Following a thorough and competitive process, the State Water Resources Control Board has selected Eric Oppenheimer as its new executive director to lead the board’s managerial, programmatic and administrative functions. Oppenheimer currently serves as one of the State Water Board’s chief deputy directors, with over 25 years of experience, including with two regional boards. For...

>special note:  This is not a customer facing program and water and wastewater systems must apply on behalf of their customers. The State Water Board is starting to receive consumer calls that should go to the water agency. The State Water Resources Control Board has formally opened the process today for water and wastewater systems...

Most recently, the Office of Operator Certification (OOC) has made significant changes to the program! Here are just a few program highlights: Reorganization Beginning January 2023, the OOC began the implementation phase of its reorganization to optimize resources and improve processes, workflow, and operational efficiency by balancing staffing resources and realigning workload by functionality as...

The Office of Operator Certification is excited to announce a NEW online application submittal portal for the Drinking Water Operator Certification (Distribution and Treatment-Grades 1 and 2) and Wastewater Treatment Plant Operator Certification (Grades 1 and 2) Examination applications! You can now submit applications online for the following drinking water and wastewater examinations: Grade 1 Drinking...

Mark your calendar for August to attend the Drinking Water and ELAP Fee Meetings – attached is the schedule. FY 2023-24 Drinking Water, Water Quality & Water Rights Fees Stakeholder Meetings Thursday, August 3 9:00–11:00 am Water Quality Thursday, August 3 1:00–3:00 pm Water Rights Friday, August 4 9:00–11:00 am Drinking Water & ELAP Meetings...

Wastewater and recycled water permittees’ 2022 Volumetric Annual Reports are due on April 30, 2023, as required under the State Water Resources Control Board’s Water Quality Control Policy for Recycled Water. The 2022 Volumetric Annual Report is the same format as previous years and requires the entry of volumes in acre-feet per month for influent,...

View CWEA’s WDR resource page > In 2017, CWEA started work under a Memorandum of Agreement with the State Water Board to collaborate on providing training for collection system professionals. The collaboration resulted in a series of CWEA workshops, webinars, and events. At the same time, the State Water Board began the process of drafting...

Last month, the Bay Area rang in — or perhaps more appropriately rained in — the new year with a barrage of storms. It started with an atmospheric river on New Year’s Eve that resulted in record-breaking rainfall. Oakland recorded its wettest day, with 4.8 inches of rain in 24 hours. San Francisco recorded its...

Discussions on updating the Sanitary Sewer System regulations have been ongoing over the last four years and after a four-hour State Water Board meeting, the new regulations were approved unanimously, and implementation now begins. Originally implemented in 2006, the reissued Waste Discharge Requirements (WDR) was debated and discussed during the December 6th Board meeting in...

After nearly four years of negotiations, the California State Water Resources Control Board (State Water Board) considered and unanimously adopted the Statewide Sanitary Sewer Systems General Waste Discharge Requirements Order Reissuance (SSS WDR) with late changes on December 6, 2022. The SSS WDR regulates sanitary sewer systems designed to convey sewage longer than one mile...

Just in time for the Clean Water Act at 50 celebration, the San Francisco Estuary Institute (SFEI), on behalf of the Regional Monitoring Program for Water Quality in San Francisco Bay, has released an in-depth retrospective on clean water regulations, strategies, studies and achievements within the Bay Area. Download The Pulse of the Bay 2022...

With the enactment of the Clean Water Act in 1972, Congress provided billions of dollars in grants to local communities to construct or upgrade wastewater treatment facilities to meet secondary treatment standards. This investment allowed communities to reverse the impacts created by discharge of untreated wastewater, responding to what was then a significant threat to...

The State Water Board in early September approved a new method for testing for microplastics making California perhaps one of the first places in the world that will test for microplastics. The Board will also require 30 water agencies to start testing for microplastics in the fall of 2023. “There’s no other place in the...

Join CWEA members Kody Tompkins and Louis Sun on the State Water Board’s Wastewater Operator Advisory Committee. Details from the State Water Board… The Wastewater Operator Certification Program (WWOCP) Advisory Committee has openings for the following positions: Wastewater Treatment Plant Operator Representative – Persons from statewide organizations representing municipalities, including counties or private utility wastewater...

