News Feed for Clean Water News http://www.orawca.org/news.php Clean Water News from the Oregon Association of Clean Water Agencies en-us gillaspie@oracwa.org gillaspie@oracwa.org Thu Jul 29 17:10:59 2010 Thu, 29 Jul 2010 17:10 MDT 60 Pretreatment Committee Prepares Fact Sheet The ACWA Pretreatment Committee has prepared a fact sheet that summarizes the national and state industrial pretreatment programs. This fact sheet is appropriate for councils and commissions, affected industry, and citizens interested in the pretreatment program.

]]> Wed, 28 Jul 2010 00:00 MDT 2010 ACWA Conference presentations **Wednesday, July 21st**

EPA Action to Require Nutrient Water Quality Standards - Jeff Lape, EPA

Sustainable Nutrient Recovery - Dr. James Barnard, Black & Veatch and Mark Poling, Clean Water Services

Using Natural Systems for Nutrient Treatment - Mark Madison, CH2M Hill

Issues Facing Oregon Wastewater and Stormwater Utilities - Janet Gillaspie, ACWA

Future Strides: Developing a Roadmap to the Wastewater Treatment Plant of Tomorrow - Lauren Fillmore, Water Environment Research Foundation

Use Solar to Power Your Treatment Plant & Other People's Money to Fund It - Paul Eckley and Mike Nacrelli, City of Gresham and Andy Noel, REC Solar, Inc. (Presentation to be posted)

Ecosystem Credit Accounting - Bobby Cochran, Willamette Partnership

Lessons Learned..from California Stormwater Hydrographic Modification Management Planning - Dr. Andrew Collison, Phillip Williams & Assoc. and Aaron Poresky, Geosyntec Consultants

Sewer It! An Integrated Approach to Meeting Willamette Bacteria TMDLs - Leah Johanson and Carol Murdock, Clackamas Co. Water Environment Services

**Thursday, July 22nd**

Oregon's Wet Weather Standard-Where is Oregon Headed on SSO Issues? - Neil Mullane, Oregon DEQ

Fitting the Oregon SSO Approach in the Clean Water Act - Pat Bradley, LimnoTech

SB 737-Update and Path Forward for Oregon's Largest Wastewater Facilities - Jennifer Wigal, Oregon DEQ and Mark Yeager, City of Albany

Partnering with EPA's "Design for the Environment" Program to Promote Environmentally Safer Products - Dr. Kelly Grant, EPA Design for the Environment (DfE) Program

WERF Research to Develop Diagnostic Tools to Evaluate Impacts of Trace Organic Compounds and Evaluate Treatability - Dr. Jerry Diamond, Tetra Tech

Microconstituent Impacts on Biosolids and Recycled Water Quality - Dr. Sally Brown, University of Washington

A Strategy for Reducing Toxics in Oregon - Renee Hackenmiller-Paradis, Oregon Environmental Council

**Friday, July 23rd**

Oregon's Integrated Water Resource Strategy: Opportunities and Challenges for Oregon Wastewater and Stormwater Utilities - John Jackson, Oregon Water Resources Commission

Expanding Opportunities for Recycled Water Use - Dave Smith, WateReuse California

]]> Tue, 27 Jul 2010 00:00 MDT Pacific Northwest Pretreatment Workshop September 14-16, 2010 The 17th Annual Pacific Northwest Pretreatment Workshop will be held at the Water Resources Education Center (WREC) in Vancouver, Washington. Please mark these dates on your calendar for this year’s Workshop.

Rooms have been arranged for Workshop attendees at the rate of $110 (plus taxes and fees)per night for single/double occupancy. For reservations, contact The Heathman Lodge toll-free at 1-888-475-3100(www.heathmanlodge.com) and identify yourself as a Pacific Northwest Pretreatment Workshop attendee or a member of the PNSCTA to receive the group rate. Reservation deadline for this group rate at The Heathman Lodge is August 23, 2010. Space is limited - So make your reservations early.

There is a complimentary shuttle from the Hotel to the WREC Center during the Workshop. Agenda and registration forms will be mailed in July. Workshop registration is only $200, if received by August 31.

The agenda/registration form is posted below. Check out the web site at http://www.pnscta.org

]]> Mon, 26 Jul 2010 00:00 MDT ACWA Membership Directory Available The 2010 ACWA Membership Directory is available to ACWA members on CD-ROM. The directory includes the name and contact information for all ACWA members. Contact the ACWA office for a copy.

