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Hurricane Recovery EPA Water Program Overview Briefing for ACWI. Briefing Overview. EPA’s Role Assistance for Drinking Water and Wastewater Infrastructure Water Monitoring & Assessment Processes Ecosystem Restoration Closing. EPA’s Role.
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Hurricane Recovery EPA Water Program OverviewBriefing for ACWI
Briefing Overview • EPA’s Role • Assistance for Drinking Water and Wastewater Infrastructure • Water Monitoring & Assessment Processes • Ecosystem Restoration • Closing
EPA’s Role • Direct/coordinate and/or provide technical assistance for environmental response activities at the incident site • USCG lead for coastal zone; EPA lead for inland zone
Typical response activities include: • Incident Action Plan development • Site safety plan development (response planning) • Sample collection & analysis (air/water monitoring) • Alternative water supply provisions (potable water) • Source control & stabilization (berms, booms, dikes, plugging release points) • On-site treatment (neutralization, thermal destruction, solidification, detonation) • Off-site disposal or treatment • Temporary relocation • Evidence collection and other law enforcement efforts
Assistance for Drinking Water and Wastewater Infrastructure • Short-term Activities • Tracking the operational status of systems • Technical assistance for emergency repair • Mobile labs • Technical assistance and advice for FEMA Public Assistance
Assistance for Drinking Water and Wastewater Infrastructure • Long-term Activities • Improving future emergency response and recovery • - "Utilities helping Utilities" - Mutual Aid Agreements • (Modeled after FlaWARN) • Participating on ESF #14 Interagency Working Group • Support states in providing technical assistance to utilities: • Funding assistance and advice
Water Monitoring & Assessment Processes • Short-term Activities • Floodwater Sampling with LA DEQ • Mississippi Bays Study with State of Miss. • BOLD surveys with other Federal/State Agencies • Weekly monitoring calls with other federal agencies, states • Data flow/approvals and web postings
Water Monitoring & Assessment Processes • Long-term Activities • Coordinated efforts on water monitoring with other federal and state agencies • to analyze data and interpret, collectively, what it means • Participation on State-Federal Taskforce on Sampling and Analysis of Fish and • Shellfish from Katrina Affected Coastal Areas • Participation on White House Task Force Working Group on Environmental • Impacts and Cleanup Subcommittee on Bio-monitoring and Sampling
Ecosystems Restoration • Short-term Activities • Promote EPA’s restoration message: • Reconstruction PLUS Restoration for True Protection • Commit EPA staff now to emerging activities (LTCR plans) • Build on existing EPA Region/State collaborations (CWPPRA Task Force)
Ecosystems Restoration • Long-term Activities • Support three primary restoration themes: • - River reintroductions • - Barrier island restoration • - Pipeline sediment transfer for wetlands restoration • Explore funding and collaboration alternatives (private/corporate as • well as governmental) needed for full implementation • Inform/adaptively manage restoration with assessment results
Closing Remarks • Environmental Information Sharing across all levels of government was and remains critical • Timeliness and Quality Assurance of Monitoring Results • Data Standards are a good start but Agencies must adopt and implement them from Field – Lab – Analysis – Results!