Shipping companies and seaports should be aware of the potential impacts of the VIDA national standards of performance currently being crafted. Do you know about ongoing and future developments of the VIDA regulations? If not, contact us at [email protected], or (202)714-2822.
It is incumbent upon engineering officials at Water Systems across the U.S. to fully explain why new, innovative, certified, cost-effective technologies for improving drinking water conveyances were not used and why the additional costs for 1990’s dig-n-replace methodologies are warranted. Water Ratepayers deserve to know why!
On August 2, President Trump signed into law a two-year federal budget deal totaling $2.7 trillion. Background The White House and congressional leaders announced on July 22 that a comprehensive deal had been worked out on the top line spending numbers for the U.S. discretionary budget for fiscal years 2020 and 2021. Pressure had been…
On Tuesday afternoon, January 15 the U.S. House Rules Committee is scheduled to debate the rules for floor consideration of H.R 268, making Supplemental Appropriations for necessary expenses related to flood mitigation, disaster relief, long-term recovery, and restoration of infrastructure in areas that received a major disaster designation as a result of Hurricanes Florence, Michael,…
Recently, President Obama signed the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) authorizing EPA, (Environmental Protection Agency) to provide assistance for a wide variety of projects including $170 million in aid to Flint, Michigan to help repair its drinking water system.
In a bill-signing ceremony at the White House, The President explained how WRDA will “put Americans to work modernizing our water infrastructure and restoring some of our most vital ecosystems.…
Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) projects will be evaluated individually by the Administrator of EPA based on criteria in the rule and a previously issued Notice of Funds Available (NOFA). Once a project is selected for a loan individual credit agreements will be developed in negotiations between Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the project sponsor.…
On Monday, December 19, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued an interim final rule on credit assistance for water infrastructure projects that will become immediately effective. The rule allows EPA to begin implementing the new Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) program.
In the rule, the EPA estimates the national funding need for capital improvements for such facilities totals approximately $660 billion over the next 20 years. The vast majority of that need, 90% or $591 billion, is for repair, rehabilitation, and replacement of existing infrastructure.
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Cansler Consulting is staying on top of the drinking water infrastructure challenges faced by our country and how the the government is responding to it now and in the future.
If history of the previous EPA assessments continue to repeat, there will likely be significant changes in some states’ needs in the new EPA assessment in 2017. These changes will result in adjustments to individual states’ DWSRF financial allotments. Most shifts in states’ needs can be attributed to expected changes in the status of projects from one survey to the next.…
The exterior of the Flint Water Plant in Michigan. Flint is in the spotlight as concerns over it’s water quality and lead content have made national headlines.
The drinking water crisis in Flint, Michigan heightened the public’s attention across the U.S. about the issue of the deteriorating decades-old drinking water infrastructure. Along with the rest of America, Cansler Consulting watched as the crisis unfolded. Members of Congress, state and federal regulatory officials conducted multiple hearings and site visits to learn more about these challenges occurring in multiple municipalities throughout the U.S. What they learned is, without future federal budget pressures, drinking water infrastructure issues are likely to remain prominent in the U.S. through 2037 and beyond. Lobbying and government relations are the most effective ways to apply those pressures.…
The CRomnibus, HR 83, cuts the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) by $60 million below the fiscal year 2014 level, providing a total of $8.1 billion for the agency. Environmental Protection Agency Overall, EPA funding has been reduced by $2.2 billion – or 21% – since 2010. The bill continues reductions to EPA staff, bringing staffing…
On December 5 officials from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) heard from about 140 witnesses consisting of individual consumers, oil companies, convenience store operators, livestock and crop producers during a hearing on their proposal to reduce the 2014 Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS).…
On August 21, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled,
2-1, that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) had exceeded its mandate with the Clean Air Act, which was to limit sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide emissions from power plants in 28 mostly Eastern states and Texas.
EPA’s rule intended to reduce sulfur dioxide emissions by 73% and nitrogen oxide by 54% at coal-fired power plants below 2005 levels. It is believed that reducing emissions from these plants will further reduce pollutants that cause acid rain and smog that cross state lines. A factor that it didn’t take into account was the financial hardship the rule would create for energy producers and their customers, possibly closing down energy facilities.
The judges ruled that the EPA exceeded its authority under the Clean Air Act by……
