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 Aug 21 13:26:23 2008 Thu, 21 Aug 2008 13:26 MDT 60 ACWA Groundwater Committee meeting - Thursday, August 21, 2008 10:00am to Noon. The meeting will be held at the City of Gresham, 1333 NW Eastman Pkwy Room 2A, Gresham, OR

]]> Wed, 20 Aug 2008 00:00 MDT 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.

]]> Mon, 18 Aug 2008 00:00 MDT 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

]]> Thu, 07 Aug 2008 00:00 MDT 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.

]]> Thu, 07 Aug 2008 00:00 MDT 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…

]]> Fri, 01 Aug 2008 00:00 MDT 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

]]> Thu, 31 Jul 2008 00:00 MDT ACWA Stormwater Committee meeting - Tuesday, September 16, 2008 9:00am to 11:00am, location to be determined.

]]> Wed, 30 Jul 2008 00:00 MDT 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

]]> Mon, 28 Jul 2008 00:00 MDT Asset Managers Users Group August workshop - August 15, 2008 The meeting will be held in the Council Chambers of the City of Gresham at 1333 NW Eastman Parkway in Gresham, OR from 8:30am to 4:00pm. The cost is $50 to be paid at the door.

The guest speaker will be Chris Champion the COE - Institute of Public Works Engineering Australia, and President of the International Federation of Municipal Engineering who will speak on the topic of the National Asset Management Steering Committee's - Plus tool.

Additional details on the workshop are in the flyer below.

]]> Wed, 23 Jul 2008 00:00 MDT 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

]]> Thu, 17 Jul 2008 00:00 MDT 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

]]> Thu, 17 Jul 2008 00:00 MDT ACWA Biosolids Committee meeting - Tuesday, October 14, 2008 9:30AM at the Willow Lake Water Pollution Control Facility, 5915 Windsor Island Road N, Salem, OR 97303

]]> Wed, 16 Jul 2008 00:00 MDT Willamette Partnership Creates Tools for EcoSystem Services The Willamette Partnership has completed a series of tools and templates to assist local governments, including wastewater agencies, in considering creating or using ecosystem marketplace tools. Link to the Willamette Partnership page at http://www.willamettepartnership.org/tools-templates

]]> Tue, 08 Jul 2008 00:00 MDT Willamette Partnership Report Completed The Willamette Partnership has completed it report on developing the Willamette Ecosystem Marketplace

]]> Tue, 08 Jul 2008 00:00 MDT ACWA Contractor Completes Energy Independence Report Kennedy-Jenks has completed a report for ACWA evaluating the ability of two wastewater systems chosen as pilots (Corvallis and Gresham) to become energy independent through conservation and renewable energy sources.

The report details the energy conservation measures for wastewater plants, and evaluates 7 types of renewable energy sources that might power a treatment plant. Detailed information on each renewable energy source is included.

]]> Mon, 30 Jun 2008 00:00 MDT The Oregonian Editorial Endorses Drug Take Back Program Read The Oregonian Editorial for 6/25/08 endorsing an Oregon drug take back program.

]]> Thu, 26 Jun 2008 00:00 MDT Oregon Drug Take Back Convening Meeting Held 6/24/08 Over 80 stakeholders gathered in Portland on 6/24/08 to hear presentations and consider building an Oregon Drug Take Back Program.

The agenda and presentations are linked below:

1. Agenda

2. Stakeholder’s Group

a. Tom Penpraze/Tony Burtt - Co chairs

3. Issues and Challenges

a. Matt Laidler, Oregon Public Health Division

b. Karen Wheeler, Oregon Addictions & Mental Health Division

c. Socorro Rodriguez, EPA

4. Product Stewardship Model - Overview

a. Scott Klag, Product Stewardship Institute

5. PhRMA Issues

a. Doug Finan, PhRMA - PiE representative

6. Retail Outlets - Issues and Concerns

a. Lis Houchen, Nat’l Association of Chain Drug Stores

7. What have others done?

a. National overview - Janet Gillaspie, ACWA

b. Jennifer Crittenden, U of Maine Center on Aging

c. Shirley Reitz, Group Health Cooperative, PH:ARM team members

d. Tom Badrick, Legacy Health Systems

8. Outline of Possible Proposal

a. Tom Penpraze, City of Corvallis

]]> Thu, 26 Jun 2008 00:00 MDT ACWA 2008 Stormwater Summit in Eugene, OR - presentations Below are PDFs of the presentations made at the ACWA Stormwater Summit, May 28, 2008.

Stormwater Retrofits-Local actions for Oregon's Water Quality - Teresa Huntsinger, Oregon Environmental Council

Stormwater Retrofits-Oregon Examples, Costs, and Maintenance Issues - Steve Fancher, City of Gresham

Introduction and Overview - Janet Gillaspie, OR ACWA

Stormwater Retrofits-Oregon Examples, Costs, and Maintenance Issues - Henry Stevens, City of Portland BES

Basics of Stormwater Retrofitting: The Set Up - Mike Novotney, Center for Watershed Protection

Stormwater Retrofit Process - Step 1: The Hook - Mike Novotney, Center for Watershed Protection

Stormwater Retrofit Process - Step 2: The Tale - Kelly Collins, Center for Watershed Protection

Stormwater Retrofit Process - Step 3: The Sting - Mike Novotney and Kelly Collins, Center for Watershed Protection

Stormwater Retrofit Process - Steps 4-8: The Clean Up - Mike Novotney and Kelly Collins, Center for Watershed Protection

]]> Thu, 12 Jun 2008 00:00 MDT DEQ Workshops for State Revolving Loan Fund Applications to be held DEQ has scheduled 3 workshops to discuss the new environmental review process for all State Revolving Loan Fund Applications. The workshops are the mornings of 6/24 in Pendleton; 6/26 in Bandon; and 7/2 in Wilsonville. Registration is requested, and registration is free. More details in the flyer below.

]]> Wed, 11 Jun 2008 00:00 MDT Gillaspie Discusses Drug Take Back at AOR Conference ACWA Executive Director Janet Gillaspie discussed the Oregon Drug Take Back program at the Association of Oregon Recyclers conference in Seaside. A copy of the presentation is below.

]]> Fri, 06 Jun 2008 00:00 MDT