The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is asking states to document the capital funds needed to upgrade municipal wastewater treatment and collection facilities; implement nonpoint source (NPS) pollution controls; and manage pollution from confined animals, mining, recycled water distribution and estuary management. This information will be reported to Congress in the Clean Watersheds Needs Survey 2004 (CWNS 2004). The survey will be used by Congress to determine the states' allocations for 2005-2008 Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF) program funding. As a result, it is important for New Jersey to provide a comprehensive, accurate account of its clean watersheds needs to Congress to help secure Federal grants for New Jersey.

The CWNS is a national assessment of water pollution control needs. It provides Congress with a detailed estimate of the capital costs to construct, upgrade and/or expand publicly-owned municipal wastewater treatment and collection facilities. It also includes the costs to implement the correction of combined sewer overflows, stormwater runoff controls, and NPS pollution controls in the areas of agricultural cropland, animal, silviculture, urban, groundwater protection (unknown source), marinas, resource extraction, brownfields, storage tanks, landfills, and individual/decentralized sewage treatment. The costs to control pollution from confined animals-point sources, mining-point sources, recycled water distribution and estuary management are also provided.

The Municipal Finance and Construction Element mailed the 2004 Survey form in August to sewerage authorities, municipalities and wastewater engineering firms and requested assistance in providing current and anticipated pollution control needs. All reported needs should be accompanied by appropriate support documentation including: 1) a description of the water quality or public health problem, 2) the location of the problem, 3) the solution to the problem, 4) the cost for each solution, 5) the basis of the cost, and 6) the total cost.

To facilitate a full assessment of New Jersey's clean watersheds needs and to meet the EPA survey deadline, responses should be submitted by Friday October 15, 2004.

For more information on the 2004 Survey or to be sure that your project is included, please contact Ketan C. Patel or David Shu, P.E, at (609) 633-1208.