COVID-19 Resources: Supporting ACWA Members with Tools & Information
Updated: June 15, 2020
Oregonians continue to live in unprecedented times and face unprecedented challenges in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic. Since the Governor’s Executive Order 20-12 to shelter-in-place and issuance of a phased approach to reopening the economy and returning to work, local government wastewater and stormwater management agencies have remained vigilant in ensuring that wastewater and stormwater program activities are protective of the public health and safety, and the environment. ACWA is actively engaged with state and local partners to provide information and tools to assist local wastewater and stormwater service providers in meeting these challenges.
The resources below can assist your agency in addressing some of the challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic. We will continue to add tools to this tool kit over the coming weeks, so you may want to check for new resources regularly.
Staffing and Compliance Plans:
The files below (within this section set apart by horizontal rules) are available only to ACWA members.
You can learn about membership from our home page, just click the blue MEMBERSHIP button.
- Advisory to NACWA members—Staffing and Compliance Plans (pdf)
- ACWA letter to DEQ on water quality permittees’ ability to comply with permits (pdf)
- Letter template—anticipated noncompliance notification to DEQ (pdf)
- Example Continuity of Operations Plan—Gresham example (pdf)
- Critical Infrastructure employee letter—Roseburg example (pdf)
- Letter to declare contract operator as government essential service provider (pdf)
- Face Coverings/Masks Policy–Clackamas Water Environment Services (pdf)
PUBLIC DOCUMENTS AND HELPFUL WEB LINKS
- DEQ Guidance on NPDES Compliance and Reporting During the COVID-19 Pandemic (pdf)
- Model Talking Points–Response to Concerns about EPA Enforcement and Compliance Requirements (pdf)
- EPA—Incident Action Checklist for Pandemic Incidents (pdf)
- Oregon Water/Wastewater Agency Response Network—ORWARN
- OSHA—Guidance on Preparing Workplaces for COVID-19 (pdf)
- CDC Interim Guidance for Business and Employers-May 2020
- DEQ Response to COVID-19
- COVID-19 Return to Work Playbook for Businesses–Kaiser Permanente
COVID-19 Wastewater Studies—Participation from Oregon Wastewater Utilities is Requested
The BioBot wastewater study, described in the link below, was initiated in March as the first nation-wide study to support epidemiological study and modeling of the COVID-19 virus. The initial study was low-cost to utilities and had limited capacity. Numerous Oregon wastewater utilities were accepted into the study and have been sending in samples for analyses since March or April. The study reached its capacity, and consequently, numerous interested wastewater utilities have been turned away. While BioBot has now increased capacity and can accept new participants, the sampling costs (of $1,200 per sample) are no longer subsidized.
An Oregon wastewater study, which is a collaboration among the Clean Water Services, Oregon State University and Oregon Health Sciences University, will be launched soon. This study will target 40 of the small-to-medium sized wastewater treatment systems, and will be ongoing for 30 months. Implementation of this study is pending finalization of intergovernmental agreements and funding arrangements, and sampling will likely begin in July. A description and contact information for this study will be posted as soon as it becomes available.
- Considerations for Epidemiological Surveillance of Wastewater for COVID-19—NACWA White Paper
- Background on BioBot Wastewater Sampling Request (pdf)
Information Campaigns on Non-flushable Items:
See ACWA’s guidance to develop your own communication and marketing plans on non-flushables.
- Non-flushables Communication Toolkit – Print document (pdf) for reference and discussion, or visit our ‘Toolkit’ as a web page from the link above.