WRWA working to keep groundwater safe

On Monday February 2^nd WRWA's Circuit Rider Jeff LaBelle and Source Water Specialist Andrew Aslesen had the opportunity to tell Rural Water's story to Brownfield, a nationwide news source for the agricultural community. LaBelle spoke about how we find leaks for systems and help them conserve water and save money. Aslesen spoke about how we work with communities to protect the groundwater that feeds their drinking water wells. Brownfield posted an overview and audio from the meeting on their website where people who may not know who Rural Water is can hear our story.

2012 Municipal Utility Legislative Day

The 2012 Municipal Utility Legislative Day on February 15, 2012 will mark the 8^th consecutive year that municipal utility groups will collectively hold a legislative day in Madison. This event is a great opportunity for Mayors, Village Presidents, City Council Members, and Utility Managers and Commissioners to directly influence the state legislative process. The political landscape is changing, and there's no better way of keeping up on those changes than personally visiting your elected state officials.

-Registration information

Rural Water EPA Funding Update

Rural Water EPA Funding Update

WRWA recently learned that the American Water Works Association (AWWA) in partnership with the Rural Community Action Program (RCAP) is bidding against Rural Water for an important training and technical assistance program communities in Wisconsin have come to expect and utilize for the past 25 years.

WRWA needs your help! You may be aware that the Wisconsin Rural Water Association and all other state rural water associations across the nation have lost critical funding from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

The EPA's budget was just signed into law (December 23, 2011). Congress included a new provision in EPA's budget for the agency to provide $15 million in technical assistance funding for non-profit organizations. Congress has typically specified (earmarked) the organizations to receive this funding. However, this year, with the Congressional prohibition on earmarks, Congress directed the EPA to prioritize the funding to organizations that are "supported by the majority of small community water systems."

This is intended to direct EPA to fund the technical assistance that is most beneficial to small communities (that is the policy objective of technical assistance funding). Rural Water technical assistance initiatives are designed to be most beneficial to you (small communities); they are on-site, peer-to-peer, non-regulatory, free, often provided around the clock, overseen by small communities, etc. For your state association to be competitive to receive funding to continue your state's technical assistance, please provide documentation that they are supported by your community.

If you have not yet already sent us your letter, please declare your support of rural water EPA technical assistance by writing a letter to EPA. Do not send the letter to EPA, a WRWA delegation will be hand delivering it to your Congressperson on February 7th & 8th.

Click on the following links for a sample support letter  &  submittal information

Thank You!

WRWA Training Advisory Committee

The WRWA Training Advisory Committee met in Plover for the first in a series of three workshops designed to take WRWA Training to the next level of excellence - and into the future! Watch the WRWA website and the RURAL WATER E-NEWS for updates.