The Office of Drinking Water is changing reporting requirements for the annual Water Use Efficiency (WUE) report and have scheduled a webinar on Thursday, January 7, 2021, from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 (noon) to discuss the changes. The webinar will include presentations on the reason for the changes, the benefits of the WUE program, and tips for obtaining water level measurements in your well. Additionally, Washington State University (WSU) will discuss their forecasting efforts for the Columbia River Basin. There are 0.3 CEU credits offered for this webinar. Registration information will be coming soon. There is no cost for this webinar and is recommended for operators or managers who complete the WUE form.
WHAT WILL IT TAKE TO PROVIDE SAFE DRINKING WATER FOR EVERYONE? Clean drinking water is a basic human right, but 1 in 10 of us lack access to a safe, reliable supply. Ensia takes a look at who’s working to ensure the safety and availability of the water we rely on for life.
The Chemical Action Plan (CAP) team is extending the public comment period on the Draft PFAS CAP until January 4, 2021.
We received stakeholder feedback that additional time to review would be beneficial for providing meaningful input. We recognize the immense challenges that Washington state residents and businesses have faced since spring 2020. This will allow the public and stakeholders an additional month to consider the Draft CAP and provide feedback, without significantly extending the Final CAP timeline.
When Tuesday, December 8, 2020 at 8:00 AM PST -to- Tuesday, December 15, 2020 at 11:50 AM PST Add to Calendar WhereThis is an online event.
Water Storage Basics, an outline of good facilities, good materials, good maintenance & good practices
Join the Northwest Washington and Central Washington Subsections for this workshop on water storage presented in 2 parts. Topics to be covered include:
Part 1 Tuesday December 8th 8 – noon Storage basics Soils & seismic considerations Structural considerations Piping connections Pressure tanks Reservoir water quality Large reservoirs
Part 2 Tuesday December 15th 8 – noon
Inspections Reservoir sanitary surveys Corrosion control Tank materials Post seismic event surveys Instructors will be Sarah Lingley, P.E. & Jeff Lundt, P.E. Click on the registration button below to sign up..
If you would like to provide feedback on the Draft PFAS Chemical Action Plan (CAP) during a public comment meeting, please register for your preferred date and time:
Ecology staff will provide a brief overview of the CAP development process and then reserve most of the time to accept comments. Please note that we plan to record the public comments.
Reach out to Ecology’s Chemical Action Planner, Irina Makarow (irina.makarow@ecy.wa.gov), if you have questions.
On MONDAY, November 23, 2020 at 2:00 P.M., the Island County PLANNING COMMISSION will hold an ONLINE MEETING. The agenda will include:
A PUBLIC HEARING to consider a recommendation to the Board of County Commissioners regarding amendments to Chapters 17.03, 17.04A, and 17.06 of Island County Code addressing standards for Accessory Dwelling Units.
A PUBLIC HEARING to consider a recommendation to the Board of County Commissioners on the 2021 Island County Comprehensive Plan Docket.
The list of proposed changes can be found here and the marked-up code here.
Several of these code changes will impact water systems serving parcels that may qualify for ADUs. The board of WIWSA will be submitting comments and questions to both the Planning Commission and to the Island County staff who are handling the water issues.
If your water system has particular concerns or questions, please submit your comments directly or send them to mail (at) whidbeywatersystems (dot) org so that we can ask pass them along on your behalf.
We will address the issue briefly at our December quarterly meeting.
A monthly newsletter from Whidbey Island Water Systems Association
November 2020
November 2020 Newsletter
Welcome to the WIWSA November 2020 Newsletter!
During these challenging times when we cannot meet in person, we plan to send a monthly newsletter to keep our community up to speed with water news. We’ll send this newsletter to our email list and post it on our website. We aim to provide an easy place to find all the month’s news and web content.
Please share this newsletter with your fellow water system board members, commissioners, operators, members, friends and neighbors, and anyone who drinks water, and please encourage them to subscribe.
News from Whidbey Island Water Systems Association
We still have a vacancy on the board of directors of WIWSA. Ideally we’d like to take this opportunity to boost the representation of Group B water systems in the association by having a Group B member system join the board. Please read the full announcement here.
Our next Quarterly Member Meeting will be December 10th, 5:00 pm – 7:00 pm via Zoom. Please save the date. We’ll post an agenda and send a reminder email closer to the date of the meeting. Remember that to receive the invitation email with the meeting link you need to subscribe to this email service.
Podcasts are a great way to catch up with news while giving your eyes a rest. Here are some of the best water podcasts. You can also find the links on the resources page of our web site.
Circle of BlueWhat’s Up With Water “What’s Up With Water” condenses the need-to-know news on the world’s water into a weekly snapshot.
Water Environment FederationWords on Water A podcast featuring conversations with influential and interesting people from the water sector and news from the Water Environment Federation.
The H2duOWater in Real Life Award-winning communication professionals, Arianne Shipley and Stephanie Corso, aka The H2duO, chat with thought-leaders from both inside and outside of the water industry to serve as a resource for both personal and professional growth. Water in Real Life was created for water professionals who believe that if you desire to build the right relationships with your community, and thereby overcome many of the challenges you face, then your ability to connect with them through storytelling is essential.
Do you have news you want to share?
If you have water news you’d like to share with the water drinkers of Whidbey Island, please send a message to mail@whidbeywatersystems.org
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