The San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Control Board announced in June the appointment of CWEA member Eileen White as its executive officer, succeeding Michael Montgomery. Her first day is July 11. White most recently served as director of East Bay Municipal Utility District’s Wastewater Department, where she recently led the development of EBMUD’s Integrated...

Be part of the inaugural 2024 Enhanced Source Control Workshop on February 6 at the Delta Hotels in Anaheim. Learn more > What’s driving the need for enhanced source control research and regulations? AB 574 requires the State Water Board to develop draft direct potable reuse (DPR) regulations by December 31, 2023. An expert panel...

The Los Angeles County Sanitation Districts (Sanitation Districts) protect public health and the environment by providing wastewater management for 5.5 million people. The agency operates and maintains a regional wastewater collection system, which includes approximately 1,400 miles of sewers, 48 pumping plants and 11 wastewater treatment plants that convey and treat about half the wastewater...

Relevant session at AC22 in Sacramento: Join us for the Sewer System Management track on Wednesday, April 13th The State Water Resources Control Board will be hearing oral comments on the proposed statewide Sanitary Sewer Systems General Order reissuance at its March 15, 2022 Board meeting. The agenda for the March 15-16, 2022 Board meeting...

Ms. Morgan is Guest Editor of the Clean Water magazine’s special edition celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Clean Water Act. View the online edition here. When the Clean Water Act was passed, rivers were catching on fire and there was little in the way of Federal regulations in place to protect the environment for...

Perhaps more than anyone else in the clean water profession, Dan Cortinovis, P.E., has been directly affected by the passage of the Clean Water Act. His tenure in our industry dates back to 1967 when he was trained by the U.S. Air Force to operate the treatment plant at the air base in Merced where...

The California Association of Sanitation Agencies (CASA) has been named the winner of the 2021 Pollution Prevention Award for leading efforts to pass state legislation in October that will require “Do Not Flush” warnings on packaging for baby wipes, cleaning wipes and cosmetic wipes, and will compel manufacturers to educate the public on the harmful...

For member Tony Pollak, the pandemic and sudden chlorine shortage that hit this spring have pushed his operations team to redouble their efforts. Tony is the Assistant Deputy Director of Operations for Western Municipal Water District in Riverside County. In late May, the District’s chlorine supplier informed them a west coast shortage would delay deliveries....

Keep up-to-date on the situation on LA City San’s Hyperion Incident webpage. According to the page treatment plant operations and odors are returning to normal levels. Friday, 8/13 – LA City Sanitation & Environment releases a 30-day report to the AQMD and US EPA. The detailed report includes this heart-stopping moment by moment narrative of...

A team of researchers from California State University and the University of California are assessing the economic and environmental impacts of forthcoming water use efficiency standards (AB 1668-SB 606) on urban retail water suppliers. This assessment is funded by the State of California through a mutual agreement between the SWRCB and California State University. The...

 Here’s to you! Thank you to the participants of the first ever ELAP Laboratory Conference. It was a huge success! Around 500 of you joined us each day for talks about the accreditation process, emerging contaminants and technologies, and laboratory efficiency. We hope you found the presentations beneficial and have been able to take...

California Environmental Laboratory Accreditation Program (ELAP) has opened registration for fourteen sessions of the 2016 TNI Quality System Documentation Workshop in partnership with A2LA Workplace Training. Register here today! The workshop runs from 10:00 am – 3:00 pm (PT) with a break from noon to 1:00 pm on both days. This is a standalone training...

From the State Water Board… The National Water Research Institute (NWRI) convened a panel of experts to provide recommendations on enhanced industrial source control for DPR. The Expert Panel has submitted their recommendations to the State Water Board in March 2020. Their report is available to download here: Download the report Enhanced Source Control Recommendations...

Announcement from the State Water Board… NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the State Water Board will accept public comment on the Addendum to A Proposed Framework for Regulating Direct Potable Reuse in California, 2nd Edition (Framework). The State Water Board will provide an opportunity for the public to present oral comments at a public workshop....

Costa Mesa Sanitary District’s Board of Directors announced today that it has successfully defended itself in a federal lawsuit filed by a group that accused CMSD of violating the Clean Water Act. On May 11, 2020, California River Watch (CRW), a non-profit organization located in Sebastopol, California, served CMSD with a 60-day. Notice of Violations...

