Regulatory
NY Governor Seeks $2B to Fix Some of Nation's Oldest Pipes
ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo wants $2 billion to address some of the nation’s oldest water and sewer systems — and while that sounds like a lot of money, it’s a drop in the bucket of what the state’s experts say is truly required. They say it would actually cost $80 billion in the..
Ohio Water Systems to Map Lead Pipe Locations by Spring
DAYTON, Ohio (AP) — Ohio water systems are mapping where lead pipes are located at in the systems under a state law that requires a quicker notification process after lead is found at the tap. The law took effect in September and requires public water systems to alert residents within two days afte..
PHMSA Passes New Rule Regarding Pipeline Accidents
PHMSA has issued a final rule titled, “Operator Qualification, Cost Recovery, Accident and Incident Notification, and Other Pipeline Safety Changes.” The rulemaking establishes a specific time frame requirement for telephonic or electronic notifications of accidents and incidents and addresses mand..
Texas Town Agrees to Extensive Sewer System Upgrades
The U.S. Department of Justice and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced the city of Tyler, Texas, agreed to significantly upgrade its sanitary sewer system to resolve alleged violations of the federal Clean Water Act. The city will also undertake extensive operational improvements to its s..
Flint, US Officials Say Water is Improving
FLINT, Mich. (AP) — Flint officials, along with Michigan and federal officials, say the most recent test results show the level of lead in the city’s water is dropping. Officials also told a town hall meeting Wednesday that chlorine residuals have become “excellent” and that bacteria issues have be..
Alabama Town Receives $300K Grant to Extend Sewer Service
TUSKEGEE, Ala. (AP) — The City of Tuskegee has received a $300,000 grant to help the community meet development needs. Gov. Robert Bentley on Wednesday awarded the city a Community Development Block Grant that would be used to extend municipal sewer service along Highway 81 to Interstate 85 Exit 38..
New York Governor Unveils $2B Clean Water Infrastructure Act
New York Governor Andrew M. Cuomo has announced the Clean Water Infrastructure Act of 2017 to invest a record $2 billion in critical water infrastructure across the state. “Investing in water infrastructure is critical to fostering growth in our communities and our state,” Governor Cuomo said. “Thi..
New EPA Program Makes $1 Billion in Loans Available for Water Infrastructure Projects
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has announced the availability of up to $1 billion in credit assistance for water infrastructure projects under the new Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) program. The WIFIA program will provide long-term, low-cost credit assistance in t..
Eversource Files Appeal Over Gas Pipeline Capacity Agreement
Eversource has filed an appeal with the New Hampshire Supreme Court to overturn a regulatory decision on the company’s proposal to purchase natural gas pipeline capacity to be used to create electricity. The additional gas would be made available by the expansion of an existing pipeline and used to ..
Michigan Governor OKs Faster Lead Notification Requirements After Flint Water Crisis
LANSING, Mich. (AP) — More than 15 months after Flint’s water emergency broke open, Gov. Rick Snyder on Friday signed into law the first policy change stemming from the man-made crisis. The new law requires utilities to more quickly warn customers if there is too much lead in their water. The..
Colorado Governor Fills Public Utility Commission Vacancies
PUEBLO, Colo. (AP) — Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper has appointed two people to fill vacancies on the Public Utilities Commission after the sudden resignation of two members. The Pueblo Chieftain reports (http://bit.ly/2j8LgNc ) that Commissioner Glenn Vaad and former Chairman Joshua Epel have ste..
Missouri PSC Sets Deadline for Proposed Water and Sewer System Sale
Lake Region Water & Sewer Co. and Camden County Public Water Supply District Number Four have filed a joint application with the Missouri Public Service Commission seeking authorization for Camden County to acquire Lake Region’s existing water and sewer assets. Applications to intervene and partici..
Obama Administration Aids Giant California Water Project
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The outgoing Obama administration on Wednesday tried to nudge forward Gov. Jerry Brown’s proposal to build two giant north-south water tunnels for California. In an executive order, U.S. Interior Secretary Sally Jewell directed federal wildlife officials on Wednesday to release..
More Charges Filed in Flint Water Crisis Probe
FLINT, Mich. (AP) — More charges have been filed by Michigan’s attorney general in the investigation into the lead-tainted water crisis in Flint, Michigan, including against two former state-appointed emergency managers. Attorney General Bill Schuette on Tuesday charged former emergency manag..
Report: Corpus Christi Chemical Leak Reported Week Before Public Was Warned
DALLAS (AP) — A chemical leak from an asphalt plant that led Corpus Christi officials to warn residents this week not to drink the water was apparently reported a week earlier, according to an email from a state environmental official that was obtained Friday. The internal email sent Wednesda..
House GOP Closes Flint Water Crisis Investigation
WASHINGTON (AP) — Congressional Republicans quietly closed a year-long investigation into Flint, Michigan’s crisis over lead in its drinking water, faulting both state officials and the Environmental Protection Agency for contamination that has affected nearly 100,000 residents. In letters ..
