The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is urging municipalities across
the United States to take additional security precautions in the wake of recent
cybersecurity attacks.
The attacks were seemingly committed by hackers from foreign nations and
targeted small communities in Texas and Pennsylvania. This, in combination with
an EPA inspection of drinking water systems across the U.S., revealed
cybersecurity weaknesses and prompted their warning to utilities, including some
in Michigan.
Some of the actions EPA recommends drinking water systems take to strengthen
their security include:
 Reducing exposure to public-facing internet
 Conducting regular cybersecurity assessments
 Changing default passwords immediately
 Conducting an inventory of operational technology/information technology
(OT/IT) assets
 Developing and exercising cybersecurity incident response and recovery
plans.
 Backup OT/IT systems
 Reducing exposure to vulnerabilities
 Conducting cybersecurity awareness training
Along with steps laid out by EPA, there are many other critical questions that
community leaders need to ask themselves when it comes to evaluating how
vulnerable their water systems might be to a cyber attack.
Some security system failures identified by EPA in its inspections of utilities
included default passwords that had not been updated for some time, in addition
to single logins that could be easily compromised.
While attacks in some states were resolved quickly (despite one in Texas causing a
water system to overflow) a worst-case scenario could mean total contamination
of a water system, and EPA believes this is not the last time the U.S. will face this
kind of threat.

The EPA said it’s offering technical assistance, training, and educational resources
to any communities that might need them as they navigate potential security
system updates.
Along with discovering cybersecurity weaknesses, EPA inspections also revealed
that more than 70 percent of water systems studied do not meet the clean water
standards outlined in the Safe Drinking Water Act.
For that reason, it’s increasing planned inspections.

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that TPWR Developer, LLC, CBG Building Company LLC, and Bowman Consulting DC have settled alleged violations of regulations designed to protect America’s waterways from polluted stormwater runoff.

In an administrative consent agreement with EPA, the companies have agreed to pay a $27,000 penalty and implement a supplemental environmental project (SEP), to settle alleged Clean Water Act violations involving stormwater runoff from the Parks at Walter Reed construction site to Rock Creek and downstream waterways.

The Parks at Walter Reed is a multi-use development construction site in Washington, D.C., consisting of apartment and commercial spaces, located on the former Walter Reed Army Hospital grounds.

Uncontrolled stormwater runoff from construction and industrial sites often contains sediment, oil and grease, chemicals, nutrients, and other pollutants.  The Clean Water Act (CWA) requires owners of certain construction and industrial operations to obtain a permit before discharging stormwater runoff into waterways. These permits include pollution-reducing practices, such as runoff reduction measures, spill prevention safeguards, material storage and coverage requirements, and employee training.

In the consent agreement, EPA cited the companies for failing to have the required National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit coverage for stormwater discharges, in violation of the CWA. To correct these violations, the companies submitted notices of intent for coverage under EPA’s NPDES construction general permit, which were approved by EPA.

In addition to the penalty, the companies will also spend at least $40,000 to implement a SEP in Rock Creek Park that will help protect the Hay’s Spring amphipod, the only endangered species in the D.C. area.  The companies will help restore the amphipod’s spring habitats, revegetate social trail entrances, and plant trees and plants native to Rock Creek Park to provide stabilization and tree cover. This project will be performed with oversight from the National Park Service.

For more information about EPA’s stormwater program, visit www.epa.gov/npdes/npdes-stormwater-program.

The Global Water Center has received two grants worth a total of $499,439 from The Coca-Cola Foundation to support multiple initiatives that will utilize training, technology, and relationships to create sustainable, local solutions for water problems worldwide.

“The Coca-Cola Foundation’s generosity has significantly accelerated the Global Water Center’s ability, and that of our partners, to help more people have access to safe and reliable drinking water,” said Thomas Johnston, chief executive officer of the Global Water Center. “This grant will allow the Global Water Center to more-effectively share knowledge and resources with individuals, organizations, and governments that will strengthen their ability to deliver safe water where it is most needed.”

Initially, The Coca-Cola Foundation awarded the Global Water Center with a grant of $349,939 to provide solar-powered water systems (SPWS) training to government engineers and consultants from the Rural Drinking Water and Sanitation Department in Karnataka, India. The GWC’s training method involves equipping master trainers with the skills to train 300 to 500 engineers who will go on to train thousands of their colleagues in SPWS. This will support the government of Karnataka’s ability to achieve its goal of supplying safe water to the more than 60 million people in the state. Then The Coca-Cola Foundation gave the Global Water Center an additional $149,500 to support the delivery of online courses, create new capacity building material, and provide technical assistance. In 2024, the funding will expand the Global Water Center’s courses in three ways:

-The delivery of each solar-powered water system course (SPWS 101 and 201) in English and French.

– The translation of the two existing SPWS courses into Spanish, enabling these courses to reach new global audiences.

– The development and design of a SPWS operations and maintenance guide, which will equip operators with the ability to sustainably deliver safe and reliable water.