The State Water Resources Control Board (State Water Board) has issued a Public Notice announcing the release of the informal staff draft statewide Sanitary Sewer System General Order and two upcoming public workshops. State Water Board staff will be conducting two virtual public workshops to summarize the informal staff draft Order on the following dates:...

Here’s a summary infographic designed by CWEA explaining how to qualify, apply and navigate the State Water Board’s new computer based testing process. For more details be sure to visit the SWRCB Office of Operator Certification website. Please don’t contact CWEA Member Services as we are not involved in administering the operator certification exam in...

Current Status Updated 2/24/21 from State Water Board announcement All examinees approved and scheduled for the Spring or Fall 2020 Drinking Water Distribution (D1-D5), Drinking Water Treatment (T1-T4) or Wastewater Operator (I-V) Certification examinations will be approved to schedule a testing opportunity for Operator Certification CBT. Due to the backlog of candidates awaiting testing, the...

Who is providing the computer-based testing? Prometric is partnering with the State Water Resources Control Board to provide computer-based Operator Certification testing for the Drinking Water Treatment (T1-T4),Drinking Water Distribution (D1-D5) and Wastewater Treatment (I-V) examinations. I already applied in 2020, will I have to reapply? If you already applied for an exam in the...

On Tuesday February 2nd, Assemblymember Robert Rivas (D-Hollister), Senate Majority Leader Bob Hertzberg (D-Van Nuys) and California Coastkeeper Alliance introduced the California Clean Water Act, Assembly Bill 377, legislation that will put California back on track to eliminate impaired waterways and make all waters statewide suitable for conversion to drinking water, swimming, and fishing by...

From the State Water Board. Updated 2/5/21. On December 1, 2020, the State Water Resources Control Board (State Water Board) adopted statewide numeric water quality objectives for both acute and chronic toxicity and a program of implementation to control toxicity, which are collectively known as the Toxicity Provisions. The Provisions provide consistent protection of aquatic...

From the State Water Board… The State Water Board’s Environmental Laboratory Accreditation Program (ELAP) Regulations were filed with the California Secretary of State by the Office of Administrative Law on November 19, 2020 and will become effective on January 1, 2021. This completes the final step in the rulemaking process. ELAP is committed to supporting the...

The pandemic caused the State Water Board to suspend their certification exams for drinking water and wastewater operators, and both the spring and fall exam cycles in 2020 were  cancelled. The exams are typically held in large conference facilities and meeting rooms, with some locations attracting hundreds of attendees. The State’s Office of Operator Certification...

From the State Water Board… The City of Mount Shasta has agreed to pay $1.3 million to settle an Administrative Civil Liability complaint for multiple sanitary sewer overflows from its collection system and for violating effluent limitations at its wastewater treatment plant. The overflows, which occurred between October 2014 and April 2017, primarily were caused...

A significant amendment to the Water Quality Control Plan for the Santa Ana River Basin is now in effect, allowing for discharges from new septic systems in Quail Valley when certain exemptions are met. This important update for the Quail Valley community has been years in the making and took a multi-agency effort by Eastern...

 We’re honored to welcome managers from the California State Water Board Office of Operator Certification (OOC) to an informative webinar for water professionals and utility leaders focused on the State’s drinking water distribution, treatment and wastewater treatment operator exams. About the speakers Annette Caraway, Chief of the Office of Operator Certification.  Ms. Caraway has dedicated...

The city of Galt has agreed to pay $110,715 to settle a case that began two years ago when 301,000 gallons of untreated sewage overflowed into Dead Man Gulch, a tributary of South Laguna Creek. The spill occurred during a power outage when a faulty alarm system failed to alert city staff about malfunctioning pumps...

From the State Water Board, Office of Operator Certification… To All Interested Parties: As a result of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) emergency, and the guidance released by Governor Newsom to limit gatherings to 10 people or less while social distancing, the Fall 2020 Wastewater Operator Certification Examination has been cancelled.  The State Water Resources Control Board understands...

Message below from the State Water Board’s Office of Operator Certification. Note, emergency requests might be prioritized based on impacts to the treatment plant or distribution system more so than the impact on the individual seeking certification. Detailed requests from Chief Plant Operators describing the plant emergency and need for certified operators might help the...

