The Senate passed a bipartisan bill to provide $35 billion to fund water infrastructure in states and on tribal lands on Thursday. The legislation, which sets aside funding for underserved communities, now goes to the House for consideration.
The Drinking Water and Wastewater Infrastructure Act (DWWIA) allows for gradual increases in state funding for water infrastructure programs from 2022 to 2026.
It nearly doubles funding for lead removal projects, including removing lead pipes from schools, and allows for over 40 percent of funds to go toward helping underserved and tribal communities. It also promotes investments in projects to improve water infrastructure to be more resilient to the effects of the climate crisis.
Evergy moving away from coal, but health advocates say too slowly
By Allison Kite
Missouri Independent
Evergy, an electric supplier to about 600,000 customers in western Missouri, says it will retire its coal power plant in Lawrence, Kansas, by the end of 2023.
The utility, which serves Eastern Jackson County outside Independence, revealed its plan to regulators in a filing with the Missouri Public Service Commission. The “integrated resource plan” lays out Evergy’s next few years in capital expenses and pledges to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2045.
To that end, the company says it will retire “nearly all” of its remaining coal generation by 2040.
Published: Monday, May 3, 2021
Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.). Photo credit: Francis Chung/E&E News
Senate Environment and Public Works Committee ranking member Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) has emerged as the Republicans lead negotiator on infrastructure. Francis Chung/E&E News
The House and Senate are technically not in session this week, but discussions on President Biden s multitrillion-dollar infrastructure push will continue behind the scenes and in virtual committee hearings.
While there s plenty of skepticism on both sides on the prospects for bipartisanship, there were also positive signs last week and over the weekend in the quest for common ground.
Wastewater system repairs, new water connections in low-income and rural communities and safer drinking water take center stage in Biden’s first infrastructure bill to launch out of the Senate.
In this Oct. 12, 2018 file photo, water contaminated with arsenic, lead and zinc flows from a pipe out of the Lee Mountain mine and into a holding pond near Rimini, Montana. (AP Photo/Matthew Brown, File)
WASHINGTON (CN) The cup runneth over on Capitol Hill Thursday as the U.S. Senate approved, 89-2, $35 billion for upgrades to the nation’s aging water and wastewater infrastructure in addition to funding for grants servicing water lines in low-income communities.
Investigation Finds Toxic Chemicals in Water Across the US
Persistent chemicals have entered our water supplies and current regulations and water systems are inadequate to remove them April 29, 2021 Updated: April 29, 2021
Some chemical pollutants endure long after they have passed through our
water treatment systems and made their way back into the environment.(Aditya Chinchure/Unsplash)
Drinking water safety isn’t often top of mind unless it has made the news, such as the lead crisis in Flint, Michigan. However, the level of contamination in U.S. tap water is very concerning, whether your water supply is from the municipal water system or a well. Just because it looks clear and seems to taste normal doesn’t mean it’s safe or pure.