Clean Watersheds Needs Survey

Stormwater and Green Infrastructure Needs Factsheet

Data collection for the 2022
Clean Watersheds Needs
Survey (CWNS) opened on
March 1st, 2022! State CWNS
coordinators are collecting
data to estimate the capital
investment needed over the
next 20 years for clean water
projects, including stormwater
and green infrastructure
projects. Data collection will
close on February 28th, 2023.

What stormwater and green
infrastructure projects can
be included in the survey?

Stormwater and green infrastructure projects could include those at permitted or unpermitted
stormwater infrastructure systems or combined sewer overflow correction facilities. For a project
to be included in the 2022 CWNS, it must be:

•	Eligible for funding under the national

•	Unfunded as of January 1st, 2022 (i.e.
funds been committed to the project)

•	Expected to be constructed within the

Eligible stormwater and green
infrastructure projects must have a water
quality benefit (i.e., direct stormwater
quality treatment or stormwater discharge
volume reduction that could result in water
quality benefits). For example, any green
infrastructure that prevents stormwater
from reaching combined systems or
techniques such as disconnecting
downspouts are eligible projects.

Stormwater management projects could
incorporate gray infrastructure, green
infrastructure, or general stormwater
management activities.

What documentation is required to report a need?

In general, investment needs reported in the CWNS must be supported by documentation that
has not been generated solely for the CWNS survey (e.g., capital improvement plans, asset
management plans, integrated plans, long-term stormwater plans). This documentation should

What is the CWNS and why is it important?

The Clean Water Act requires EPA to assess the needed capital
investment for all Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF)-
eligible projects nationwide and report the findings to Congress. To
accomplish this, EPA conducts the Clean Watersheds Needs
Survey, which also tracks trends in the level of wastewater
treatment for the U.S. population and informs some funding
allocations at the state and federal levels. Survey results are used
in part to determine grant amounts for the Sewer Overflow and
Stormwater Reuse Municipal Grants Program. The data are also
publicly available and used by academic and professional
organizations (e.g., in the American Society of Engineers Report
Card for America's Infrastructure).

CWSRF guidelines

, construction has not started nor have external
CWNS 20-year planning horizon (2022-2041)

Examples of eligible stormwater projects:

•	Gray infrastructure (e.g., traditional pipe, storage,
and treatment systems; real-time control systems
for CSO management, sediment controls)

•	Green infrastructure (e.g., bioretention,
constructed wetlands, permeable pavement, rain
gardens, green roofs, cisterns, rain barrels)

•	General stormwater management (e.g.,
stormwater education program startup costs,
stormwater management plan development,
stormwater management program
implementation)


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include either a project description, a cost estimate, or both. If documentation that describes
needed projects exists but it does not have the associated costs, the CWNS coordinator may be
able to use one of the Cost Estimation Tools that EPA has developed for the survey. If no
documentation exists, the CWNS coordinator can develop a state-specific approach to estimate
needed projects and/or costs and submit that to EPA for approval. A state-specific approach
can be proposed to EPA when the state does not have project-specific documentation but has
data that can be used to estimate certain needed projects that are expected to occur in the next
20 years.

What are some ways I can help my state's CWNS coordinator report needed stormwater
or green infrastructure projects?

•	Request documentation from local communities and provide it to your state CWNS
coordinator

•	Provide regional or state-wide documents to your state CWNS coordinator that may
include needed projects or cost data

•	Work with your state CWNS coordinator to develop a state-specific approach to estimate
costs that are not documented

To find your state's CWNS coordinator, visit https://www.epa.gov/cwns/state-cwns-proqram-
contacts.

For more information, contact:

•	EPA CWNS Contacts: Josh Klein Klein.Joshua@epa.gov and Elisabeth Schlaudt
Schlaudt.Elisabeth@epa.gov

•	EPA Stormwater We bsite: https ://www. epa.gov/n pdes/n pdes-stormwater-prog ram

•	EPA Green Infrastructure Website: https://www.epa.gov/green-infrastructure/what-
green-infrastructure

•	EPA Green Infrastructure Contacts: https://www.epa.gov/green-
infrastructure/forms/contact-us-about-green-infrastructure


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