County is an excellent permit, specifically complimenting the Anti-degegradation check list and the permit evaluation report. Seeing an example of what EPA believes are “good” NPDES permits and permit evaluation reports is useful…

July 31, 2008

Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board (OWEB)Conference - November 5-7, 2008

To be held at the Eugene Hilton and Conference Center in Eugene, Oregon. Go to their website for more information at http://www.oregon.gov/OWEB/biennialconference_08.shtml

July 30, 2008

ACWA Stormwater Committee meeting - Tuesday, September 16, 2008

9:00am to 11:00am, location to be determined.

July 28, 2008

ACWA Conference Speaker contact information, handouts & presentations

Presentations & Handouts:

Janet Gillaspie, ACWA - Regulatory Issues Facing Oregon Wastewater and Stormwater Utilites

Pat Bradley, EPA - Get out of the NPDES box-Innovative permitting approaches focused on water quality improvement

Dick Pedersen, Oregon DEQ - Partnering with Local Governments to Improve Oregon's Environment

Alan Zelenka, Kennedy/Jenks - Energy Independence fo Oregon Wastewater Utilities

Susie Smith, ACWA Chair/ City of Springfield - Conference Welcome opening

Guy Graham, City of Gresham - Energy Independence for Oregon Wastewater Utilities

Mike Gallagher, Washington Department of Ecology - Washington PBT reduction program - lessons from a leader....

Dr. Ken Williamson, Oregon State University - The Changing Paradigm of the Wastewater Industry

Michele Pla, Bay Area Clean Water Agencies - Look South, see what's heading to you-update on California wet weather issues, PBTs, mercury & dioxin, greenhouse gas emission limits, and other issues......

Dr. Sally Brown, University of Washington - Building Sustainable Biosolids Programs

Ephraim King, US EPA - Putting the Science in Environmental Regulation

Jane Bacchieri, Oregon Governor's Office - Governor Kulongoski's Headwaters-to-Ocean Initiative

Keith Jones, NACWA - National and Local Legal Trends Affecting Oregon Wastewater and Stormwater Utilities

Ken Ortega, City of Oxnard Public Works - Integrated Water Reuse Strategies-Reaching Between Utilities-The Oxnard Example

Okkyoung Choi, University of Missouri - Impact of Silver Nano-particles on Wastewater Treatment

Dr. Mel Kohn, Oregon Public Health Division - Public Health Impacts of Climate Change

Tracy Tackett, Seattle Public Utilites - Low Impact Development Techniques

Jay Witherspoon, CH2M Hill - Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Dr. Dan Woltering, WERF - Introduction to Water Environment Research Foundation

Bill Sullivan, Navilus Press - Oregon's Greatest Natural Disasters

Jim Hutchison, University of Oregon - Oregon's Green Nano-Tech Initiative

July 17, 2008

Energy Independence Study Completed

Read how two Oregon wastewater facilities could become energy independent. Learn more about the types of conservation and renewable energy opportunities are available for your facility. Funding for the ACWA Energy Independence Project provided, in part, by the Energy Trust of Oregon

July 17, 2008

DEQ Announces SB 737 Technical Panel

DEQ has announced the members of the Persistent Pollutant technical advisory committee. The group will advise DEQ on the chemicals that should be listed as persistent pollutants under the SB 737 toxic control program.

Members of the work group include:

• Dr. Jeff Jenkins, Professor, Department of Environmental and Molecular Toxicology, Oregon State University

• Dr. David Stone, Assistant Professor, Department of Environmental and Molecular Toxicology, Oregon State University

• Dr. Charles Henny, Research Zoologist, US Geological Survey

• Dr. Taku Fuji, Senior Toxicologist/Sediment Quality Specialist, Kennedy Jenks Consultants

• Dr. Robert Gensemer, Senior Toxicologist, Paramatrix, Inc.

• Dr. William Fish, Associate Professor of Civil & Environmental Engineering and Environmental Sciences and Resources, Portland State University

• Dr. Joseph Rinella, Supervisory Hydrologist, US Geological Survey