NATIONAL WATER REUSE
ACTION PLAN
Update on Collaborative Progress
April 2021
The WRAP collaborative was developed with federal, state, tribal, local, and
water sector partners to build technical, financial, and institutional capacity for
communities to pursue water reuse practices. When considered as part of an
integrated, watershed-based management approach, reuse can enhance water
security, sustainability, and resilience and help to solve local water resource
quantity and quality challenges.
Metrics for
Success
Integrated
Research
Workforce
Development
©
Outreach and
Communications
Technology
Development
and Validation
<$
Finance
Support
International
Collaboration
Science and
Specifications
Water
Information
Availability
Integrated
Watershed
Action
Policy
Coordination
The WRAP'S 11 strategic themes help to focus efforts and inspire future action.
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National Water Reuse Action Plan: Update on Collaborative Progress
Resilience Through Collaboration
The National Water Reuse Action Plan (WRAP) collaborative reflects the coordinated
efforts of more than 100 organizations to build state and local capacity to advance reuse
and strengthen water security, sustainability, and resilience. Over the last year, EPA and
water sector partners have made meaningful progress to advance water reuse planning
and implementation and support our water future in the face of climate change. For
example, EPA is using innovative infrastructure financing tools to target investments
back into our communities where they are needed most, providing over $1 billion in
credit assistance for water reuse projects.
EPA is taking a holistic approach to water reuse by incorporating reuse
principles into its water policies and programs while continuing to deepen
its partnerships under the WRAP. There is more work to be done, including
advancing watershed-based management approaches under the "one
water" framework, expanding focus on water equity and environmental
justice, and increasing alignment of the energy and water sectors to
help address climate change. Water is the medium by which many
communities experience climate stress, and reuse can help make our
systems more resilient to its impacts.
We look forward to building on this progress by supporting the
WRAP collaborative effort, since we know our partnerships are
fundamental to ensuring safe and reliable water resources for our
communities today and for future generations. As we collectively
envision the future evolution of the WRAP and contemplate what
has been accomplished so far, please consider what still needs to
be done and join us in the effort.
Benita Best-Wong
Deputy Assistant Administrator for Water
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Water
Reuse as
a Climate
Resilience
Tool
The changing climate is
challenging many communities
to meet their long-term water
needs, while addressing existing
water infrastructure problems. Reuse of
treated wastewater and stormwater for
agricultural, non-potable, or even potable
uses provides an alternative source of
water that can be more reliable than
traditional raw water sources. The
capacity to incorporate water reuse
into a community's water portfolio
can provide resilience against
climate-induced impacts.
The WRAP process has
been a great opportunity
for all interested parties to work
together and cooperate on the
many facets of water reuse."
-Mike Paque,
Ground Water Protection Council
With the WRAP collaboration
we've been able to focus on
innovative approaches, especially
water reuse. Working across agencies
means greater impacts on the ground
to conserve and sustain the water
resources we all rely on."
-Terry Cosby
U.S. Department of Agriculture
The National Blue Ribbon
Commission for Onsite Non-
potable Water Systems is proud to
partner on the WRAP as we need to all
work together to meet our shared goals.
That is why this project is so important-
it is a great example of collaboration and
rising up together to solve the great
challenges of our time."
-Paula Kehoe,
San Francisco Public Utilities Commission
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National Water Reuse Action Plan: Update on Collaborative Progress
Year in Review: WRAP Collaborative Implementation Progress
During initial development and through this first year of implementation,
the WRAP served as a powerful convening tool around water reuse. It
has enabled the formation of action-based partnerships among various
types of organizations across the water community to help address local
water resource challenges. While some of these groups had already
worked together, the WRAP helped foster new ways to collaborate and
sparked the formation of entirely new relationships that will likely thrive
for years to come.
More than 100 organizations and individuals have stepped forward to
identify needs, develop actions, and implement their plans to drive
progress on water reuse across the WRAP'S 11 strategic themes. Through
their dedication, commitment, and effectiveness, the action teams
completed 165 implementation milestones over the past 13 months,
including hree full WRAP actions. Ongoing collaborations include:
coordinating reuse research, developing financial assistance tools, and
conducting targeted community capacity building. The following pages
describe examples of action team achievements, focusing on technical,
financial, and institutional aspects of water reuse.
First Year Snapshot
The figure below shows the growth of WRAP collaborators, actions, and milestones, as well as the
completed actions and milestones since the start of WRAP implementation.
105
partners and leaders
X.
