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. flY') 7 ~ December 31, 1992 I ue No. 972 , \ , ), WESTERN STATES WATE --' .<,.; ~_;:.' :,.(i ." .,...c """ ("'""; >" .~......\ '1'( ./ ,_. \..-'l~ .....e' -,'t'" p-"" .c-' c~ ('l c? OJ 'e> ;, TIIE WEEKLY NEWSLElTER OF TIIE WESlERN STAlES WAlER COUNCIL editor Tony Willardson Creekview Plaza, SUite A-201 I 942 East 7145 So. I Midvale, Utah 84047 I (801) 561-5300 I FAX (801) 255-9642 typist Carrie curvin CONGRESSIONAL UPDATE . Committee Leadership Earlier this month, the House Democratic Caucus met and named Rep. Norman Mineta (D-CA) Chairman of the House Public Works and Transportation Comm~ee. Mineta reportedly declined a possible appointment in Clinton's cabinet as Secretary of Transportation. A San Jose resident, Mineta represents over 1/2 million people in Santa Clara County. He served in the House since 1975 and is presently the Deputy Democratic Whip. Rep. Jerry E. Studds (D-Mass) has been named Chairman of the House Merchant Marine and Fisheries Comm~ee, which has jurisdiction over the Endangered Species Act. A former city councilman and mayor, Studds has served in Congress since 1973. He has chaired the Fisheries and Wildlife Conservation and the Environment Subcommittee. . On the Senate side, Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan (D-NY) currently chairs the Environment and Public Works Committee, in place of the late Senator Quentin Burdick (D-ND). However, with Senator Lloyd Bentsen named as the new Secretary of the Treasury, Moynihan is expected to become the new Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, w~h Senator Max Baucus (D-Mi) chairing the Environment and Public Works Committee. Baucus is an attorney from Missoula. He served in the Montana House of Representatives in the early 70's. He was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1975, and to the Senate in 1979. Baucus has been active in western water issues, including wilderness, federal hydropower licensing, and water quality issues. Moynihan's move will also leave open the chair of the Water Resources, Transportation and Infrastructure Subcomm~ee. Comm~ee members will hold reorganization meetings later in January, when subcomm~ee chairs will be named. chairman - Dave Kennedy executive director - Craig Bell WATER QUAUTY Clean Water Act ReauthorizationlWatershed Protection At a recent conference on Clean Water Act reauthorization issues, the Association of Metropolitan Sewage Agencies proposed watershed protection as a major focus of the CWA reauthorization. In a summary legislative proposal publiShed in the Environment Reporter (December 11) ANSA's Comprehensive Watershed Management Act of 1993 advocates establishment of a nationwide program for watershed management and planning. Under the proposal, each state would designate watersheds for comprehensive management at least every five years. Protection plans would then be implemented based on a characterization of water resources, watershed surveys, review of pollutants of concern, and identification of prior~ areas of concern. Watershed management plans would be initiated to implement water qual~ improvements to achieve and maintain water qual~ standards. The components of comprehensive watershed management plans would include identilication of designated uses requiring revisions, recommended revisions to standards to support the uses, and add~ional controls where appropriate. Minimum standards of operation w~hin watersheds would include a combination of pollution prevention and source reduction, management practices, control technology, and other measures available. Implementation schedules would be established for each priority source based on the potential for cost-effective risk reduction and water qual~ improvement, providing the maximum benefit to the watershed as a whole. The proposal would also revise compliance schedules contained in national pollutant discharge system perm~s, where necessary. EPA has responded positively to incorporating watershed-based management approaches into a