Oregon

• Oregon DEQ has just opened a public comment period for proposed rule changes for the Wastewater Operator Certification Program.  The Public Notice, which includes a link to the proposed changes, is found at this site: https://www.oregon.gov/deq/rulemaking/Pages/WasteWater2024.aspx. This effort includes updating the qualification pathways to certification for wastewater system operators, facilitating operator certification reciprocity among states, modernizing and simplifying the way wastewater systems are classified, and expanding options for attaining compliance when a supervisory operator is not available.

PNCWA2024 Awards

Each year, PNCWA has the opportunity to recognize exemplary people and projects in our industry. This year, during the Annual Conference Opening General Session and Awards Luncheon, 17 awards were given out, in addition to 9 student scholarships.

Congratulations to all of this year’s awardees on their accomplishments!

Greetings from the Leadership Development Committee!

For the October book club discussion, we’ve selected two books Emotional Intelligence – Daniel Goleman, and Primal Leadership- Daniel Goleman, Richard Boyatzis, and Annie McKee. These books introduce the concept of emotional intelligence (EI) and how EI helps a leader to be effective and inspire a diverse group of people.

The WAVE program offers a 5-part workshop series focusing on the water and wastewater industry, networking, leadership skills development, employment opportunities, and professional presentation experiences. WAVErs have a unique opportunity to learn from water and wastewater leaders across the Pacific Northwest, practicing critical leadership and communication skills, and developing a strong network of peers and mentors over the course of the year, culminating in presentations at the PNCWA Annual Conference. Most of the WAVE cohort will be first time attendees at this year’s conference in Boise, ID on Sept. 8-11, 2024, and we want to support and welcome them to this awesome community!

Federal

• EPA has proposed a draft analytical method for measuring 6PPD-quinone in stormwater and surface waters. Many of you may be following the increasing regulatory attention to 6PPDq – a chemical additive in rubber tires to help extend a tire's life and use. These chemicals have been in use for more than 50 years and have been found to be very toxic to salmon and trout species as well as other aquatic life.
• On May 28, 2024, the U.S. Supreme Court granted cert in San Francisco v. EPA.  The case calls for the U.S. Supreme Court to resolve a critical question—whether the Clean Water Act allows EPA (and authorized states) to imposed generic prohibitions against violating water quality standards in National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits. 

Save the Date!

The 2024 Fall Communications Camp is happening from 8:00 am to 4:30 pm on Thursday, October 24 in Spokane, WA. A big thanks to Spokane County for graciously being our host at their Water Resource Center at 1004 N Freya St in Spokane. Learn more about their Water Resource Center here.

Please join us for a meeting to re-establish the PNCWA Inland Empire Section! At this meeting we will officially elect a new Section Board and discuss plans for the Section. Everyone in the Inland Empire area is welcome to attend, no previous membership or knowledge of the organization is required.

The meeting will be on July 11th from 2pm to 3pm. You can attend in person at 1004 N Freya St, Spokane, WA or virtually via a Teams meeting. Please email Hannah Thomascall for the Teams link or for more information.

Federal

• EPA has proposed a draft analytical method for measuring 6PPD-quinone in stormwater and surface waters. Many of you may be following the increasing regulatory attention to 6PPDq – a chemical additive in rubber tires to help extend a tire's life and use. These chemicals have been in use for more than 50 years and have been found to be very toxic to salmon and trout species as well as other aquatic life.
• EPA released a revised draft MS4 NPDES stormwater permit for Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington for public comment.  The 2024 draft permit proposes6PPD-q monitoring requirements using draft method 1634 related to both wet weather discharges and surface water.  The comment period is open until June 27, 2024.
• On May 28, 2024, the U.S. Supreme Court granted cert in San Francisco v. EPA.  The case calls for the U.S. Supreme Court to resolve a critical question—whether the Clean Water Act allows EPA (and authorized states) to imposed generic prohibitions against violating water quality standards in National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits. 

Meet the 2024 WAVE Cohort!

The WAVE program engages students and emerging professionals from diverse backgrounds with the water industry through a series of workshops and attendance of the 2024 PNCWA conference. The workshops focus on the various paths within the water industry, networking, skills development, employment opportunities, and conference preparation. Each month until the conference, we will highlight our participants. Here is a quick introduction of Andrew, Curtis, Faron, and Carson - learn more about them in the PNCWA blog!