44
WRAP actions
COMPLETE
Feb. 2020
I-z
Mar. 2021
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National Water Reuse Action Plan: Update on Collaborative Progress
TECHNICAL ACCOMPLISHMENTS
Enabling water reuse research. Federal agencies provided critical
support to advance research on priority reuse topics. For example,
as part of its Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program,
the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced Phase I
awards of $800,000 for water reuse technology research in April 2021
(Action 7.5). and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is awarding
$27.5 million for research and development for advanced water
resource recovery systems, which include water reuse (Action 4.3).
Creating technical guidance and tools for onsite non-potable reuse.
In partnership with the Water Research Foundation (WRF), the
National Blue Ribbon Commission published a guidance manual and
training materials on onsite non-potable water systems (ONWS). The
materials synthesize public health guidelines and regulations to offer
clear details on how to design and implement an ONWS. As part of
the effort, EPA launched its complementary Non-Potable Environ-
mental and Economic Water Reuse (NEWR) Calculator, a web-based
decision support tool to quantify the availability of alternative water
sources for building-scale reuse ( ).
Primary Water Reuse
Objectives
Water security: The capacity of a
population to safeguard sustainable
access to adequate quantities of
acceptable quality water for sustaining
livelihoods, human well-being, and
socioeconomic development.
Water sustainability: Ensuring an
adequate, reliable, and continual
supply of clean water for human uses
and ecosystems.
Water resilience: The ability of a water
supply (e.g., a water system or an
asset of a water system) to adapt to or
withstand the effects of rapid hydro-
logic change or a natural disaster.
Examining stormwater capture and use challenges and opportuni-
ties. In February 2021, more than 650 water professionals from across
the country gathered for two live webinars on stormwater capture
and use: one on drivers and barriers and one on developing treatment
standards. Twenty-five action leaders and partner organizations, researchers, and expert local practitioners worked
together to produce the webinars (Action 3.3).
Compiling existing fit-for-purpose specifications. EPA, in collaboration with eight other organizations, is developing a
compendium of state and international water reuse regulation and guidance documents and summarizing their scientific
underpinnings. This will be a valuable resource for water reuse practitioners who want to know more about existing
regulations and should help inform best practices (Action 3.1).
Advancing research on the treatment of produced water for uses outside the oil and gas sector. In January 2021, the
New Mexico Produced Water Research Consortium issued a request for proposals for research and development projects
evaluating treatment technologies; produced water availability; quantitative risk assessments; and socio-economic,
environmental, and ecological cost-benefit analyses. The Consortium's proposal review team chose six treatment and
three modeling and analysis proposals to move forward in the research process ( kction 4.2).
Examples of Reuse Sources and Uses
dp @ ©
Agricultural Commercial
B)
Domestic
© @
* * *
±±±t
Industrial
Rainwater/
Stormwater
aiij
Fit-for-purpose treatment
brings water from a particular source to meet the quality needed
for the intended use (e.g., toilet flushing, environmental
restoration, irrigation, potable water). Overall, the water source
and the intended use determine the level of treatment required
to be protective of public health and the environment.
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National Water Reuse Action Plan: Update on Collaborative Progress
FINANCIAL ACCOMPLISHMENTS
Clarifying water reuse project eligibility in SRF programs. EPA
clarified water reuse project eligibilities for the Clean Water and
Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (SRF) programs to demonstrate
the full range of eligible projects. EPA created fact sheets and a best
practices guide to identify examples of successful projects and support
for water reuse through the country's largest water infrastructure
federal financing programs ( ).
Helping enable local implementation. EPA's Water Infrastructure
Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) program highlighted eligibility for
water reuse projects and issued over $1 billion in credit assistance for
local water reuse projects ( ction 6.2B).
Supporting water reuse in agriculture. The U.S. Department of Agri-
culture (USDA) announced a $15 million investment to help support
the adoption of innovative conservation approaches on agricultural
lands, including water reuse as a priority. Additionally, USDA is pro-
viding new and innovative technologies for aquifer and groundwater
recharge through two interim practice standards, "Managed Aquifer
Recharge" and "Groundwater Recharge Basin or Trench" (Action 2.12).
INSTITUTIONAL ACCOMPLISHMENTS
Advancing reuse through EPA partnership programs. The Agency is
integrating water reuse concepts into its Urban Waters Program and
National Estuary Program, which operate in 48 watersheds nationwide.
An April 2021 report inventories reuse and integrated water resource
management activities within the programs and will serve as a founda-
tion to leverage strong multi-stakeholder relationships to identify reuse
opportunities in communities across the country (Action 1.4).
