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November 2023

Federal Support for Water Reuse

EPA Administrator Visits Family Farm that Reuses Water for Irrigation. To support the Biden Administration’s rural America investments, Administrator Regan visited a horseradish farm in Wisconsin. The family farm utilizes sustainable practices, including water reuse, to mitigate climate change impacts while maintaining productivity. Annually, the farm uses roughly six million gallons of water to wash the crop and reuses 99 percent of it for crop irrigation. Regan participated in a round table discussion where he stated that the operation exemplifies that "what's good for the economy can be good for the planet" and, according to the linked article, Regan shared that the EPA plans to continually build partnerships with the agricultural community to ensure funds are distributed where they are needed. 

The Fifth National Climate Assessment (NCA5) Highlights Water Reuse as a Strategy for Increasing Water Supply Resilience to Drought and Climate Change. On November 14, the U.S. Global Change Research Program released NCA5, the U.S. Government’s preeminent report on climate change impacts, risks, and responses. NCA5 highlighted water reuse as an approach for addressing the impacts of climate change on water supplies.

EPA Administrator Michael Regan and President of Huntsinger Farms and Silver Spring Foods, Eric Rygg. Photo provided by Rodney Snyder.

The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Issues Guidance for Climate-Smart Infrastructure Investments. The memorandum provides guidance to federal agencies on incorporating assessments of natural hazard and climate risk information as part of each agency’s asset management and investment decisions. Federal agencies are strongly encouraged to help prospective financial assistance recipients reduce climate risks to infrastructure, including incorporating nature-based solutions into infrastructure. Nature-based solutions, such as aquifer recharge systems, are a key element of many water reuse projects.

The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation Awards Over $140 Million in Grants from the America the Beautiful Challenge to Restore Lands and Waters. The America the Beautiful Challenge is a public-private grant program for locally led ecosystem restoration projects. The program consolidates funding from multiple federal agencies and the private sector to enable applicants to conceive and develop large-scale projects. The Sierra Vista Effluent Recharge Project was selected as a recipient and uses treated municipal wastewater to supply essential groundwater recharge projects—nature-based solutions that sustain riparian ecosystems and groundwater supplies in the desert southwest. The project will support 43 miles of habitat within in the U.S. Bureau of Land Management’s San Pedro Riparian National Conservation Area.

Infrastructure and Research Funding Announcements

The EPA Releases New State Revolving Fund Dashboard to Track Funding, Including for Water Reuse. The EPA released a new interactive tool allowing the public to more easily engage with Drinking Water (DW) and Clean Water (CW) State Revolving Fund (SRF) data. With the creation of this platform, the public can see how DWSRF and CWSRF investments are being allocated, including how much funding is flowing to each state for water reuse projects. (Action 6.2A: Communicate Eligibility of Water Reuse in SRF Programs)

The EPA Awards Nearly $3.2 Million to Small Businesses to Research Complex Environmental Issues. Recipients of this year's Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) funding include companies developing a nature-based treatment for graywater reuse, a system to remotely sense fugitive methane emissions in abandoned wells, field-deployable devices to rapidly screen drinking water for PFAS, and more. (Action 7.5: Coordinate and Promote Water Reuse Technology in Federal SBIR Programs)

California Expands Funding Eligibility to Include Aquifer Recharge as an Approach for Increasing Water Supply Resilience to Climate Change. A new California law, Senate Bill 122, designated aquifers as “natural infrastructure.” This update unlocks additional funding for a wide range of aquifer recharge projects in the state, such as recharge projects that tap recycled water as well as floodplain and wetland restoration projects. 

Publication and Presentation Highlights

WateReuse California Conference. The 2023 conference hosted in Indian Wells, California was attended by over 700 people who were eager to learn from technical sessions and panels related to the most pressing reuse issues in the state. Members of the EPA’s water reuse team presented on WRAP efforts, including recently published water reuse case studies. A member of the EPA’s Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) program participated in a panel on navigating through the WIFIA program. (Action 6.2B: Support and Communicate WIFIA Funding and Action 11.3: Develop and Highlight Case Studies Relevant to International Contexts)

Mid-Atlantic Joint Water Reuse Seminar. A water reuse seminar was held outside of Annapolis, Maryland as a joint effort between the Chesapeake Water Environment Association (CWEA) and the Chesapeake Section of the American Water Works Association (AWWA). The EPA’s Water Reuse Program presented results from a recent convening on advancing water reuse and innovative wastewater management practices through the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permitting program. Other presentations focused on different water reuse strategies being pursued by mid-Atlantic utilities. (Action 2.19: Advance Strategies for Permitting Innovative Wastewater Management Practices and Water Reuse)