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June 30, 2022
from the
Board and Staff
of the
Florida Rural Water Association
GENERATORS FOR SALE
$16,000

100kW Caterpillar MEP007B Military Generator with 1098 hours run time. Military Serial Number 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.
$16,000

100kW Caterpillar MEP007B Military Generator with 1181 hours run time. Libby Co (serial number RZ01408). Brand new tandem axle trailer with 3500-pound axle and 2” ball. The generator is bolted down to the trailer with a 91-gallon fuel tank on the trailer as a belly tank below the generator.
 
For more information click on the links below:
 
For further information please email frwa@frwa.net or call 850.668.2746.
FRWA To Begin New Apprenticeship Program
The Florida Rural Water Association is planning a new two-year apprenticeship training programs starting in September 2022. We plan to hold multiple trainings programs in the northwest area, northeast area, and the southeast area of the state.

Now is the time for you to sign up your new employees or employees! This program is intended for employees that need to get their license and to learn more about the water and wastewater industry. Your system will gain access to a vetted pool of applicants that will receive technical training in addition to their on-the-job training. 

The apprentice becomes a valuable employee as they learn first-hand essential skills on-the-job and about the system’s assets from a mentor. The mentor is a licensed operator who already works for the system.

Apprentices receive technical instruction in addition to their on-the-job training. This instruction helps to strengthen and round out the knowledge base of the apprentice, resulting in a more valuable employee.
The training includes the coursework required to receive a Class C operator’s license for water or wastewater, hands on demos of pumps and motors, emergency response, lab testing, basics of utility management and more.

For more information on the program, click here.

If you are interested in signing up your employee or have any questions, please call 850-668-2746 or email frwa@frwa.net.
2022 FRWA Annual Conference
August 8-10, 2022
Hilton Daytona Beach Hilton
100 N Atlantic Avenue
Daytona Beach FL 32118

Make plans now to join us as we celebrate forty-three years of Rural Water at this year's FRWA Annual Conference. With over sixty-five topics to choose from, you are sure to find something of interest! Join us at the Hilton and bring the family for a last minute vacation before the kids go back to school!
The Conference will be held at the Daytona Beach Hilton from August 8-10. Be sure to make your reservations now to take advantage of the discounted rates starting at $118.00 (this rate does not include $9.00 self parking rate) plus tax. If you would like to make your hotel reservations, use the code FRWA22 and call 386.254.8200 or click here to reserve your room online. The discounted rates are only available until July 24, 2022.

The Hilton has a family friendly atmosphere with plenty for the family to do as you attend sessions discussing the issues facing the industry as well as how to cope with them. You will have over sixty five topics to choose from so you will be sure to find topics that interest you. All this while you have the opportunity to earn 1.5 CEUs towards your 2023 license.

Things will kick off with the Paul Brayton Golf Tournament at the LPGA Golf Course! Don’t forget to bring your water sample to the Registration booth before 2:00 pm on Tuesday to participate in this year’s Best Tasting Water Contest. The winner will be announced at the Exhibitor Social in the Exhibit Hall on Tuesday evening and have a chance to participate in the “Great American Taste Test” in Washington DC in February 2023.

You will want to be in the Exhibit Hall to see if your name is picked for the great door prizes that are given away! These and other activities will keep you informed, inspired, and motivated so that we can help you to make sure the future of the water and wastewater industry in Florida is bright!

For complete information and to register for this year's Conference, click here! Hope to see you there!
FRWA ANNUAL AWARDS
The Florida Rural Water Association (FRWA) Board of Directors and Staff are pleased to announce that ten Water and Wastewater Awards will be presented at the FRWA 2022 Annual Conference to be held at the Daytona Beach Hilton on August 8-10, 2022. The awards will be presented during the Opening Session on Tuesday, August 9th. Only members are eligible to nominate for system awards. A system, a representative, or the nominee must be present during the Opening Session to win. If you need further information, please contact us at 800.872.8207 or email frwa@frwa.net.

The award categories are Manager/Administrator of the year, System Office Employee of the Year, Wastewater Operator of the Year, Drinking Water Operator of the Year, Distribution/Collection Operator of the Year, Small Public Water System of the Year, Medium Public Water System of the Year, Small Wastewater System of the Year, Medium Wastewater System of the Year, and the prestigious FRWA Special Recognition Award.

If you would like to nominate your system and/or employee for any of these awards, click here for a form to complete and return by Friday, July 1, 2022. Awards for each of the ten categories will be presented based upon a satisfactory number of nominees. The FRWA Awards Review Committee will then review all nominees and may conduct an on-site evaluation of the system/personnel.

You may submit your nomination by mail to FRWA, 2970 Wellington Circle, Tallahassee FL 32309 or email to Ben.Lewis@frwa.net. For complete information or to nominate a system employee, click here.
Articles of Interest
NATIONAL NEWS
Emergency Response Training In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, one of the strongest, deadliest and costliest storms to hit the Atlantic Coast, rural water utilities rushed to southeastern states to assist in any way they could.  more

Supreme Court curbs EPA's regulatory powers The US Supreme Court in a 6-3 decision has restricted the Environmental Protection Agency's ability to regulate carbon emissions from existing power plants.  more

PFAS found in more communities near DOD sites - WaterWorld Magazine The Department of Defense has released data showing large quantities of PFAS chemicals in the drinking water of areas near military bases. more

Digitalization Of The Water Industry According to the worldwide research and advisory firm Gartner, "the use of digital technology to modify a company model and provide new revenue and value-producing opportunities … is the process of converting to a digital business." more

Utilities Fear PFAS Limits Will Create Cost Issues Though advocates have been pressuring federal regulators to impose stronger limits on per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in drinking water and the environment, recent efforts to do so are raising questions about who will pay for the costs. more

