Op-Ed: Proposed Rules For Drinking Water Infrastructure Deserve Attention
Photo courtesy of Peter Kasabach and New Jersey Future.
We all use drinking water every day. Behind our everyday water usage lies a vast, invisible network of pipes and treatment infrastructure that runs 24/7 to ensure water is treated, distributed, and available on demand when you open the tap. As one of the oldest states, New Jersey’s water infrastructure is often old and needs upgrades and repairs.
In 2019, New Jersey passed landmark legislation called the Water Quality Accountability Act (WQAA) that required water purveyors to proactively improve the safety, reliability, and administrative oversight of water infrastructure. Subsequently, the WQAA was amended in 2021 to strengthen clarity and enforcement. This August, NJDEP proposed long-awaited amendments to the Safe Drinking Water Act and Water Supply Allocation Permit Rules to align with the 2021 WQAA amendments to support enforcement of WQAA as they affect drinking water utilities. These new changes govern civil administrative penalties for violating WQAA requirements, new definitions relevant to asset management, and water loss audits that conform to national best practices.
It’s important for all water users to understand the implications of this rule proposal, as they will shape the future of drinking water infrastructure and its management in New Jersey. According to reported WQAA data for drinking water utilities, the expected three-year spending on capital projects has been increasing considerably¹, reflecting new requirements such as the removal of lead service lines, upgrading aging infrastructure, and ensuring vital assets are climate resilient. How drinking water utilities manage their vital assets (pipes, treatment plants, etc.) has a direct impact on how they provide reliable and affordable treated water to individuals, businesses, and communities.
Jersey Water Works is a collaborative effort of many diverse organizations and individuals who embrace the common purpose of transforming New Jersey’s inadequate water infrastructure by investing in sustainable, cost-effective solutions that provide communities with clean water and waterways; healthier, safer neighborhoods; local jobs; flood and climate resilience; and economic growth. One of the collaborative’s four shared goals is “Effective and Financially Sustainable Systems,” which aims for communities to maintain and improve drinking water, wastewater, and stormwater infrastructure systems to deliver quality water services that meet community needs, and that operating budgets and capital investment are adequate and affordable, resulting in systems that operate efficiently and in a state of good repair. Members of Jersey Water Works look forward to being part of the public comment process for this new rule.
Everyone in our country deserves safe drinking water. The newly proposed WQAA amendments strengthen New Jersey’s oversight of drinking water treatment and distribution services.
The public comment period for this rule ends on October 18. A virtual hearing is scheduled for Thursday, September 12 at 10:00 a.m. Attendees should email WQAA@dep.nj.gov with their contact information (name, organization, telephone number, and email address) to obtain a meeting link & call-in number.
Nicole Miller is co-chair of Jersey Water Works, the principal consultant at MnM Consulting, a member of the Newark Environmental Commission, chair of the Newark Green Team and co-chair of NewarkDIG (Doing Infrastructure Green).
Andrew Kricun is co-chair of Jersey Water Works, a managing director with Moonshot Missions, and serves on the Environmental Protection Agency’s National Environmental Justice Advisory Council, and the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection Environmental Justice Advisory Council.
