Last week, the National Association of Clean Water Agencies (NACWA) filed an amicus brief in support of the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission’s (SFPUC) appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court for regulatory certainty in the Clean Water Act National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permitting program. The Court is expected to hear arguments in the case, City and County of San Francisco v. Environmental Protection Agency, this fall.
Nineteen utilities representing major U.S. cities and eight state and regional clean water associations joined NACWA in asking the Court to strike down vague language in Clean Water Act permits that hinders the ability of municipalities to efficiently invest in critical infrastructure improvements and keep wastewater bills affordable.
“Clean water utilities rely on state and federal regulators to clearly lay out their compliance obligations under the Clean Water Act so that they can invest public dollars in the projects that provide the greatest health and environmental benefits to local communities,” said NACWA CEO Adam Krantz. “Public clean water agencies are the greatest success story of the Clean Water Act over the past 50 years, but unclear permitting obligations impede water quality progress and increase compliance costs which are ultimately borne by already financially overburdened ratepayers. We owe it to the communities we serve to not only protect human health and the environment, but to also provide affordable clean water to all.”
NACWA has been involved in the case since it began in 2020.
Source: NACWA