[Pharmwaste] Clean Water Trust Fund Act

[Doyle, Kelly]

Might be good to find out how stakeholders on pharmaceutical issues can
have some input in the implementation of this, particularly in light of
the pharmaceuticals being found in treated effluent....
 
>From Waste News, December 20
 
Congressman introduces bill to aid wastewater treatment operations
 
Dec. 19 -- A Congressman has introduced legislation that would establish
a trust fund to improve wastewater treatment facilities. 

Rep. John J. Duncan Jr., R-Tenn., introduced the Clean Water Trust Fund
Act on Dec. 15 that would provide an assured source of funding to help
local wastewater treatment operators upgrade their infrastructure. The
bill would provide about $7.5 billion annually and help address the U.S.
EPA's estimated clean water funding gap of about $400 billion over the
next 20 years, according to the National Association of Clean Water
Agencies, a trade association that supports Duncan's measure. 

The legislation also provides funding to address water quality issues in
critical regional waters and to improve and protect wetlands and
fisheries. 

``We have to do more to protect and enhance our clean water and
wastewater systems for the future,'' Duncan said. ``We know our nation's
water infrastructure is getting very old. In fact, it is common in older
systems to find pipes that were laid as far back as the 1800s.'' 

Duncan, who chairs the House Water Resources and Environment
Subcommittee, has presided over hearings that included testimony from
municipal wastewater treatment agencies about the funding problems they
face. 

NACWA Executive Director Ken Kirk called Duncan's measure a bold move to
address an infrastructure funding crisis. 

``The Clean Water Trust Act will help control sewer overflows, enhance
fisheries and wetlands, encourage research, spur new technologies,
enhance investment in small and rural utilities, and protect critical
regional waters such as the Great Lakes, Chesapeake Bay and Gulf of
Mexico,'' Kirk said. 

The NACWA is a national trade association representing hundreds of the
nation's publicly owned wastewater treatment utilities. 

The measure also has the support of numerous other trade and
professional associations representing manufacturers, building
contractors, engineers, fishermen, and fish and wildlife agencies.

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