EPA Plans Framework For Determining Water Rule Flexibility For Cities

摘要

EPA, in a just-issued memo to its regional offices, is outlining the broad components of an upcoming "framework" it plans to develop to assist regional officials and state and local governments in prioritizing Clean Water Act (CWA) regulatory requirements when funds for infrastructure improvements are limited. In the Oct. 27 memorandum, acting EPA water chief Nancy Stoner and EPA enforcement chief Cynthia Giles say that the current approach of focusing on each CWA requirement individually can have the "unintended consequence of constraining a municipality from implementing the most cost-effective solutions in a sequence that addresses the most serious water quality issues first." The memo is available on InsideEPA.com. Seepage 2 for details. (Doc ID: 2380489) The agency announced earlier this year that it was developing the policy, a move that drew praise from municipal wastewater treatment officials, who along with the U.S. Conference of Mayors have been pushing for greater flexibility in how and when CWA requirements are met. But the municipal officials are concerned that EPA is not willing to limit its enforcement efforts against municipalities that have been driving costly infrastructure upgrades to reduce stormwater and sewer overflows during heavy storm events, saying it will undermine the flexibility EPA is seeking to provide.