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WRAP MONTHLY UPDATE – MARCH 2022

Reuse and Action Highlights

For more details about the following highlights and events, please visit the Recent and Upcoming Water Reuse Activities page.

WRAP Update on Collaborative Progress – Year 2

To commemorate the second anniversary of the WRAP, this two-page document highlights key WRAP activities and accomplishments over the past year that lay the groundwork for more substantial impacts in the years ahead. Congratulations to WRAP collaborators for such impressive progress!
  • WateReuse Awards for Excellence Recipient – Congratulations to the National Blue Ribbon Commission for Onsite Non-Potable Water Systems (NBRC for ONWS) – a recipient of WateReuse Association’s Advocacy Achievement award! NBRC demonstrates leadership in onsite non-potable reuse through the advancement of legislation and regulations and by contributing important research. Through the NBRC’s resources and by working collaboratively, several public health regulators and utilities that participate in the NBRC are now actively pursuing policies to facilitate implementation of onsite water systems.
     
  • EPA’s Strategic Plan – The 2022-2026 EPA Strategic Plan lists strategies to protect and improve water quality and ecosystem health in the nation’s watersheds. One specific strategy for EPA water programs is to “augment water supplies by safe reuse practices and stormwater capture to recharge aquifers.”
     
  • World Water Day – March 22 was World Water Day! As EPA Assistant Administrator Radhika Fox said in a video message to the water sector, "EPA is working to ensure that water is recognized as a great uniter and a central solution to uplifting communities across the country. With the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the water sector has more opportunities than ever to invest in water like never before."

    New WRAP Outputs - Help Amplify our Collective Work!

    See more details about these new reports in the table below, and please continue to share WRAP resources with your networks.
  • National Agriculture Day Announcement – To celebrate National Agriculture Day on March 22, EPA Administrator Michael Regan issued a new charge topic for the Farm, Ranch, and Rural Communities Committee (FRRCC) to evaluate the Agency’s policies and programs at the nexus of agriculture and climate change. One specific topic under this charge is water management and reuse strategies to address water scarcity. A call for nominations to join the FRRCC and advise on the committee’s new charges related to water reuse closes on May 16, 2022.
     
  • Small Businesses Take on the Challenges of Water Reuse – Through its Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program, EPA has supported several small businesses with particularly innovative water reuse projects. A number of these businesses are profiled in a new document, which showcases the simultaneous challenges and opportunities surrounding the commercialization of new products in the area of reuse (Action 7.5: Coordinate and Promote Water Reuse Technology in Federal SBIR Programs).
     
  • National Alliance for Water Innovation (NAWI) Special Issue in ACS ES&T Publication – NAWI announced a Special Issue from ACS ES&T Engineering: Desalination and Reuse Technologies for a Circular Water Economy. This Special Issue describes challenges and opportunities posed by a future circular water economy and outlines research needs toward decentralized treatment and fit-for-purpose reuse of non-traditional source waters. The publication is available with journal access.
     

Upcoming Activities and Events

  • April 27 – National Water Policy Fly-In (registration link and agenda).
  • May 1 – TreWAG Symposium pre-abstract submission deadline. The Symposium will be held from October 23-27 in northern Israel (abstract submission form, overview and pre-registration).
  • May 3 – National Alliance for Water Innovation (NAWI) Annual Spring Meeting (registration link).
  • Week of May 9 – Establishment of the Water Reuse Interagency Working Group.
  • February 28, 2023 – The Clean Watersheds Needs Survey is now open for data collection through February and will include reuse applications (more details).

WRAP at the WateReuse Symposium
The 37th Annual WateReuse Symposium, held from March 6-9 in San Antonio, Texas, provided a forum for 10 WRAP action teams to present on their respective efforts as part of workshops and technical sessions. Additionally, several plenary sessions highlighted federal leadership on water reuse.

Technical Session

WRAP Presenter(s)

Session Description and Materials

Compilation and Synthesis of U.S. State Water Reuse Regulations

Sharon Nappier (EPA)

*NEW* – Regulations and End-Use Specifications Explorer (REUSExplorer) is a web-based tool that compiles state water reuse regulations and guidelines and highlights the underlying scientific and technical basis of water quality metrics. This handout provides an overview of site features and content (Action 3.1).  