Years After Law, Kansas Underground Utility Notification System Starts
TOPEKA (AP) — It’s been more than a decade since lawmakers passed a law requiring the formation of an entity to lead underground utility notifications and safe digging in Kansas, and it will be another two years before that group is expected to be operational. The Kansas Corporation Commissio..
PHMSA Appoints 24 Members to Pipeline Safety Working Group
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) today appointed 24 members to the pipeline safety Voluntary Information-Sharing System (VIS) Working Group. The newly created advisory committee that will provide the Secretary of Tran..
Arizona Utility Regulator Wants Nuclear Energy to Count as Renewable
PHOENIX (AP) — An Arizona utility regulator has suggested that nuclear energy should count as a renewable power source, allowing it to compete with solar and wind. Environmental advocates don’t generally consider nuclear power plants renewable because the uranium that fuels them must be mined, repo..
Feds Sue Virginia County for Blocking Sewer Permit for Mosque
CULPEPER, Va. (AP) – The Justice Department is suing Culpeper County, alleging the board of supervisors acted in a discriminatory manner when it denied a sewage permit for a proposed mosque. The Justice Department filed the suit Monday, asking a federal court to order the county to grant the necess..
Michigan Legislators Focus on Energy Laws
LANSING (AP) — With just days left in the two-year term, the Michigan Legislature may be inching toward votes on what is billed as a comprehensive rewrite of state energy laws — legislation that Gov. Rick Snyder has made clear is his highest priority. The bills, which have divided majority House ..
Trump Chooses Rick Perry to Lead Energy Department
WASHINGTON (AP) – Former Texas Gov. Rick Perry, who famously forgot the Energy Department was one of the agencies he pledged to eliminate, is President-elect Donald Trump’s choice to become energy secretary, two people with knowledge of the decision say. Perry is likely to shift the department away..
Program Addresses Lead Testing for Water in Maine Schools
WATERVILLE, Maine (AP) — Maine’s public water utilities are partnering with the state to fund lead testing at schools. Three associations that make up Maine’s drinking water community and the state’s Drinking Water Program are providing financial and technical support for free, voluntary lead testi..
EPA: Tests Show Lead in Some Indiana Drinking Water
EAST CHICAGO, Ind. (AP) — Environmental Protection Agency officials say the federal agency’s tests have discovered elevated levels of lead in drinking water in a northwestern Indiana city where contamination already has forced some residents to move. The EPA on Thursday confirmed the lead levels in..
IEEE, FERC Join Forces on Energy Infrastructure, Market Challenges
The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) and its Power & Energy Society (PES) entered into a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to address energy infrastructure and related market challenges created by recent significant changes..
House Approves Water Infrastructure Bill
WASHINGTON (AP) — The House on Thursday passed a wide-ranging bill to authorize water projects across the country, including $170 million to address lead in Flint, Michigan’s drinking water and $558 million to provide relief to drought-stricken California. The $10 billion bill was approved, 360-61,..
Audit Questions Tribe's Spending of $1.4M for Water Infrastructure
PIERRE, S.D. (AP) — A Native American tribe in South Dakota misspent or couldn’t account for roughly $1.4 million in federal funds for a rural water system, including thousands of dollars paid to officials for meetings they didn’t attend and money spent on a backhoe that couldn’t be found, according..
Trump to Tap Oklahoma AG Pruitt to Head EPA
WASHINGTON (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump is expected to nominate Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt to lead the Environmental Protection Agency, a source close to Pruitt said Wednesday. Environmental groups quickly denounced the choice. Pruitt, 48, has been a reliable booster of the fos..
Chairman of Colorado PUC Announces Resignation
PUEBLO, Colo. (AP) — The head of the Colorado Public Utilities Commission has announced his resignation. The Pueblo Chieftain reports (http://bit.ly/2gCzQkc ) that Chairman Joshua Epel announced Tuesday that he will resign two years ahead of the end of his most recent term. His last day will be Jan..
Louisiana Parish to Get Loan to Rehabilitate Sewer System
HAHNVILLE, La. (AP) – Officials say St. Charles Parish is in line to receive a low-interest $8 million loan from the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality that will be used starting next year to rehabilitate the parish’s sewer system. The New Orleans Advocate reports (http://bit.ly/2gb94kR)..
- 2 workers killed, 1 injured while working on sewer line in Mobile, Ala.
- $5.3 billion, 516-mile pipeline to connect Texas to Arizona through New Mexico
- Tunnel boring continues under Chesapeake Bay for $3.9 billion HRBT Expansion project
- Judge approves construction for key portion of $485 million pipeline in Larimer County, Colo.
- 31 workers rescued after LA tunnel partially collapses
- New products: Latest industry developments
- 31 workers rescued after LA tunnel partially collapses
- Ohio Supreme Court rules sewer line location isn’t a ‘defect’ in property dispute
- Faulconer Construction begins rock blasting for water pipeline project in Charlottesville, Va.
- $5.3 billion, 516-mile pipeline to connect Texas to Arizona through New Mexico