Additionally, the $149,500 grant will support technical assistance to The Coca-Cola Foundation’s implementing partners who are designing, installing, and operating rural water systems.

Through the partnership of The Coca-Cola Foundation, the Global Water Center will rapidly expand its courses and technical assistance to address water scarcity and energy challenges in regions where people have limited access to safe and reliable water. Ultimately, the funding will be used to help decrease water poverty worldwide.

About the Global Water Center

The Global Water Center believes everyone deserves access to safely managed water. As the go-to resource for the rural water sector, its safe water training courses have reached people in 81 countries. In addition to training, it also uses technology to make water projects effective and reliable. All of its efforts are rooted in collaboration with nonprofits, governments, and other entities to solve the global water crisis.

About The Coca-Cola Foundation

The mission of The Coca-Cola Foundation is to make a difference in communities around the world where The Coca-Cola Company operates and where its employees live and work. It support transformative ideas and institutions that address complex global challenges and that leave a measurable and lasting impact. Its giving is focused on sustainable access to safe water, climate resilience and disaster risk preparedness and response, economic empowerment, and causes impacting its hometown community. Since its inception in 1984, The Coca-Cola Foundation has awarded grants of over $1.5 billion in service of its mandate to strengthen communities across the world.

The American Business Water Coalition (ABWC) has released a report that addresses the urgent need for the federal government to drastically increase water infrastructure funding and protect the nation’s businesses and local economies. The new ABWC business impact fact sheet, “10 Extreme Water Disasters in 10 Days Shut Down Local Economies Across the Nation,” gathers a list of water infrastructure failures directly tied to extreme weather and business loss in or surrounding major metropolitan areas in all regions of the country between the dates of January 14 and 23.

Key events highlighted in the report include the following:

1. Memphis, Tenn., was placed under a boil water advisory between January 18 and 23 following numerous water main breaks, impacting 600,000 people and wreaking havoc on businesses, many of which had to cease or significantly alter operations.
2. Philadelphia suffered several large water main breaks following freezing temperatures, resulting in extreme street flooding and water shut-offs between January 22 and 23 for 80 affected properties.
3. Metairie, La., the largest community in Jefferson Parish, placed 250,000 residents and all businesses in the community under a boil water advisory on January 23 following a massive break of an 80-year-old water main. Grocery stores, hospitals, schools, and other businesses were forced to limit services or cease operations until the advisory was lifted on January 25.

“This report only scratches the surface of what is happening as a result of underfunded water infrastructure,” said Mae Stevens, chief executive officer of ABWC. “These events, which include water main breaks leading to water shut-offs and boil water advisories, will likely occur more frequently in the future if the federal government continues to underinvest in our nation’s water infrastructure. Every business, no matter how big or how small, is dependent on water to operate. We are past due for this to be made a priority.”

Currently,  5 percent of all nationwide investment is in water infrastructure. Restoring the country’s water systems simply to meet the current needs will cost at least $1 trillion over the next 25 years—without taking into account the impacts of climate change or other future environmental threats. Without a dramatic increase in federal investment, every business and community in the U.S. is at risk, with real-world effects showcased in this report.

The ABWC is a group of water-reliant businesses—from manufacturing to energy to technology and beyond. The coalition provides a platform for businesses across the U.S. to urge Congress and the current administration to increase investment in water infrastructure, and foster relationships between businesses and their local utilities.

 To download the ABWC report, go to www.businesswatercoalition.com.

As the Biden administration works to remedy one of the most pervasive drinking water contamination issues in the United States, some states are banding together to push back.

Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach is leading a coalition of state attorneys general from 14 other states in opposition to the National Primary Water Regulations for Lead and Copper plan to replace more than 9 million lead pipes in the U.S. According to a letter from Kobach, the attorneys general estimate the removal and replacement of pipes would cost more than $60 billion. So far, Congress has set aside $15 billion for the project.

High-profile lead contamination incidents caused by outdated infrastructure in Flint, Mich., and Jackson, Miss., as well as other areas, have pushed the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to mandate replacement of lead-based pipelines within the next 10 years. That undertaking has already run into obstacles, including financial concerns and challenges in identifying the old service lines.

Leading the opposing coalition, Kobalch has described the plan as “heavy handed” and “overreach by the Biden administration.” He alleges that the regulations would force homeowners to pay to replace their own lines if they contain lead and connect to a city line.

Attorneys general from Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Iowa, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, and Wyoming have joined the opposition.

A group of attorneys general from 13 Democrat-led states are arguing, however, that the EPA mandate does not go far enough.

The issues raised by this group of attorneys general include a loophole they say could leave some cities with lead water lines for decades. They point to a provision that allows flexibility for systems with large numbers of lead pipes, requiring them to only replace 10,000 lead service lines per year.

The states calling for a stronger mandate include New York, California, Connecticut, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Wisconsin, and Washington, D.C.