In July, the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) released two water-related reports. The first highlights State Revolving Funds as a climate resiliency opportunity. The issue paper “Using State Revolving Funds to Build Climate-Resilient Communities” explains how Clean Water and Drinking Water State Revolving Funds (SRF) can better support and incorporate measures to make communities more resilient to climate change risks. The paper shows local, state, and federal decision-makers how water efficiency, green infrastructure, and flood resiliency policies can maximize the effectiveness of SRF investments. It also includes examples of states and municipalities that are successfully implementing these approaches.
The second issue brief, “Waste Less, Pollute Less,” promotes urban water conservation as a Clean Water Act compliance strategy. It explains how urban water conservation can help address water quality and water supply needs at the same time, while holding down costs for ratepayers. With real-world examples, the paper shows how programs and policies that reduce indoor and outdoor water use can help achieve cost-effective compliance with sewer overflow, sewage collection and treatment, and stormwater obligations. The report can help local, state, and federal decision-makers build the case for incorporating water efficiency measures into Clean Water Act permitting and enforcement, as well as Clean Water SRF investments. It also explains how “right-sizing” new wastewater infrastructure to account for trends in decreasing indoor water use can stretch limited public dollars to help more communities solve additional water quality problems.
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