Federal

• EPA has proposed a draft analytical method for measuring 6PPD-quinone in stormwater and surface waters. Many of you may be following the increasing regulatory attention to 6PPDq – a chemical additive in rubber tires to help extend a tire's life and use. These chemicals have been in use for more than 50 years and have been found to be very toxic to salmon and trout species as well as other aquatic life.
• EPA released a revised draft MS4 NPDES stormwater permit for Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington for public comment.  The 2024 draft permit proposes6PPD-q monitoring requirements using draft method 1634 related to both wet weather discharges and surface water.  The comment period is open until June 27, 2024.
• On May 28, 2024, the U.S. Supreme Court granted cert in San Francisco v. EPA.  The case calls for the U.S. Supreme Court to resolve a critical question—whether the Clean Water Act allows EPA (and authorized states) to imposed generic prohibitions against violating water quality standards in National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits. 

PNCWA SW Committee Quarterly Newsletter

During the first half of 2024, the Stormwater Committee successfully hosted three Stormwater Learning Hours, supported a workshop at the PNCWA Spring Summit, and is currently in the middle of organizing a Service Event at the annual PNCWA Conference in Boise, ID! Please find information on our past and upcoming events below.

Meet the 2024 WAVE Cohort!

The WAVE program engages students and emerging professionals from diverse backgrounds with the water industry through a series of workshops and attendance of the 2024 PNCWA conference. The workshops focus on the various paths within the water industry, networking, skills development, employment opportunities, and conference preparation. Each month until the conference, we will highlight our participants. Here is a quick introduction of Victor, Michelle, Mia, and Georgina!

The WAVE program engages students and emerging professionals from diverse backgrounds with the water industry through a series of workshops and attendance of the 2024 PNCWA conference. The workshops focus on the various paths within the water industry, networking, skills development, employment opportunities, and conference preparation. This month, you get the opportunity to meet the WAVE Leadership Team for 2024, who have been working hard to continuously improve the WAVE program. Here is a quick introduction of our fearless chair, Asa, and our three awesome leaders, Angela, Juliana, and Anu!

PNCWA Participates in Water Week 2024 by sending 5 members to Washington DC

The National Water Policy Fly-In, part of National Water Week, took place the week of April 8, 2024. Water Week provided water sector professionals to come together in a forum to hear updates from our national water advocacy organizations and key federal officials and members of Congress about ongoing and emerging policy initiatives occurring at the federal level. The event culminated with Fly-In participants engaging with congressional lawmakers and staff from their respective home States

Date and Time: June 20, 2024 Tour at 4:00 PM, Social at approximately 5:15 PM
Hosts: PNCWA Utility Management Committee, Lower Columbia Section, Students and Young Professionals, and Clean Water Services. Tour led by Jeff Hart. 

Join the Utility Management Committee, in partnership with the Lower Columbia Section and the Students and Young Professionals on a tour of Clean Water Services’ Fernhill Wetland in Forest Grove. There will be time afterward to socialize with old friends or make new ones at the Grand Lodge in Forest Grove.

Federal

• EPA has proposed a draft analytical method for measuring 6PPD-quinone in stormwater and surface waters. Many of you may be following the increasing regulatory attention to 6PPD – a chemical additive in rubber tires to help extend a tire's life and use. These chemicals have been in use for more than 50 years and have been found to be very toxic to salmon and trout species as well as other aquatic life.

Good folks,

I wanted to write about a “hot topic” this month.

Student Design Competition. We are looking for volunteers to help out with judging the competition and will involve the following tasks, review of design notebook, attend video call where teams present project, submission of graded rubric for each team, debrief call to discuss team grading/score. If this s something you would be interested in, please reach out to Sam Nieslanik at [email protected].

Learn More

The WAVE program engages students and emerging professionals from diverse backgrounds with the water industry through a series of workshops and attendance of the 2024 PNCWA conference. The workshops focus on the various paths within the water industry, networking, skills development, employment opportunities, and conference preparation. Each month until the conference, we will highlight our participants. Here is a quick introduction of Theresa, Celeste, Max, and Mo.

Theresa Passe