Enhancing state collaboration. In September 2020, five state associ-
ations involved in water and public health (ACWA, ASDWA, ASTHO,
ECOS, and GWPC) collaborated with EPA and WateReuse to virtually
convene 150 regulators across 35 states at the 2nd State Summit on
Water Reuse and later publish a Summit summary report (Action 2.2).
Building tribal capacity for reuse. EPA and the San Pasqual Band of
Mission Indians prepared, delivered, and posted a training webinar,
titled "Keys to Success: Water Recycling in Tribal Communities."
In addition, EPA met with several national tribal organizations and
Regional Tribal Operations Committees in 2020 and early 2021 to
discuss tribal interest in and needs to support water recycling
( )¦
New Actions Added to the WRAP
The WRAP incorporates new actions over
time to stay responsive to current needs
and challenges surrounding reuse. Along
with 19 new action leaders and partners,
the WRAP has added seven actions since
its release in February 2020:
+ Develop Case Studies of Successful
Low-Input Water Reuse Solutions to
Meet Local Water Needs (
led by ECOS)
+ Viral Pathogen and Surrogate
Approaches for Assessing Treatment
Performance in Water Reuse (
, led by EPA)
+ Implement and Manage the National
Alliance for Water Innovation (NAWI)
Energy-Water Desalination Hub
( , led by DOE and NAWI)
+ Evaluate and Optimize Low-Input
Treatment Methods to Remove
Pharmaceutical Residues from
Treated Wastewater Used for Irriga-
tion ( , led by USDA)
+ Identify Monitoring Practices for
Reuse Applications ( , led
by WRF)
+ Quantify the National Volumes of
Water Potentially Available for Reuse
for Municipal Wastewater and One
Additional Source of Water (
, led by EPA, WEF, and WateReuse)
+ Engagement with Disadvantaged
and Rural Communities on Water
Reuse ( , led by EPA)
Institutionalizing water reuse within EPA. The Office of Water estab-
lished a Water Reuse Team to facilitate WRAP implementation and grow the Agency's capacity to support reuse as a key
resilience tool. EPA also designated :ontact: within each of its 10 Regional offices to assist states, tribes, and territories in
their reuse activities (Action 10.3).
Raising global awareness of reuse. The U.S Department of State (DOS) organized a series of webinars on global water
reuse examples and applications, engaging thousands of participants from around the world through live, interactive
sessions. The ongoing series complements actions to build international capacity for water reuse, including through
expert exchanges and pilot programs (Action 11.2).
What's driving reuse? Enhancing water security through portfolio diversification, utilities in
the state of Washington are reusing wastewater for non-drinking purposes including wetland restoration,
groundwater replenishment, and commercial toilet flushing. This reused water is a reliable and sustainable
supply for existing and future needs.
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National Water Reuse Action Plan: Update on Collaborative Progress
Looking Ahead: 2021 and Beyond
The WRAP was conceived as a collaborative effort to support water reuse as
part of an integrated approach to help improve the security, sustainability,
and resilience of the nation's water resources. Water reuse is a key too! to
help enhance community resilience against climate-induced impacts and
improve our overall water infrastructure. As WRAP action leaders and partners
continue to implement the existing 40+ active actions and build on the
success from the first year, many significant action outputs and achievements
are expected in the coming months. Examples of upcoming milestones are
presented on the following page.
To help ensure progress, EPA's Water Reuse Team remains committed to
working with WRAP leaders and partners to assess and communicate the
status of action implementation and to broadly share relevant information,
findings, and tools from the action teams as milestones are completed. By
engaging with collaborators, the Water Reuse Team also plans to identify
and pursue additional strategic opportunities to address water reuse
implementation challenges, while building on recent accomplishments and
existing active actions.
Ultimately, the WRAP collaborative strives to ensure that water reuse is
accessible, straightforward to implement, and sensitive to climate and envi-
ronmental justice considerations. Over time, the collective efforts of the more
than 100 organizations and individuals participating in WRAP actions can
grow the body of reuse knowledge and best practices for the benefit of all.
Envisioning Success
by Strategic Theme
The WRAP's 11 strategic themes
help to focus efforts and inspire
future action. For example, the
theme "Science and Specifi-
cations" currently includes five
active actions that are laying the
critical groundwork for a clear,
evidence-based rationale for reuse
specifications, which will increase
public trust and protection of
public health. The theme "Technol-
ogy Development and Validation,"
with five active actions, is striving
to ensure appropriate treatment
technologies are available and
performance information is
consistent and accessible.