]]> Mon, 19 Jul 2010 00:00 MDT ACWA CMOM Workshop Set 10/5/2010 ACWA has set a day-long workshop focused on sewer system capacity and maintenance issues for 10/5/2010 in Salem. Save the date - - more details available shortly. A summary flyer is available below.

]]> Mon, 19 Jul 2010 00:00 MDT DEQ Posts Final QAPP and SAP for SB 737 Effluent Sampling DEQ has finalized the Quality Assurance Project Plan (QAPP) and Sampling and Analysis Plan (SAP) for the SB 737 effluent sampling effort. Copies of the plans are available at http://www.deq.state.or.us/wq/SB737/

]]> Wed, 14 Jul 2010 00:00 MDT ACWA Pretreatment Committee meeting - Thursday, August 12, 2010 9:00am to Noon, City of McMinnville

]]> Wed, 07 Jul 2010 00:00 MDT Collection Systems Committee Webinar July 15, 2010, 9 AM to 11 AM PDT Effective Standard Operating Procedures - How do you keep them alive?

Learn how to create and maintain useful SOP Manuals for Collection System Operation and Maintenance -- seasoned professionals will share their success stories and insights in this 2-hour web seminar.

Identify how to set up your SOPs, who should write your Manual, what to include (and NOT include), how to incorporate changes and when to update. Explore ways to make the SOP Manual easy to use, vibrant and helpful. Build support and buy-in for using and maintaining your SOP program. Know what to avoid in the SOP Manual and in the field, and how to prepare for the next visit by the Auditors.

Registrations are now open www.pncwa.org/page/collections-sop

Don’t miss this cost effective and highly informative training opportunity.

]]> Tue, 06 Jul 2010 00:00 MDT ACWA Annual Conference - July 21,22 & 23, 2010 Attend the 2010 Annual ACWA Conference, scheduled for July 21,22, & 23, 2010 at Mount Bachelor Village Resort in Bend, Oregon to learn more from regional and national experts on a variety of pressing topics for wastewater treatment and stormwater management agencies.

The agenda/program/registration form is posted below.

]]> Thu, 01 Jul 2010 00:00 MDT DEQ Issues Compliance Schedule Guidance DEQ has issued (6/25/2010) additional details about how compliance schedules should be handled in Oregon water quality permits - see http://www.deq.state.or.us/wq/pubs/imds/ComplianceSchedule.pdf

]]> Thu, 01 Jul 2010 00:00 MDT EPA SSO “Listening Sessions” EPA is holding a number of ‘listening sessions’ on SSO issues around the nation, the first being a Seattle meeting last week. This presentation outlines more of EPA’s current thinking on the issues related to SSOs and blending that are outlined in the Federal Register notice.

http://www.epa.gov/npdes/pubs/sso-listening%20session-2010.pdf

]]> Wed, 30 Jun 2010 00:00 MDT New Oregon Law Limits Phosphates in Automatic Dishwashing Soaps An Oregon law, in effect on July 1, 2010, will limit the amount of phosphate in automatic dishwashing soaps to less than 0.5% by weight. Automatic dishwashing soaps are labeled with its phosphate amount.

Commercial dishwashing soaps are exempted. More about the law is posted at: http://www.deq.state.or.us/wq/pubs/factsheets/programinfo/PhosphateLimits09-ER-005.pdf

]]> Wed, 30 Jun 2010 00:00 MDT Local Limits Training for Local Governments (POTWs) and Conducting Industrial User Inspections - Northwest Region Office, Oregon DEQ, August 18-19, 2010 8:00 am - 4:30 pm. More information and the registration form are in the flyer, posted below.

You must be a local government employee to attend. If you are a private contractor working full-time for a city in pretreatment, contact CWACS prior to registering.

]]> Thu, 24 Jun 2010 00:00 MDT Funding for POTW Efficiency and Renewable Projects What funding is available for wastewater efficiency and renewable energy projects? This brochure summarizes the state and federal funding and incentive programs for efficiency and renewable energy projects.

]]> Tue, 22 Jun 2010 00:00 MDT Summary of Applicable Oregon Water Quality Standards With the recent EPA action to disapprove some and approve others of the pending Oregon water quality standards, knowing what standards apply is complicated.

The link below is to a summary chart prepared by the Oregon DEQ that details the specifics of the currently applicable Oregon water quality standards.

http://www.deq.state.or.us/wq/standards/docs/toxics/EffectiveHHCriteria20100601.pdf

]]> Tue, 22 Jun 2010 00:00 MDT EPA Action on Pending Oregon Water Quality Standards EPA has moved to disapprove some Oregon water quality standards, while approving others. A copy of the EPA letter to DEQ on standards is below.