EPA Announces Additional $1.9 Billion in State Revolving Loan Funds for Water Infrastructure Upgrades Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced $1.9 billion in grant funding to the State Revolving Funds (SRF) to accelerate progress on water infrastructure projects. more

EPA Announces $6.5 Billion in New Funding Available for Water Infrastructure Projects The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the 2022 notices of funding availability for the agency’s Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) program and the State Infrastructure Financing Authority WIFIA (SWIFIA) program. more

EPA Announces Actions to Improve Drinking Water and Wastewater Services for Tribes and Alaska Native Villages The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is announcing a suite of actions to improve access to safe and reliable drinking water and wastewater services for American Indian Tribes and Alaska Native Villages. more

Public Comment Period Open for Build America, Buy America Waiver Alongside the BIL, Congress passed the Build America, Buy America Act (BABA), which establishes strong and permanent domestic sourcing requirements across all federal financial assistance programs. more

Small Business Funding Available for Environmental Technology The official Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) is posted on FedConnect. Proposals must be submitted through FedConnect by the required deadline. more

Assessing Best Practices For Water Distribution Systems The state of U.S. water distribution infrastructure — as shown by this infographic — ranges from aging to ancient, with nearly a quarter-million breaks occurring annually in the 1.2 miles of water mains serving the U.S. population. more

EPA Releases Spring 2022 Unified Regulatory Agenda EPA has released its Spring 2022 Unified Agenda of Regulatory and Non-Regulatory Actions. more

ASDWA Submits Letter of Recommendations to EPA for Enhancing Small and Disadvantaged Water System Funding and Assistance On June 14, ASDWA submitted a letter to Michael Regan, EPA’s Administrator, and Rhadika Fox, EPA’s Assistant Administrator for the Office of Water, with detailed recommendations to further enhance small and disadvantaged water system funding and assistance efforts across the nation. more

Drinking Water Health Advisories for PFAS Fact Sheet for Communities On June 15, 2022, EPA released four drinking water health advisories for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). In releasing these drinking water health advisories, EPA is acting in accordance with its mission and responsibility to protect public health and keep communities informed when new science becomes available. more

White House: EPA WOTUS proposal due out in Nov. 2023 The Supreme Court will decide the fate of the nation’s most contentious Clean Water Act rule before EPA releases regulations on the matter, according to a new regulatory blueprint released yesterday. more

Iowa's Wild Weather: Flooding, on Iowa PBS In this edition of Iowa’s Wild Weather, we examine some of the most catastrophic flooding events in Iowa’s history, the role that climate change may play in events, the science behind flooding that is unique to Iowa, and how victims of flooding have restored their lives, renewed their communities, and maintained their respect for Iowa’s waterways. more

Testing Confirms Chemical Company as Source of Flint River Petroleum Release  Results of testing completed Friday afternoon by the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) confirm that the Lockhart Chemical Company is the source of a release of petroleum product to the Flint River. more


STATE NEWS
City of Ocala's 2021 Water Quality Report now available Ocala-News.com The City of Ocala's water customers can learn more about their drinking water by accessing an annual report. more

More waste to be disposed of underground in Manatee County because of Piney Point Sarasota Herald-Tribune The county has applied for a permit from the Florida DEP to inject brine ... underground could ultimately harm local drinking water aquifers. more

Keeping toilets flushing and the lights on, even when it floods | First Coast News Two things you do not want to fail, even when hurricanes hit or sea levels rise. more

Tropic Update 06.30.22 AM Recent satellite and radar imagery indicate that showers and thunderstorms associated with Invest 95L are showing limited signs of organization. more

Veto was proper, but war on local government is unwise | Miami Today Veto of a state bill to give businesses leverage over city and county ordinances was vital, but in his veto message Gov. Ron DeSantis unwisely asked the legislature to instead clamp down on local emergency actions and controls over individual issues. more

FDEO Nearly $48 Million Available for Florida’s Small Cities to Further Community Development Projects The Florida Department of Economic Opportunity (DEO) announced nearly $48 million available in grant funding for Florida’s small cities to further community development projects through the Florida Small Cities Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) for economic development, commercial and neighborhood revitalization, housing rehabilitation, and other infrastructure improvements, which can include planning for broadband deployment and expansion. more
This Week in Water History
Drifting Sand Filtration
June 25, 1914: Engineering News article. A Novel Water-Filtration Plant for Toronto. “It is not often that a city takes up a novelty in water filtration or in any other class of engineering work on so large a scale as the proposed 72,000-U. S.-gal. “drifting sand” filtration plant for which the city council of Toronto awarded the contract on June 8. It is true, as stated elsewhere in this issue, that two plants of a few hundred thousand gallons capacity are already in operation elsewhere and that contracts for two other and much larger plants are well under way. It is also true that a working unit was tested for 33 days at Toronto under the direction of the local medical officer of health and city analyst, and that this same test plant has been under observation for over a year. Nevertheless, the fact remains that the drifting-sand filter is as yet in the working-scale experimental stage, with few data yet available regarding its efficiency and less to be had regarding operating costs.

The drifting-sand filter may be described as a deep mechanical filter with reversion to the early type in the way of absence of coagulation basins and rate-controllers and with the addition of continuous washing and replacing of filter sand. It is claimed that this added feature makes up for the lack of a coagulating basin. To what extent this claim will be made good by experience at Toronto and on different waters at other places, it will be interesting to learn a few years hence.”

Commentary: The filter plant was built in 1917 and used until 1981 by the City of Toronto. No other large-scale filtration plants adopted this unique design.

To enjoy more opportunities to take a look at the past in water history, go to this link.