The State Department continues to raise awareness
of the importance of water reuse as a pathway to
water security around the world. The WRAP is a great
example of the strong leadership and creativity we need to
sustainably manage our water resources and is a useful
roadmap we share with partner countries to catalyze action
on water reuse. We look forward to engaging with the
WRAP team to build capacity for water reuse globally."
-Mar da Bernicat, U.S. Department of State
The WRAP seeks to advance the cutting edge in
water recyclingand to do so responsibly, in a
way that prepares for the curveballs climate change is
throwing at us. It brings EPA together with state, local,
NGO, private sector, and academic leaders, recognizing
the benefits of working together to face the future and
motivating us all to reach further."
-Felicia Marcus, Water in the West,
Stanford University
What's driving reuse? Augmenting existing water supplies. In Texas, the San Antonio
Water System delivers highly treated recycled water to golf courses and commercial customers
to reduce demand on the Edwards Aquifer.
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National Water Reuse Action Plan: Update on Collaborative Progress
UPCOMING WRAP ACTION MILESTONES IN 2021
Release integrated water resources management case study compilation (Action 1.2. led by
WateReuse, collaborating with NGWA, ACWA, AWWA, City of Roseville (CA), NYC DEP, and
Parker Groundwater)
Hold Israel-U.S. virtual collaboration event on water reuse (Action 11.1. led by EPA, MoEP, and MoEl,
collaborating with DOS, Embassy of Israel, Israel Water Authority, USDA, U.S. Embassy in Israel,
WateReuse, and FDA)
/ Spring
Summer
z
Release case studies on pharmaceutical takeback programs as an example of source control to
enhance recycled water quality (Action 2.9. led by LACSD, collaborating with AWWA, AMWA,
NACWA, NSAC, EPA, FDA, and WateReuse)
Award up to $6.2 million STAR Grant for reuse research on viral pathogen and surrogate
approaches for assessing treatment performance ( , led by EPA, with research undertaken
by awardees)
Issue multi-year $6.5 million cooperative agreement to support water reuse research (Action 10.3.
led by EPA)
Fall/Winter
TZT
Launch online compilation of fit-for-purpose specifications ( , led by EPA, collaborating
with ACWA, AMWA, ASDWA, ASTHO, CDPHE, WRF, WateReuse, and WY DEQ)
Hold expert convening on stormwater capture and use (Action 3.3. led by EPA, JFW, NMSA,
ReNUWIt, WateReuse, and WEF, collaborating with ACWA and AMWA)
Complete design process for an interagency decision support tool for communities to explore
federal funding sources for water management projects that afford resilience benefits, including
those for water reuse (Action 6.1. led by EPA, collaborating with USDA, FEMA, Reclamation, DOE,
USACE, HUD, and DOT)
Release white papers on aquifer storage and recovery and aquifer recharge (Action 7.4. led by
GWPC and EPA, collaborating with USDA and NGWA)
Release Reclamation's advanced water treatment research roadmap ( , led by
Reclamation, collaborating with the Federal Water Treatment Working Group)
The WRAP is a new path for sec tor-wide
collaboration in the water space, bringing together
unlikely partners and engaging people and organizations in
the planning process. The WRAP has given ASDWA the
opportunity to expand and deepen partnerships with other
organizations working towards improving the management
of our nation's water resources."
-Wendi Wilkes,
Association of State Drinking Water Administrators
The use and reuse of water spans a
spectrum of users and regulators and
requires collaboration between EPA, FDA, and
other sister agencies. Through this collaboration,
we are able to collectively address concerns in
effective ways, including the needs of stakeholders
and regulators."
-Kruti Ravaliya,
U.S. Food and Drug Administration
What's driving reuse? Increasing water availability and protecting water quality. Communities
throughout northeastern Massachusetts are capturing and using stormwater at the building scale to help
address drought conditions and protect the quality of local surface waters.
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National Water Reuse Action Plan: Update on Collaborative Progress
Call to Action: Join the Effort
Our collective success is directly tied to contributions and collaborations
from members of the water community. There are many ways to get
involved in the WRAP:
Stay in the loop. Join the WRAP listserv for periodic updates by
emailing waterreuse(S)epa gov.
Learn about actions. Find details on each action, including their
outputs, in the WRAP Online Platform.
Support an active action Reach out to action leader(s) about
possible roles through the contact information provided in the WRAP
Online Platform.