Our coverage of new ELAP regulations is sponsored by LabWork State Water Board press release… All accredited labs will be required to meet a national standard The State Water Resources Control Board today adopted comprehensive regulations to modernize the Environmental Laboratory Accreditation Program (ELAP), which oversees more than 650 laboratories that regulate testing of drinking...

A Chino environmental testing laboratory has been fined $90,000 and denied renewal accreditation by the State Water Resources Control Board’s Environmental Laboratory Accreditation Program (ELAP) for making false representations about a wastewater treatment facility’s compliance with permit requirements. Adopted Tuesday by the State Water Board, the fine stems from an investigation that found privately owned...

Press release from the State Water Board. View CWEA’s round-up of coronavirus stories here. Existing stringent state standards protect public from COVID-19           Link to Fact Sheet (pdf) Wastewater treatment plants treat municipal wastewater to standards that protect the beneficial uses of the waters into which the treated wastewater is discharged. Some plants treat wastewater to...

The State Water Resources Control Board will vote on adoption of the proposed Environmental Laboratory Accreditation Program regulations at the May 5, 2020 Board Meeting. As a result of the COVID-19 emergency and the Governor’s Executive Orders to protect public health by limiting public gatherings and requiring social distancing, this meeting will occur via video and teleconference only. Instructions...

The San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Control Board has ordered Monterey Mushrooms, Inc. to pay $911,800 for discharging polluted stormwater into Fisher Creek, harming water quality and threatening aquatic life. The company, which is the largest grower of fresh mushrooms in North America, discharged more than 650,000 gallons of polluted water from its Morgan...

March 2020 may go down as one the biggest moments in the wastewater professions’ battle against “flushable” wipes. A combination of the coronavirus pandemic, TP shortage, press release from the State Water Board and media coverage of sewer back-ups in Redding and Las Galinas caused the wipes clog pipes topic to go viral. The result...

  Updates 4/16/20 New! Guidance on how to respond to a positive coronavirus case in the laboratory Updated! Schedules for EPA’s DMR-QA Study Updated! List of laboratories with emergency capacity Updated! Information about supply and equipment vendors State Water Board launches new website… waterboards.ca.gov/elap-covid19  The information on this webpage is based on the latest statewide and national...

From the State Water Board UPDATED AS OF MARCH 20, 2020 Compliance with Water Board Requirements During the Coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) Emergency The State Water Resources Control Board and the nine California Regional Water Quality Control Boards (the Water Boards) are continuing their efforts to protect public health, safety, and the environment consistent with all...

BACWA’s Comment letter sent to the State Water Board Dec 20, 2019. Click here to read BACWA’s full comment letter (pdf) The Bay Area Clean Water Agencies (BACWA) appreciates the opportunity to comment on the proposed ELAP Draft Regulations (proposed Regulations). BACWA is a joint powers agency whose members own and operate publicly-owned treatment works...

SB 1215 was signed by Governor Brown in 2018 and requires the State Water Board to develop a program to assist disadvantaged communities with access to sewer service. The legislation authorizes them to also to provide funding for eligible projects. “The act authorizes the State Water Board to facilitate consolidation between a state or a...

View our full coverage of new ELAP regulations > CWEA Lab Community, This is a critical time in the world of California Lab Regulations.  With the latest regulations package being published on October 11th, we are down to the wire with having our voices heard of how these regulations will affect our labs, our agencies...

Coverage of new ELAP regulations supported by LabWorks, waterLIMS™ By Christine Sotelo Chief of CA ELAP The California Environmental Laboratory Accreditation Program (ELAP) is on a path of improvement, and we are honored to be working collaboratively with CWEA and its members on this journey. Five years ago, the State Water Resources Control Board inherited...

Coverage of new ELAP regulations supported by LabWorks, waterLIMS™ By David Kimbrough Pasadena Water & Power A hundred years ago, there had been a major revolution in public health. Fatalities from waterborne diseases such as typhoid and cholera were plummeting. Chlorinated water was being delivered via pressurized pipes to houses with in-door plumbing at very...

