January 13, 2023
2023 FOCUS ON CHANGE
Open for Registration
We are excited to announce that registration for the 2023 Focus on Change is open. For over thirty years, the Florida Rural Water Association has coordinated with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection to present our annual Focus on Change Seminars. These one day classes are held in different locations throughout the state in an effort to inform the water and wastewater operators of changes in regulations that affect the day to day operations of their systems. Click on the locations below to register.
Price Drop on Generator
100kW Caterpillar MEP007B Military Generator with 1098 hours run time. Military Serial Number/Libby Co Rz00394. 3306 Cat Engine on an Olive Drab green military trailer in good shape, the trailer has a pintle hook connections for towing the generator. The generator has a 91-gallon fuel, belly tank and 50” of 1 (one) awg conductor wire attached.
 
For more information, click on the links below:
 
For further information please email frwa@frwa.net or call 850.668.2746.
Articles of Interest
NATIONAL NEWS

AI-Generated Phishing Emails Leave Businesses At Risk Artificial Intelligence (AI) is rapidly changing the landscape of cybersecurity, and with it, raising the risk of cyber attacks. Artificial Intelligence is being abused to write more advanced spear phishing emails. more

CISA Releases Handbook on Securing Small and Medium-Sized Business Supply Chains The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has released of a new product, Securing Small and Medium-Sized Business (SMB) Supply Chains: A Resource Handbook to Reduce Information and Communication Technology Risks. more

PFAS 101: Everything You Need to Know About 'Forever Chemicals' - EcoWatch There are thousands of types of PFAS, but there are a handful of types that are more present in our society and have been studied more extensively. Some of the most commonly studied PFAS include polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS), perfluorohexane sulfonate (PFHxS) and perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA). more

2022 racked up 165 billion dollars in disaster damages—the third costliest year on record | WUSF The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) released its annual U.S. Climate assessment Tuesday at the 103rd Annual American Meteorological Society Meeting in Denver, Colorado. From hurricanes to tornados, winter storms to wildfires, the U.S. experienced 18 unique billion-dollar disasters in 2022 totaling $165 billion. That’s the third costliest year on record, behind 2017 and 2005. more

Testing For Microplastics: Challenges And Solutions Microplastics have been present in the water cycle for a long time but only came to international attention as a problem in the marine environment in the 1970s. more

2023 Is Ushering In New Wave Of PFAS Restrictions And One State Bans It Completely  One of the most pervasive and concerning drinking water contaminants on the planet is set to receive significant restrictions across the country as the new year begins. more

Regan: US "waited too long" to fix water infrastructure For Gloria Johnson, getting water that she trusts is an ordeal. Every month, the mother of two boils gallons of tap water for her family to drink and cook with. Though Baltimore’s drinking water meets federal safety standards, the water coming out of her tap is sometimes brown — a sign iron may be leaching from aging pipes, whether in her building or under the street.

EPA to offer $100M for environmental justice projects EPA Administrator Michael Regan on Tuesday unveiled $100 million in grants for environmental justice. more

Miss. DEQ rejects alleged discrimination against Jackson A Mississippi environmental regulator has denied claims that the state agency he leads discriminated against the capital city of Jackson in its distribution of federal funds for wastewater treatment. more

Federal Water Tap, January 9: EPA Delays PFAS Drinking Water Rules - Circle of Blue The EPA updated its anticipated timetable for drafting and finalizing new rules and regulations, indicating that draft rules for two PFAS chemicals in drinking water will be delayed until March 2023. more

EPA requires reporting on 9 more “forever chemicals” | IER Indiana Environmental Reporter The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced the makers and users of nine additional PFAS chemicals will have to collect data on those chemicals. more

Understanding Options Key To Selecting Most Effective, Lowest Cost PFAS Solution Municipal water utilities throughout the U.S. are increasingly grappling with the need to address per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) once they are detected in source water. Also known as forever chemicals, because they are among the most persistent toxic compounds in existence, even low doses of PFAS have been linked to serious health problems. more