Advancing Stormwater Capture and Use Policy, Research, and Action Priorities

David Smith (EPA -retired) and Justin Mattingly (EPA)

*NEW* – Pure Potential: The Case for Stormwater Capture and Use report lays the groundwork for coordinated action to address the most important challenges to widespread implementation of stormwater capture and use in urban areas (Action 3.3).

Making Reuse Work – National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit case studies for the WRAP

Emily Remmel (NACWA)

*NEW* – Navigating the NPDES Permitting Process for Water Reuse Projects white paper summarizes key items to consider when permitting water reuse projects, presents strategies to effectively permit water reuse projects, and draws upon specific case studies that illustrate these strategies (Action 2.6).

Multi-agency Reuse Programs: Lessons for Successful Collaboration

 

Partnering: Accelerating Regional Integrated Water Management Solutions

Felicia Marcus (Stanford), Eric Rosenblum (Envirospectives), David Smith (EPA -retired), Shannon Spurlock (Pacific Institute)

*NEW* – Multi-Agency Water Reuse Programs: Lessons for Successful Collaboration report and companion summary document  offers an analytical framework for understanding the dynamics of interagency collaboration. The report includes a detailed analysis of case studies and a summary of lessons learned as well as questions and exercises to facilitate utility collaboration (Action 2.16).

Risk-Based Guidance for Onsite Non-Potable Reuse: Progress and Opportunities

Jay Garland (EPA) and Michael Jahne (EPA)

Presenters evaluated how science has progressed since the release of the Risk-Based Framework for the Development of Public Health Guidance for Decentralized Non-Potable Water Systems report in 2017, including review and update of risk targets and risk model refinement (Action 3.4).

Regulatory Challenges for Reuse of Produced Water via Land Application

Nichole Saunders (EDF)

EDF shared an overview of their WRAP action on assessing regulatory programs for produced water reuse and preliminary research that will result in white papers to address regulatory and knowledge gaps (Action 3.8).

Produced Water Reuse Efforts in Support of the WRAP

Mike Hightower (NM-PWRC)

The New Mexico Produced Water Research Consortium discussed current produced water practices, challenges of fit-for-purpose produced water reuse, and research and tools to help create a national framework for produced water treatment and reuse, including the Produced Water Data Portal (Action 4.2).

Bureau of Reclamation Advanced Water Treatment Research Roadmap

Yuliana Porras- Mendoza (Reclamation)

Reclamation shared their progress on compiling research needs that support augmenting water supplies by treating impaired water sources. The research roadmap is anticipated to be finalized and posted on Reclamation’s website in the coming months (Action 7.6).

Developing Water Reuse in Underserved Communities: Learning from the U.S. & Abroad

Michele Braas (Xylem)

This action team is developing case studies that showcase innovative water reuse projects relevant to international contexts and potentially replicable in small and/or underserved communities (Action 11.3).

Workshop Session

WRAP Presenter(s)

Session Description and Materials

Developing a Nationwide Water Reuse Research Roadmap

Julie Minton (WRF) and Justin Mattingly (EPA)

Participants in this workshop session developed research project ideas to help inform WRF’s project planning. WRF is seeking feedback on the research projects prioritization survey, open through mid-April, that summarizes the ideas discussed (Action 7.2).

Plenary Session

WRAP Presenter(s)

The Federal Government’s Role in Promoting Reuse

Sharon Nappier (EPA), Yuliana Porras-Mendoza (Reclamation), and Martin Page (USACE)

Running Towards the Hard Topics: Capturing and Communicating the Resiliency and Equity Value of Water Reuse

Sharon Nappier (EPA)

 

Clockwise from top left: Sharon Nappier (EPA); Aliza Furneaux (WateReuse), Shannon Spurlock (Pacific Institute), David Smith (Water Innovation Services), Justin Mattingly (EPA); Martin Page (USACE); closing plenary session participants and speakers.

 

If you have progress or news on WRAP actions or reuse activities that you would like EPA’s water reuse team to consider for inclusion in an upcoming monthly status update, please email waterreuse@epa.gov.

 

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