That’s right, I’ve been here 9 years already!  I still feel like a new guy with lots of ideas on how we can always continue to improve.  But I swear, these past few months have been the busiest that I can remember as far as advocacy work.  Maybe because I’m locked at home and not travelling, or that I left this stuff more to the other staff and committees, but we have been busy!

CWWA is excited to be partnering with the Canadian Water Summit to bring you updates on federal and national programs. The event is almost here and we encourage all our members to register and participate.

While the entire program is full of thought provoking presentations on all aspects of water in Canada  - we wanted to update our members and partners on the sessions that are most relevant to the water and wastewater sector.

This Bill will revise and update the exiting Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA). This is an important initiative for our members as many of the provisions of CEPA impact the water and wastewater sector, either indirectly through the protection of the environment and pollution prevention provisions.

Bill C-269 An Act to amend the Fisheries Act (prohibition — deposit of raw sewage) was given second reading and debate earlier this month. This is a Private Member’s Bill proposed by former Conservative Party leader Andrew Scheer to ban the release of ANY raw sewage ever; citing the Montreal planned release of 2015 as a motivating factor.  Private Members’ bills rarely pass, but CWWA is following this one, because of the obvious implications for wastewater utilities across the country..

On April 19, 2021, the Liberal government posted its 2021 budget. The document pledges approximately $17 billion to promote a “green” recovery.

The Government recently gave notice that it intends to move forward with activities to address the broad class of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). The initiative is deemed necessary because scientific evidence to date indicates the PFAS used to replace regulated PFOS, PFOA, and long-chain PFCAs (LC-PFCAs) may also be associated with environmental and/or human health effects.

The Alliance for Water Efficiency conducted research to better understand water connection fee and recurring service charge variability by meter size across major metropolitan areas in the United States.  The emergence of new pipe-sizing methodologies may lead to a trend in downsizing meters of new connections.  As such, this report also explores the potential financial implications for water utilities that would be associated with a possible trend in downsizing the meter sizes of new connections.

Household affordability should weigh more heavily in evaluating potential drinking water policy decisions, according to a new report from the American Water Works Association (AWWA).

The recommendations in the report, “Improving the Evaluation of Household-Level Affordability in SDWA Rulemaking: New Approaches,” were developed by an expert panel convened by AWWA to expand the evaluation process used by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and other decision makers when considering regulation under the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA). 

IWA’s 2021 General Assembly was held virtually on Wednesday 21 April to announce the new IWA President and Board members.

Leading water consultant Tom Mollenkopf is the new President, taking office following his election in Lisbon, Portugal back in October 2019. Mr. Mollenkopf, who trained as a lawyer and holds an MBA, has been a substantive and well-regarded figure in the water sector for the past 20 years.

NPR

When Hurricane Sandy swept up the Eastern Seaboard in 2012, it left a trail of damage from Florida to Maine. Subways were inundated in New York City. Hurricane-force winds tore across New Jersey. Blizzard conditions walloped Appalachia.

CBC

The provincial government wants the City of Winnipeg to explore expanding and operating the North End Sewage Treatment Plant through a public-private partnership that would privatize the city's entire treatment system, the director of the water and waste department says.

KHOU-11

Despite the labels on the packaging, wastewater system workers say flushable wipes do not dissolve like toilet paper and actually cause huge problems.

Pensacola News Journal

In a video that's been viewed more than 5,000 times on the city of Milton's Facebook page, City Manager Randy Jorgenson can be seen drinking an entire glass of treated effluent taken right from the city's wastewater treatment plant and proclaiming it "clean enough to drink." 

Water Canada

Veolia and SUEZ announced that their respective boards of directors reached an agreement in principle on the key terms and conditions of the merger between the two groups.

Nikkei Asia

The weekend cyberattack on a major U.S. pipeline system served as a grim minder of the threat facing infrastructure that forms the backbone of the economy as incidents occur with increasing frequency.

ESE Magazine

The British Columbia Village of Burns Lake has a new $5.3-million water treatment plant that will begin to gradually flush out elevated levels of manganese from water lines.

CBC

A dry fall, winter and now spring have taken a toll in southern Manitoba, where the City of Morden says it is experiencing a severe drought and imploring people to conserve water.

CBS Minnesota 

Based on surface area, it’s the largest fresh water lake in the world. And thousands of people visit Lake Superior every year. But as old as it is, the lake is still evolving.

John Lauritsen shows us how climate change and warmer temperatures are changing the lake.

Water Online

The National Association of Clean Water Agencies (NACWA) congratulates the Charleston Water System (CWS), a NACWA member utility, for its recent settlement with Kimberly-Clark Corporation regarding Cottonelle flushable wipes. Under this first ever settlement of its kind, Kimberly-Clark has agreed to ensure that its flushable wipe product will meet the stringent flushability standards set forth by the International Water Services Flushability Group (IWSFG).

Bloomberg

Kimberly-Clark Corp. has reached a settlement over its so-called “flushable” wipes that will include better labeling, manufacturing improvements and two years of testing -- a win for U.S. cities and counties that say the products have sparked a rise in costly sewer blockages.