The New York State Environmental Facilities Corporation (EFC) is seeking your assistance in documenting the capital needs for water quality projects.  EFC is now collecting information for the 2008 Clean Watersheds Needs Survey for the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) and the New York State Wastewater Needs Assessment Survey (WNAS) for the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC).

     All types of water quality projects are to be documented including

• point source projects, such as wastewater treatment facilities;
• nonpoint source projects, such as stormwater; and
• national estuary projects, such as land acquisition to protect the estuaries. 

The type of information collected includes documentation of the costs projected for the projects and the population served.   Communities, and other stakeholders, can assist our efforts by providing the data required to our State Needs Coordinator.  In September 2007, EFC sent a letter and a fact sheet to nearly 650 communities requesting help with the data collection.  If you wish to view or download the copies of the letter and the attachments listed below, click below.

CWNS Forms and Documents

• Letter to Communities Requesting CWNS Documentation
• Fact Sheet for CWNS
• Needs Categories
• Decentralized Wastewater Treatment Systems Form
• Small Community Needs Form

EFC’s goal is to identify as many water quality needs as possible, so if you have a project, or potential project, please call the State Needs Coordinator, Jason Denno, at (518) 623-1200  to discuss or send an email to denno@nysefc.org .  If you have a project listed on the 2008 CWSRF Intended Use Plan Annual List, you do not have to submit documentation for that project.

Helpful Materials for All Communities with Water Quality Projects

The following documents are a selection of materials that are helpful to communities that are planning water quality projects.  Click on the title to go to the source for the document.

• "Handbook on Wastewater Management for Local Representatives," February 2007, NYSDEC, USEPA Region 2, et al.
• "Achieving Environmental Excellence EMS Handbook for Wastewater Utilities," August 2004, USEPA EPA 832-B-04-002A
• "Handbook for Managing Onsite and Clustered (Decentralized) Wastewater Management," December 2005, USEPA  EPA 832-B-05-001 
• "Managing for Excellence: Water and Wastewater Management Systems,"  August 2005, USEPA
• "Primer for Municipal Wastewater Treatment Systems," September 2004, USEPA  EPA 832-R-04-001     

For other USEPA documents related to Wastewater and Water Facilities, view EPA's website .

 Helpful Web Links

• EPA Clean Watersheds Needs Survey (CWNS) 
• CWNS 2008 Web Seminars
• EPA Wastewater Management
• New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) – Wastewater
• New York State Department of Health (DOH) – Drinking Water Protection

Associations

• New York Water Environment Association
• Water Environment Federation
• American Water Works Association
• Association of Metropolitan Water Authorities
• New York Rural Water Association
• Empire State Well Drillers Association
• American Backflow Prevention Association, Western New York Chapter