Rural Water - Quarter 1, 2009 - (Page 24)

It is important that states hear water system opinions on how the state rules can be designed to be easily implemented. States request written comments on their proposed rules and most states hold public hearings on the proposals so verbal comments can be provided by interested parties. adopt their rules they also need input from the water systems that will have to comply with the rule. There is a tendency to think that once the federal rule is ﬁ nished, there isn’t anything that can be done about the requirements so systems may not bother to offer their perspectives. However, just a few water systems with constructive comments and viable alternatives to offer can have a signiﬁcant inﬂuence on the ﬁ nal state regulations. For some issues addressed in federal regulations, EPA does not prescribe one speciﬁc approach but allows states to choose from alternatives described in the federal rule or to develop their own approach within parameters prescribed in the rule. Some tend to think of these as areas where the EPA can’t ﬁgure out a good solution so they punt that job to the states! We believe that these are areas where EPA recognizes that states know their systems’ needs best and can craft requirements that recognize local conditions. Regardless of why you think these state options are there, the state has to decide how it will implement the ﬂexibility provide by EPA. It is important that states hear water system opinions on how the state rules can be designed to be easily implemented. States request written comments on their proposed rules and most states hold public hearings on the proposals so verbal comments can be provided by interested parties. For major rules, states may even form special stakeholder panels to provide input. The key is to be involved and offer your advice and expertise. This state regulatory process will start soon after the federal rules are ﬁ nal. Check with your state drinking water program to ﬁ nd out about the status of state rules. You can ﬁ nd links to each state’s drinking water program through the Association of State Drinking Water Administrators (ASDWA) Web site at www.asdwa.org. You should be on a ﬁrst-name basis with your state drinking water program staff already, but that’s another story! I suppose I should at least pass along one tidbit on upcoming contaminants that may be regulated. After all, it is what I was asked to write about, but I thought the need for more input to the regulatory process would be a more important long term message to convey. So, here’s the latest rumor: don’t be surprised if perchlorate does get regulated after all. Also, the weatherman is predicting snow! Now if I just had a way to inﬂuence that… 24 • First Quarter 2009 400229_McGARD.indd 1 1/13/09 8:41:13 PM http://www.asdwa.org http://www.mcgard.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Rural Water - Quarter 1, 2009

Rural Water - Quarter 1, 2009 Contents From the President Question & Answer: Water Conservation in the Home Avoiding the Humpty Dumpty Approach to Data Backup From the CEO What the Future Holds Asset Management for Small Communities Understanding Your Surface Water Source: The Rivers Hydraulic Models Expeditionary Water Packaging System Graces Delta The Rural Water Rally in April Training in Hawaii Regulatory Update Rural Water Releases Report on Water Infrastructure Projects and Economic Stimulus Legislation Throwing My Loop Advertisers.com Index to Advertisers

Rural Water - Quarter 1, 2009

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