EPA Releases Final Guidance for the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act

ATTN: The following news should have been attributed to The Alliance for Water Efficiency.  Waterefficiency.net regrets this error.  For more information on the Alliance for Water Efficiency, go to: www.allianceforwaterefficiency.org

Today the Environmental Protection Agency released its official guidance for the portion of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) that includes the Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF) and Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF) programs. As you may recall, the ARRA allocated 20 percent of the $6 billion appropriated to the CWSRF and DWSRF programs to green activities such as water efficiency projects. The EPA guidance refers to the funding for these types of projects as the Green Project Reserve. States are required to make a concerted effort to fund activities under the Green Project Reserve.
 
A State may take up to one year to provide funding for projects, and is encouraged to solicit new projects for the Green Project Reserve to add to its Intended Use Plan (IUP). However, after August 17, 2009 (180 days after the President signed the Act), States may certify in writing that there are insufficient applications for green infrastructure and water efficiency projects. If EPA approves this certification, States will be allowed to use Green Reserve funds for conventional SRF projects.   
 
We need to prevent this from happening. We also need to ensure that the project lists under the Green Project Reserve submitted by each State are genuinely green. EPA will not likely have the resources to police these lists; therefore it is up to stakeholder groups to make sure water efficiency project submittals are not being unjustly ignored, and that the green projects on States' IUPs are legitimate.
 
Here's what you can do: 

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1. Submit water efficiency and green infrastructure projects to your CWSRF and DWSRF agency as soon as possible to be included in its IUP. Agencies have 180 days to solicit these projects, but the ARRA states, "...recipients shall give preference to activities that can be started and completed expeditiously, including a goal of using at least 50 percent of the funds for activities that can be initiated not later than 120 days after the date of the enactment of this Act." The sooner projects are submitted the better the chance of being added to the IUP.

2. If your CWSRF or DWSRF contacts tell you water efficiency projects do not qualify, please report this to your EPA Regional Office. There seems to be some confusion about this. Water efficiency projects definitely qualify for funding as stand-alone projects. 

3. If your State has closed the project list and will not accept new applications, request a copy of your State's Intended Use Plan to make sure conventional projects are not being passed off as "green." The IUPs are public information and available to you.For copy of the EPA guidance and more information about the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act click here.