AMWA and the American Water Works Association (AWWA) jointly submitted a letter to members of the Senate Water and Wildlife Committee in advance of last week’s West Virginia spill hearing, urging that any new legislation responding to the incident require chemical facilities to notify downstream water utilities immediately after a spill occurs.
AMWA and AWWA wrote that timely notification of downstream water utilities in the event of a chemical leak is “critical, because it sets the stage for all response and recovery activities that will follow.” The organizations recommended that any legislation require such notifications to include all available information on “the substance that was spilled, how much was spilled, how that chemical behaves in water,” plus information about effective treatment measures and human health risks.
The letter recommended that chemical storage facilities near drinking water supplies should be subject to oversight that requires “strong leak detection and spill response capabilities” along with “a robust emergency response plan.” It also said EPA should offer assistance to water utilities in managing water supplies that do become contaminated, but noted EPA and states will require additional resources to carry out these new responsibilities.
The comments from AMWA and AWWA did not specifically reference S. 1961, but the organizations plan to meet with Senate staff this week to discuss how the water sector’s recommendations could be incorporated into the bill.