National Drinking Water Headlines

Join ASDWA Online Next Week for the 2020 Annual Conference

There’s still time to register for ASDWA’s 2020 Annual Conference! ASDWA’s 35th Annual Conference will convene state drinking water administrators, EPA,...

WRF Report on Water Utility Asset Management Framework for Including Forested and Natural Assets

The Water Research Foundation (WRF) and the US Endowment for Forestry and Communities have published a new project report entitled,...

ASDWA Publishes New PFAS Laboratory Testing Primer and Technical Bulletin

ASDWA has published two new per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) documents entitled, “Laboratory Testing Primer for State Drinking Water Programs...

EPA Appoints New Members to Science Advisory Board and Subcommittees

On Monday (10/19), EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler announced the selection of Dr. John Graham as the new Chair of the...

ASDWA PFAS – Source Water Protection Guide and Toolkit

ASDWA developed this guide and toolkit with support from a Project Advisory Council (PAC) with representatives from nine states (Colorado, Kansas, Minnesota, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Vermont, Virginia, and Wisconsin), and the Cadmus Group. The purpose of the guide is to demonstrate and share effective strategies for addressing PFAS contamination risk in source waters that will help inform policy decisions, assist state drinking water programs in protecting public health, and encourage collaboration and communication among states and water utilities.

Learn More About ASDWA's PFAS Guide and Toolkit

The Association of State Drinking Water Administrators (ASDWA) is the professional Association serving state drinking water programs. Formed in 1984 to address a growing need for state administrators to have national representation, ASDWA has become a respected voice for state primacy agents with Congress, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and other professional organizations.

Learn more About ASDWA

Elevating Drinking Water as a National Priority

One of the most important roles ASDWA has is to make sure no one stops thinking about water. Whether that means spending time on the Hill to speak with Congressional staff about drinking water issues, or expanding the reach of our communications to the public by way of social media, ASDWA is constantly working to advance our message of public health protection on behalf of our members. Having safe drinking water is taken for granted by many, so ASDWA continually emphasizes drinking water’s importance for public health and for the economy.

Download ASDWA's Year in Review

USDA NRCS National Water Quality Initiative – Source Water Protection

Original Broadcast: August 1, 2018

Slide Decks:

The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and EPA have made a change to the National Water Quality Initiative (NWQI) this year (for FY ’19) that includes a new pilot program specifically aimed at protecting drinking water supplies, including groundwater. This is a great new immediate opportunity for state drinking water and source water protection programs to reach out to your NRCS State Conservationists and state Clean Water Act programs to collaborate on proposing SWP areas and specific projects for the pilot that are due by September 14, 2018.

In this webinar, NRCS and EPA staff provide an overview of the NWQI and the new Source Water Readiness Pilot. During the webinar, they will share program objectives, the process for watershed selection, and information about financial assistance, deadlines/important dates and the vision for states and other partner collaboration.

FOR MORE INFORMATION: Please view the “Dispatch” document and read the May NRCS NWQI Bulletin.

HELPFUL RESOURCES: Following are some resources that can help you with this collaboration, particularly if you are not already working with your State Conservationist.

Source Water Collaborative Toolkit on How to Work with NRCS State Conservationists: This toolkit was specifically developed with NRCS for this purpose and includes six simple steps. Step 2 and step 3 will be particularly helpful for setting up a meeting with them.
- Step 2 of the toolkit provides details about the information you should have ready before meeting with your State Conservationist such as SWP delineated maps, data, and source water assessments with ideas for potential and/or ready to go projects.
- Step 3 of the toolkit includes tips to help you set up a meeting as well as draft talking points for your meeting.
- NWQI Watersheds: List of current NWQI FY 2018 approved watersheds
State Contacts:
- NRCS State Offices Directory – to find your State Conservationist.
- State Source Water Protection Contacts – ASDWA is maintaining this list that has been provided to the NRCS State Conservationists, so they may also reach out to you. Please let us know if the contact list needs to be updated for your state.
New AWWA Guide for Water Utilities, USDA Tools to Support Source Water Protection: This new guide by AWWA highlights opportunities for water systems to leverage USDA conservation programs to expand the effectiveness of community partnerships and protect drinking water sources.

Alabama	Hawaii	Massachusetts	New Mexico	South Dakota
Alaska	Idaho	Michigan	New York	Tennessee
Arizona	Illinois	Minnesota	North Carolina	Texas
Arkansas	Indiana	Mississippi	North Dakota	Utah
California	Iowa	Missouri	Ohio	Vermont
Colorado	Kansas	Montana	Oklahoma	Virginia
Connecticut	Kentucky	Nebraska	Oregon	Washington
Delaware	Louisiana	Nevada	Pennsylvania	Wisconsin
Florida	Maine	New Hampshire	Rhode Island	West Virginia
Georgia	Maryland	New Jersey	South Carolina	Wyoming or R8

American Samoa	Guam EPA	Mariana Islands	Navajo Nation	Puerto Rico
Virgin Islands	Washington DC or R3