Rural Water - Quarter 2, 2008 - (Page 34) annually and provides an additional 80,000-plus types of on-site assistance. The work of state associations during periods of emergencies is well known, and presentations of the work performed after tornadoes in Kansas and Arkansas as well as flooding in Washington State supplemented the knowledge summit attendees had about rural water’s work during Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Topping off the meeting was a presentation from Arkansas about Rural Water’s role in assisting communities in environmental protection and the protection of drinking water sources. Protecting the public’s health is the top priority of every water and wastewater system in America. Water systems aggressively work to protect their water sources. Since 1990, the national and state rural water associations have assisted systems in identifying, controlling and eliminating pollutants that could harm the populace. An essential component in America’s efforts to prevent, reduce and eliminate human-caused pollutants in our rivers, lakes and shallow aquifers is the NRWA and Farm Service Administration’s (FSA) Source Water Protection Program. This cooperative program has led to significant progress in reducing point-source pollution from industrial, agricultural, municipal and even household sources. Further reductions in these pollutants must continue while recognizing that non-point sources have rapidly become the primary cause of water pollution. Most non-point-source pollutants originate from agriculture, transportation corridors, construction activities and paved or other impervious land cover. Non-point-source pollution results from activities over large areas and can be dependent on a wide variety of transient conditions, such as the weather. Managing these pollutants will require a long-term commitment from local leaders combined with ongoing technical assistance. Non-point-source pollution is expensive. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) estimates that damages from soil erosion cost between $2 billion and $8 billion per year (Ribaudo, 1989). The EPA estimates that public water systems (PWS) spend an additional $200 million per year just to remove excess nitrate to meet federal drinking water standards (Ribaudo, 1999). The NRWA/FSA Source Water Protection Program is built around the small and rural PWS with local businesses, local agricultural producers, government agencies and other local groups working together to develop and implement strategies to protect their drinking water source area. NRWA has been a leader in source water protection since partnering with the EPA in 1990 to develop and implement the Wellhead Protection Program (WHPP). Working with the small and rural public water systems, of which 26,292 are members of our state rural water affi liates, NRWA and state rural water associations implemented a fi ve-step program to protect their drinking water sources. The WHPP is built around the licensed operator of the PWS. The WHPP shows that when given information and ongoing technical support, the local community can successfully protect its drinking water recharge area. 34 • Second Quarter 2008 http://www.tankconnection.com
For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.