EPA orders HFPO, PFAS testing from key manufacturers - WaterWorld Magazine The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has issued the next Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) test order requiring certain manufacturers to conduct testing on per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) under EPA’s the National PFAS Testing Strategy. more

3M pledges to exit PFAS manufacturing | Business - Chemistry World US manufacturing giant 3M has decided to remove all per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) from its product portfolio and ‘exit all PFAS manufacturing’ by the end of 2025. It’s a significant move for a company that has been a major manufacturer of such compounds for many decades. Currently, 3M estimates that its PFAS products are worth around $1.3 billion (£1.1 billion) in annual sales. more

EPA Releases List of Laboratories Approved by EPA for UCMR5 as Testing Begins Nationwide Testing under the Fifth Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule (UCMR 5) began on January 1. UCMR 5 requires public water systems (PWSs) to test for 29 PFAS and lithium. EPA recently released the list of laboratories that met the UCMR 5 laboratory approval program application and proficiency testing criteria for the three methods included: methods 537.1 and 533 for PFAS and method 200.7 for lithium. more

ASDWA Asks EPA to Classify Releases of Certain PFAS as a Significant New Use Under Most Recent SNUR In comments sent to EPA on December 28, ASDWA outlined recommendations for the Agency’s latest Significant New Use Rule (SNUR), which included seven PFAS compounds or compounds modified by PFAS. SNURs require those who intend to manufacture, import, or process any of the substances included to notify EPA before commencing that activity. more

What to expect from SCOTUS on new WOTUS definition Durable protections. That’s the phrase Biden administration officials have used for the past two years to describe what they hope to achieve in rewriting the rules governing which wetlands and waterways are regulated by the Clean Water Act. more

Low-Income Americans Overburdened by Sewer/Water Funding Needs, Says NACWA Study Public utility leaders from three states warn that the water crisis in Jackson is not an anomaly and that data shows the average annual wastewater service charge for a single-family household has risen at twice the rate of inflation between 2000 and 2021. more

EPA rolls out interactive, centralized PFAS database Impacted communities and other members of the public interested in learning more about “forever chemicals” will have expanded access to that information with an interactive database launched today by EPA. more


STATE NEWS

DeSantis reups Florida environment pledge made 4 years ago | Associated Press A week into his second term, Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed an executive order Tuesday reaffirming and building on a commitment to clean water he had signed exactly four years earlier. more

Governor signs order to protect Florida’s environment and water quality | Villages News Gov. Ron DeSantis this week signed Executive Order 23-06 (Achieving Even More Now for Florida’s Environment), to further advance the protection of Florida’s environment and water quality. more

Water District asks homeowners to "skip a week" of irrigation - Citrus County Chronicle The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) is reminding residents who irrigate their lawns to “Skip a Week” or more of watering during the cooler months of January and February. more

Is Florida's Infrastructure System Making the Grade Against Population Growth People have been flocking to the Sunshine State for years because of its mild weather, beaches, low taxes, and business-friendly regulations. As a result, the population is predicted to grow by 1.34% in 2023, bringing an additional 310,000 new residents to the area. more

Jesus Merejo tapped as Port St. Lucie's next city manager; Blackburn to retire Feb. 17 | TCPalm The City Council unanimously appointed Merejo to the position Monday. It's expected to approve his contract Jan. 23. more

Century To Discuss Plan To Prevent Customer Contamination Of Drinking Water  The plan, which is required by the state, seeks to protect drinking water from contamination caused by leaks or other connections on the customer side of town water meters. more
This Week in Water History
January 9, 1985: Plane crashes into Kansas water treatment plant. "Last January the Board of Public Works (BPU) of Kansas City, Kansas was the victim of an airplane crash at their Quindaro water treatment plant complex. Although all members of the airplane's crew were killed, the members of the BPU operations staff on duty that morning were unharmed, although shook up. The airplane managed to miss two nearby power plant structures, the east side of the treatment plant, and the chemical treatment plant building where the four employees were working, but landed in a primary basin less than 50 feet away from the building. An intensive manpower effort was launched to get the debris cleaned up and the plant back in operation as soon as possible. Three weeks to the day after the crash, the basin without a walkway bridge was returned to service.