Coverage of new ELAP regulations supported by LabWorks, waterLIMS™ By Stephen Clark Past-Chair, SWRCB ELTA Committee After the Environmental Laboratory Accreditation Program (ELAP) was moved from the California Department of Public Health to the State Water Board, the Environmental Laboratory Technical Advisory Committee (ELTAC) was re-formulated. Updated bylaws required ELTAC to be comprised of ELAP’s...

Click here to open the November 2019 digital edition Articles include: One Way or Another Your Local Utility Lab Will Likely Soon Change Forever – an interview with three municipal California labs Profile of Lab Professional of the Year How to Get a Job in a Water Laboratory The Road Together, by Christine Sotelo, SWRCB...

Coverage of new ELAP regulations supported by LabWorks, waterLIMS™ ELAP will be one of several hot topics at AC20 in Reno. This year we are joining with the Nevada Water Environment Association in Reno to co-host several events. Reno is a fantastic city with affordable hotel rates and restaurants. This might be one of the...

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Coverage of new ELAP regulations supported by LabWorks, waterLIMS™ Notice of proposed rule-making from the State Water Board, Environmental Laboratory Accreditation Program office… NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the State Water Resources Control Board (State Water Board) proposes to amend, adopt, or repeal the Environmental Laboratory Accreditation Program (ELAP) regulations described below after considering all...

The California State Senate has voted to confirm Sean Maguire as a member of the State Water Resources Control Board, following his appointment by Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. last year. “It is an honor to be confirmed by the Senate to continue serving the State of California,” Maguire said. “In my mind there is...

Upcoming events: CWEA’s annual WDR training workshops will be held in May. Workshops will be held in San Ramon (May 8th); San Luis Obispo (May 15th); and Los Angeles (May 22nd).  One of the most talked-about topics is the update to the Statewide Sanitary Sewer Systems General Order.  The State Water Board is holding five...

Join CWEA’s sessions on cannabis cultivation and wastewater pretreatment standards at the P3S19 Conference, Feb 11-13, and AC19, April 9-12 in Palm Springs. There will be a cannabis cultivation tour at AC19. Press release from the State Water Board… The State Water Resources Control Board (State Water Board) fine-tuned its pioneering cannabis cultivation policy Tuesday...

It’s the new “abnormal” as Governor Jerry Brown calls it. Bigger and more intense fires have killed more people in California and destroyed more property than ever before. Even as the fires are put out, water professionals know there’s a new threat. Floods. Fires and floods happen so often throughout California’s history, some regions have...

Two collection system leaders discuss the importance of certification and the role training and technology have in the massive reduction in Sanitary Sewer Overflows. Daryl Lauer is the Collections Superintendent for Carmel Area Wastewater District the Chair of CWEA’s Collection Systems Committee. Ken Merkle is the Senior Collection Systems Supervisor for the City of Stockton...

The California-Nevada Section of the American Water Works Association (CA-NV AWWA) and California Water Environment Association (CWEA) have signed a memorandum of agreement to jointly develop the Advanced Water Treatment Operator (AWTO) Certification program. The certification exams are expected to be ready in the Spring of 2019. The certification will be open to all California...

  In recent year’s the State Water Board’s Office of Operator Certification (OOC) has built a financial budget surplus from the collection of wastewater operator certification fees. The OOC has now taken steps to reduce certification exam and renewal fees so their financial surplus will be eliminated over the next 5 years. On November 16th...

The State Water Board is about to approve a new regulatory testing procedure on Toxicity. We spoke with Adam Link, Director of Government Affairs for the California Association of Sanitation Agencies (CASA), Steve Jepsen, Executive Director of Southern California Alliance of Publicly Owned Treatment Works (SCAP) and Lorien Fono, Regulatory Program Manager, Bay Area Clean Water Agencies...

Below is the joint comment letter CWEA and CA NV AWWA have submitted focused on the operator certification piece of the DPR Report to the Legislature on the Feasibility of Developing Uniform Water Recycling Criteria for Direct Potable Reuse. Dear State Water Resources Control Board: Thank you for the opportunity to comment on the State Water...

From State Water Resources Control Board Former Federal Official Eileen Sobeck Brings 40 Years of Government Experience The State Water Resources Control Board has named Eileen Sobeck as its next Executive Director. She replaces Tom Howard, who retired in May 2017. After reviewing a wealth of qualified applicants, the State Water Board selected Sobeck due...