Provide input on proposed actions. To address identified needs and
knowledge gaps related to water reuse, proposed actions are intro-
duced in each WRAP Quarterly Update. The public is encouraged to
provide feedback by emailing waterreuse@epa.qov.
Propose a new action. Ideas for new actions can be shared at any
time. For information about how to propose an action, visit the
lifecycle of a WRAP action webpaqe.
Together,
we can
help ensure
the security,
sustainability, and
resilience of our most
precious resource:
WATER.
Benefits of the WRAP Collaborative
Fosters connections among a diverse, growing network of
experts, policymakers, and practitioners.
Taps into knowledge across the United States and internationally.
Aligns efforts and leverages resources to accelerate progress.
Addresses challenges and fills knowledge gaps.
Highlights success and facilitates broad information sharing.
Supports integrated approaches to water management and
challenges "stovepiping" in the water sector.
The consensus process guiding the
WRAP has brought together the
many entities involved in water reuse across
scales and geographies to generate a
focused and steady stream of new resources
and dialogues to support water reuse needs,
including those of state regulators."
-Julia Anastasio,
Association of Clean Water Administrators
Communicating Progress and Accomplishments
The WRAP Online Platform, which includes all WRAP actions, is
updated weekly based on input from action leaders. WRAP Quar-
terly Updates were released via e-newsletter in July 2020, October
2020, January 2021, and April 2021 and will continue into the future.
These communication tools help ensure transparency and shared
accountability throughout WRAP implementation.
The WRAP is harmonizing our efforts
to drive toward a shared vision of
what water and energy infrastructure needs
to look like now - and into the future."
-Kelly Speakes-Backman,
U.S. Department of Energy
What's driving reuse? Accommodating population growth. The city of Wichita, Kansas,
allocates treated wastewater instead of drinking water for industrial applications, saving enough
drinking water for nearly 5,000 households.
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-& IIU
NAWI
FDA*
LADWP
WTA
USWP Urban
Waters Partnership
Locations NTC
WW NYC DEP UWFP
EPRI WRF Natural Systems
Utilities WSWC Groundwork USA
WateReuse MoEP SBIR Programs
ASDWA GlaxoSmithKiine NEP Ecolab
USACE Design Aire HUD GreenBiz Group
AHA and ASHE Suez GWPC RTOC WaTr
Neotech Aqua NDRP WEF Tyson NMSA Parker
Groundwater GSA Embassy of Israel NSAC DOS
EPA ASHRAE CIFA USGBC DOT Reclamation
ISPE DOI NPS GCE AWWA ECOS RN RCAP
CSO ASLA SCCWRP IU NWRI NRWA FEMA
WYDEQ University of California Wahaso Austin
Water Utilities DOE ORNL Commerce NTWC
LACSD ReNUWIt USAID USGS CDPHE
NMSU NGWA ACWA DOD Xylem ICC
NMED IAPMO City of Roseville, California
« US Water Alliance GCCi CA SWRCB
NACWA AMWA NBRC MWD JCI
USDA NM-PWRC NREL Columbia
Water Center IWA ASTHO JFW
PHASC Rice University SAWS U.S.
Embassy in Israel SWAN
MoEl Penn State
Building an Enduring Legacy
of Watershed-Based Action
The WRAP seeks to enhance and stimulate
watershed-based collaborations where
business, finance and policy leaders,
communities, nonprofits, and others come
together to solve local water resource
challenges. Water reuse
approaches provide an
opportunity for broad and
meaningful collaboration
while fostering holistic
thinking and integrated
action.
The WRAP action leaders
and partners listed on
this page continue to
help build capacity
for water reuse
and increase the
resilience of our
communities.
WRAP
This document is not intended, nor can it be relied upon, to create any rights enforceable by any party in litigation with the
United States. This document does not impose legally binding requirements. Mention of public, private, or nonprofit entities;
trade names; or commercial products or services in this document does not and should not be construed to constitute an
endorsement or recommendation of any such product or service for use in any manner
While EPA maintains and updates an online platform of the actions and provides transparent, routine progress updates, the
Agency is not responsible for the conduct of other action leaders/partners or any implications of their actions. All WRAP
actions are at the will and discretion of the action leaders and partners and implemented in the spirit of collaboration and
partnership. Acronyms of organizations listed in this document are defined on the WRAP Online Platform.
Photo credits: Pg. 6: Bob Nichols, San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, Tucson Water; Pg. 8: City of San Diego,
California; Pg. 9: Upper Occoquan Service Authority.
EPA-820-R-21-002
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