20th Annual EPA Drinking Water Workshop: Session 3A
BIL/IIJA Technical Assistance
Track A: Distribution Systems and Water Quality
Presentation summaries and speaker and moderator biographies for Session 3A of the 20th Annual EPA Drinking Water Workshop.
September 12, 2023 from 1:30 to 3:15 p.m. ET
See the full workshop agenda for all sessions.
Moderator:
Sarah Bradbury, M.S.E.S., M.P.A. | EPA Office of Water
Sarah is a physical scientist with EPA’s Drinking Water Capacity and Compliance Assistance Division in the Office of Water, Office of Ground Water and Drinking Water in Washington, DC. She is currently working on implementation of the Consumer Confidence Rule, the Public Notice Rule, and is the project lead for the Consumer Confidence Report Rule revisions. In her 10+ years of experience, Sarah has had the opportunity to work on a variety of water resource topics, including total maximum daily loads, water quality sampling, and source water protection. Sarah holds and an M.P.A. in environmental policy and natural resource management and an M.S.E.S. in water resources from the Indiana University’s School of Public and Environmental Affairs and a B.S. in oceanography from the University of Michigan.
Water Technical Assistance Program
All communities need access to safe, clean, and reliable water. The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) creates a historic opportunity to improve water infrastructure in communities. EPA is doing its part to help communities solve water challenges. EPA’s water technical assistance (WaterTA) efforts can help communities access their fair share of BIL funding. EPA WaterTA provides hands-on support for communities to assess their needs, identify potential solutions, and develop funding applications. In 2023, EPA will provide WaterTA to hundreds of communities across the United States, utilizing multiple programs and in collaboration with technical assistance providers and state partners.
Kara Goodwin, M.S. | EPA Office of Research and Development
Kara is a physical scientist with EPA's Drinking Water Capacity and Compliance Assistance Division in the Office of Ground Water and Drinking Water and has been with EPA for almost 7 years. She joined the Water Technical Assistance efforts over a year ago, and also works on source water protection. Prior to joining EPA, she worked for the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality monitoring and assessing surface water and groundwater quality and spent several years in watershed biogeochemistry research at EPA and the Cary Institute for Ecosystem Studies. She holds an M.S. in environmental science from Washington State University and a B.A. in biology with a concentration in environmental studies from Bryn Mawr College.
Lead Service Line Replacement Accelerators Technical Assistance Program
EPA is collaborating with state partners in the water technical assistance (WaterTA) initiative, Lead Service Line Replacement Accelerators. Launched in January 2023, EPA and four state partners—Connecticut, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin—will work with 40 communities in 2023-2024 to address existing barriers and accelerate progress towards LSL identification (LSL ID) and replacement. This initiative will include the development of tools and case studies to facilitate knowledge transfer and sharing of best practices between EPA, state and tribal programs, water system managers, and community leaders. During this presentation you will hear more details about the program and preliminary lessons learned in our first year.
Deborah Vacs Renwick, M.E., P.E. | EPA Office of Water
Deborah is an environmental engineer with EPA’s Office of Water, Office of Ground Water and Drinking Water, where she has worked on drinking water rule development and implementation, workforce development, distribution system water quality issues, and technical assistance projects. Before joining EPA in 2016, she worked as a water quality and regulatory compliance engineer at the Alameda County Water District in Fremont, California and served as a water and sanitation volunteer in the Peace Corps in Peru. Deborah holds an M.E. in water quality and environmental engineering from Massachusetts Institute of Technology, an Sc.B. in civil and environmental engineering from Brown University, and she is a registered professional engineer in the District of Columbia.
Technical Assistance on LSL ID and Treatment of Emerging Contaminants
Two technical assistance projects are being conducted by EPA’s Office of Research and Development in support of the Agency’s administration and implementation of the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF) programs authorized by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) of 2021. The first project will evaluate technologies for detecting Lead Service Lines (LSL). The nation needs proven approaches for rapidly and accurately identifying lead service lines so that removal programs can be operated in a cost effective and timely manner. The second project will evaluate treatment schemes for cost effectively and sustainably removing emerging contaminants such as per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) from drinking water. Both of these projects are five year projects where the short-term (2-3 years) goal will be to identify and fill gaps in our scientific understanding through defined applied research approaches, while the long-term (3-5 years) goal (using the data generated in the applied research) will be to provide tools, informational resources, technical assistance, and disseminating best practices to states, tribes, territories, and communities in support of the DWSRF.
Thomas F. Speth, Ph.D., P.E. | EPA Office of Research and Development
Tom serves as senior science advisor for EPA’s Center for Environmental Solutions and Emergency Response in the Office of Research and Development. He is a professional engineer who has worked in the field of water treatment research at EPA since 1986. At EPA, Tom has served as branch chief of EPA’s Treatment Technology Evaluation Branch from May 2005 to January 2009. From January 2009 to March 2018, he served as division director of EPA’s Water Supply and Water Resources Division. During this time, from September 2015 to December 2016, he served in a detail with EPA’s Office of Ground Water and Drinking Water’s Standards and Risk Management Division as a senior engineering advisor assigned to the Flint Enforcement Team. From March 2018 to April 2023, he served as the associate director for science for the Center for Environmental Solutions and Emergency Response. Tom is a member of AWWA, ASCE, and ACS. He has served as trustee for AWWA's Water Quality and Technology Division, an associate editor for ASCE's Journal of Environmental Engineering, a member of Journal AWWA’s Editorial Advisory Board, and as a trustee and chair of AWWA’s Water Science and Research Division. Tom has a Ph.D. in environmental engineering from the University of Cincinnati, an M.S. in civil/environmental engineering from Michigan Technological University, and a B.S. in chemical engineering from Michigan Technological University.
Disclaimer: The views expressed in these presentations are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views or policies of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Any mention of trade names or commercial products does not constitute EPA endorsement or recommendation for use.