Rural Community Assistance Partnership

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Drinking Water and Wastewater Program for Small Communities

Posted Mon, 2009/12/14 - 3:42pm by RCAP
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There are two parts of this program:

Drinking water technical assistance and training services project ($1.2 million annually) 

This project provides small and very small communities, including low-income and/or minority communities and tribal communities, with hands-on assistance in select areas of regulatory, technical, managerial and financial operations of their drinking water systems. The purpose is so communities can operate and maintain their water systems in compliance with the Safe Drinking Water Act.
 
This nationwide program has these major objectives:
 
  1. Provide technical assistance and training in understanding and complying with drinking water rules and regulations;
  2. Provide capacity-development training to water system operators, utility board members, local elected government officials, community leaders and the general public (as appropriate) to help these community members operate in a more efficient and effective manner and using appropriate technology, management and financial norms
  3. Create, develop, publish, disseminate drinking water outreach materials
RCAP’s assistance is in the form of providing training services, carrying out outreach activities, and disseminating drinking water information. RCAP staff who carry out this program in the field receive training to enhance their knowledge and skills as part of the program.
 
The training that is provided includes problem-solving assistance; onsite assistance with community drinking water projects; special training for operators and community leaders; and onsite assistance in developing drinking water knowledge and skills. All training efforts are made in coordination with state primacy agencies, other appropriate state, regional and federal agencies, and tribal authorities.
 
Funded by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Office of Groundwater and Drinking Water
 

Wastewater technical assistance and training services project ($1.2 million annually) 

This is an outreach, training and technical-assistance project that addresses community-specific wastewater treatment issues in small, rural communities and systems. RCAP carries out the project to specifically address goals outlined in the U.S. Environmental Agency’s strategic plan, including “protecting water quality of rivers, lakes, and streams on a watershed basis.” RCAP also works within the realm of “cross-goal strategies” to strengthen partnerships and relationships with rural areas and tribes.
 
RCAP’s technical assistance and training address the unique needs to protect public health in rural areas and to meet Clean Water Act requirements. Most of the project’s services are provided at no cost to participating communities or systems.
 
The project has these objectives: 
  1. Provide onsite technical assistance tailored to communities to help them maintain or achieve compliance with all local, state and federal wastewater rules and regulations
  2. Provide training for: the building of a community’s capacity; adhering to Clean Water Act rules and regulations; management of assets; best practices for operations and maintenance; water efficiency; and guidelines for voluntary onsite decentralized wastewater management
  3. Disseminate materials about centralized and decentralized wastewater management to promote best practices in this area
  4. Provide training and continuing education to RCAP staff in centralized and decentralized wastewater management systems that they can then put to use in their work with communities
  5. Coordinate activities among federal, state, tribal and local primacy agencies
In providing this technical assistance, RCAP aims to:
 
  • Include or increase the opportunities for training and technical assistance for low-income, minority and/or tribal communities
  • Assist in the maintenance and/or development of centralized and decentralized wastewater treatment systems
  • Work to increase access to the EPA’s Clean Water Act State Revolving Loan Fund (SRF) programs for wastewater treatment needs of small, disadvantaged rural communities with fewer than 3,000 people
  • Assist unsewered communities under court injunction
  • Assist small systems with operations and maintenance problems
  • Assist small, rural communities with individual permits and flows less than 1 million gallons per day that are violating their discharge permits or are in danger of becoming out of compliance with discharge permit requirements
  • Assist small, rural communities that need to upgrade their wastewater collection, treatment and/or disposal facilities to meet Clean Water Act requirements
  • Assist small, rural communities with other management, financing, construction, operations and technical needs, including difficulties accessing public financing, a history of noncompliance, the absence of institutional capacity to implement facility improvements (whether central or non-central solutions), an insufficient financial base to construct, operate, manage and maintain facilities, and watershed pollution
  • Assist small, rural communities in need of asset management and water-efficiency management support
Funded by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Office of Waste Water Management