Cheryl MacKelvie

Congress Returns With Packed September Legislative Schedule After taking the month of August off, Congress has returned to Washington D.C. with a packed legislative to-do list. At the top of the list are striking a deal on a coronavirus relief package and passing a Continuing Resolution (CR) ahead of the start of the new fiscal [...]

Employment Related COVID Bills Signed by Governor On Thursday, September 17, Governor Newsom signed two COVID related employment bills that likely will impact all wastewater agencies. AB 685 (Reyes) requires that starting January 1, 2021, employers must issue notifications of potential COVID exposures to any workers exposed to an employee that has tested positive or [...]

CASA Seeking Legislative & Regulatory Analyst CASA recently initiated the recruitment process for a new Legislative & Regulatory Analyst. This position will assist in implementing the Association’s state legislative and regulatory program; research, monitor, and analyze legislation and regulatory issues affecting Association members; and provide staff support to the State Legislative Committee and Regulatory Work [...]

Grand Opening of Las Virgenes Triunfo Pure Water Project Demonstration Facility Congratulations to the Las Virgenes Municipal Water District and the Triunfo Water and Sanitation District on their virtual ribbon cutting and the official opening of the Pure Water Las Virgenes – Triunfo Demonstration Facility on Friday, September, 11! This project will take recycled water [...]

The Danish Trade Council: Chicago Water Week Digester Optimization and Biogas Utilization On Monday, September 28, from 8:00 am – 10:00 am, the Danish Trade Council is hosting a webinar as part of Chicago Water Week: Exploit the full WWTP potential: Digester Optimization & Biogas Utilization. Wastewater agencies updating their existing facilities have a great [...]

State Water Board Survey Results Over the summer, CASA and the State Water Board collaborated on developing a survey to gain a better understanding of how COVID-19 has affected the budget and operations of collection systems and wastewater treatment facilities. The State Water Board released the survey in July and provided an initial synopsis on [...]

EPA Technical Challenge Seeks Innovative Ways to Destroy PFAS On August 25, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Andrew Wheeler launched an innovation challenge to identify solutions to destroy PFAS. The Innovative Ways to Destroy PFAS Challenge is a partnership between federal and state agencies seeking detailed plans for non-thermal technologies to destroy PFAS in concentrated aqueous [...]

PPIC Annual Priorities for California Water Event Goes Virtual The Public Policy Institute of California’s (PPIC) annual Priorities for California Water event has morphed to reflect restrictions on in-person gatherings, and this year will take place as a series of three webinars on November 12, 17 and 19 from 11:00am to 12:00pm. The PPIC Water Policy [...]

Promising Water Board Study on POTW Excess Capacity Released On August 24, the State Water Board released a long awaited report on excess capacity at California wastewater treatment plants for co-digestion of diverted organic waste. The in-depth comprehensive analysis of opportunities and challenges for the wastewater sector in helping the state meet the mandates of [...]

EMWD Achieves Seventh Consecutive Cal STAR Safety Recertification At the end of August, Eastern Municipal Water District (EMWD) received recognition and recertification by the California Occupational Safety and Health Administration (Cal/OSHA) for its industry-leading safety achievements. EMWD again obtained Cal/OSHA Voluntary Protection Plan STAR status, exemplifying the safety culture and corresponding recognition it first achieved [...]