AMWA Applauds Water Protection Program In House-Passed Farm BillThe Association of Metropolitan Water Agencies (AMWA) today praised the House of Representatives for voting to create a new Regional Water Enhancement Program as part of the Farm Bill reauthorization passed this afternoon. For several months, AMWA has worked with Congress and other drinking water, wastewater, and environmental organizations in support of including RWEP in the Farm Bill.
“The Regional Water Enhancement Program will provide water systems and agricultural producers with a great opportunity to work together to improve their region’s water quality and quantity,” said AMWA Executive Director Diane VanDe Hei. “Maintaining watershed health benefits farmers and the public alike, and this program will help ensure that all continue to have access to safe and clean water.” As approved by the House, RWEP will encourage partnerships consisting of agricultural producers and other groups (such as government entities and municipal water systems) to plan cooperative projects aimed at meeting defined water quality and quantity goals in their watershed. The partnerships will submit proposals to USDA, which will review submissions and competitively award multi-year grants (up to five years in length) to implement the plans. The legislation provides a total of $300 million over five years from the Environmental Quality Incentives Program to fund RWEP grants. The House-passed bill clearly specifies that “irrigation and water districts” are eligible RWEP partners, and the Agriculture Committee’s report on the bill reinforced the potential of their participation, stating, “By allowing non-traditional partners such as water districts or municipal drinking water systems to partner with USDA and farmers, the Committee expects great success can be found.” VanDe Hei continued, “I know AMWA’s members are eager to get to work on regional water enhancement projects, and the House Agriculture Committee’s enthusiasm about their participation in RWEP is a testament to water systems’ reputations as environmental stewards. That’s why I will be urging the Senate to maintain RWEP and its dedicated funding when it takes up the Farm Bill in September.” Additionally, AMWA commended the House’s decision to not include a CERCLA exemption for animal waste and its components in the Farm Bill. “A blanket exemption for animal waste and its components from CERCLA would threaten the quality of the same waters that RWEP is intended to restore and protect,” said VanDe Hei. AMWA is the definitive voice for the largest publicly owned drinking water systems in the United States on regulatory, legislative and security issues, as well as a leadership resource for senior water executives. Member-utilities collectively serve more than 127 million people with safe drinking water. 
|