EPA Technical Support Document is at http://yosemite.epa.gov/R10/WATER.NSF/webpage/Oregon+Water+Quality+Standards

]]> Tue, 15 Jun 2010 00:00 MDT Willamette Project Biological Opinions: What are they—and what do they mean for the Willamette Basin? June 9th, Noon to 1 pm Mindy Simmons, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

June 9th

Noon to 1 pm

Portland Building Auditorium (2nd Floor)

1120 SW Fifth, Portland, OR

Mindy M. Simmons, Willamette Program Manager for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Portland District will describe the Biological Opinions for the Willamette Project and explain the major actions they require at an upcoming Rivers Office brownbag.

In July 2008, two “BiOps” were issued under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) by the National Marine Fisheries Service and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. These BiOps cover the operation of the 13 Willamette Project dams and reservoirs, maintenance of 42 miles of revetments, and operation of the Hatchery Mitigation Program.

The BiOps require the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Bonneville Power Administration, and the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation to implement over 90 actions to improve conditions for ESA-listed spring Chinook salmon, winter steelhead, bull trout, and Oregon chub.

Actions include designing and building fish passage facilities to reintroduce fish upstream of the high-head dams. However, the BiOps also require the agencies to improve habitat downstream of the dams by correcting water temperatures, providing the appropriate amount of water, and improving physical habitat.

Because of the wide range of effects of the Willamette Project on these species, the range of required actions is broad, interdisciplinary, and will be technically challenging to implement on the specified timeline.

Mindy’s presentation will:

· answer the question “what is a BiOp, anyway?”,

· describe the major effects of the Willamette Project on fish and habitat,

· describe the major actions required over the next 15 years, and

· highlight some of the challenges we face in recovering fish in the Willamette Basin.

For more information, call 503.823.0275.

]]> Mon, 07 Jun 2010 00:00 MDT Need Energy Audit? Wastewater treatment plants use a huge amount of energy, burning through a huge amount of money. Use this Energy Efficiency RFP Guidance to know what questions to ask in securing energy efficiency auditing services. For those treatment plants served by Pacific Power or Portland General Electric, funding and technical assistance for energy audits is available from the Energy Trust of Oregon-contact Walt Mintkeski at 503/771-0232 (e-mail at walt.mintkeski@energytrust.org). For those treatment plants served by a publically-owned, municipal or co-op electric supplier, contact your local utility or Bonneville Power Administrations’ Energy Smart Industrial Program at www.energysmartindustrial.com

]]> Fri, 04 Jun 2010 00:00 MDT EPA Sets “Listening Sessions” on Wet Weather Issues EPA has set ‘listening sessions’ on a variety of wet weather issues of key importance to Oregon POTWs and efforts to reduce SSOs. Comments are due to EPA by 8/2/2010. A ‘listening session’ is scheduled in Seattle for 6/24/2010. The ACWA Water Quality Committee is working on a template for filing comments and should have that to ACWA members in the next week or so.

http://cfpub.epa.gov/npdes/home.cfm?program_id=4

]]> Fri, 04 Jun 2010 00:00 MDT 2010 ACWA Stormwater Summmit - speaker contact list and presentations What's Ahead for Oregon Stormwater Programs - Annette Liebe, Oregon DEQ

ODOT Stormwater Program: Transparency is the Key - Paul Wirfs and Patty Caswell, Oregon Dept of Transportation

Designing Low Impact Development Systems that Work - Dr. Alan Yeakley, Portland State University

Load Duration Curve Analysis: Using Water Quality and Flow Data as a Tool for Managing Stormwater Programs - Steve Anderson, Clean Water Services

Seattle High Efficiency Street Sweeping Study - Rob Zisette, Herrera Environmental Consultants and Shelly Basketfield, Seattle Public Utilities

Life-cycle Cost Analysis for Non-compliant UICs - Steve Fancher, City of Gresham

Stormwater Managment Organization and Finance-Innovative Ways to Finance and Fund Stormwater Utilities - Bruce Roll, Clean Water Services

Evaluation Tools for Proper Stormwater Management in Urban Corridors - Tim Kraft and Quinn Donnelly, OTAK

Building Community Support for Stormwater Programs - Ryan Orth and Mandy Putney, EnviroIssues

Permitting, Inspection, and Maintenance Issues - Carrie Pak, Clean Water Services and Dawn Uchiyama, City of Portland

Putting Plants to Work for Stormwater - Renee Stoops, SPROut Oregon

]]> Thu, 03 Jun 2010 00:00 MDT