79–010

Calendar No. 882

106TH CONGRESS REPORT

2d Session " ! SENATE 106–437

DENVER WATER REUSE PROJECT

SEPTEMBER 29, 2000.—Ordered to be printed

Filed under authority of the order of the Senate of September 28 (legislative day,

September 22), 2000

Mr. MURKOWSKI, from the Committee on Energy and Natural

Resources, submitted the following

REPORT

[To accompany S. 1848]

The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was

referred the bill (S. 1848) to amend the reclamation Wastewater

and Groundwater Study and Facilities Act to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to participate in the design, planning, and

construction of the Denver Water Reuse project, having considered

the same, reports favorably thereon with an amendment and an

amendment to the title and recommends that the bill, as amended,

do pass.

The amendments are as follows:

1. Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert in lieu

thereof the following:

SECTION 1. DENVER WATER REUSE PROJECT.

(a) AUTHORIZATION.—The Secretary of the Interior, in cooperation with the appropriate State and local authorities, may participate in the design, planning, and construction of the Denver Water Reuse Project (‘‘Project’’) to reclaim and reuse water

in the service area of the Denver Water Department of the city and county of Denver, Colorado.

(b) COST SHARE.—The Federal share of the cost of the Project shall not exceed

25 percent of the total cost.

(c) LIMITATION.—Funds provided by the Secretary shall not be used for the operation or maintenance of the Project.

(d) FUNDING.—Funds appropriated pursuant to section 1615 of the Reclamation

Wastewater and Groundwater Study and Facilities Act may be used for the Project.

SEC. 2. RECLAMATION WASTEWATER AND GROUNDWATER STUDY AND FACILITIES ACT.

Design, planning, and construction of the Project authorized by the Act shall be

in accordance with, and subject to the limitations contained in, the Reclamation

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Wastewater and Groundwater Study and Facilities Act (106 Stat. 4663–4669, 43

U.S.C. 390h et seq.), as amended.

2. Amend the title so as to read: ‘‘To authorize the Secretary of

the Interior, pursuant to the provisions of the Reclamation Wastewater and Groundwater to participate in the design, planning, and

construction of the Denver Water Reuse project.’’

PURPOSE OF THE MEASURE

The purpose of S. 1848 is to amend the Reclamation Wastewater

and Groundwater Study and Facilities Act to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to participate in the design, planning, and

construction of the Denver Water Reuse Project.

BACKGROUND AND NEED

Title XVI of the Reclamation Projects Authorization and Adjustment Act of 1992 (P.L. 102–575, 106 Stat. 4006) authorized a program of wastewater reclamation and reuse feasibility and demonstration projects within the Reclamation States. The Federal

share of costs was limited to 50 percent. In addition, several individual studies were directed as well as 5 projects (San Jose, Phoenix, San Diego, Los Angeles, and San Gabriel Basin) for which

funding was limited to 25 percent. The legislation was directed at

reuse of existing supplies and did not address desalination, although title XI did authorize a program to research and demonstrate methods for control of salinity at the Salton Sea in California with 50 percent Federal cost-sharing. Partially in response

to the number of requests for participation in the program and the

costs, P.L. 104–266 modified the program to limit Federal contributions to 25 percent of the total cost, with a maximum of $20 million, and required a feasibility analysis prior to the expenditure of

any funds for construction. The new requirements were not made

applicable to the several very large projects, mainly in California,

authorized under title XVI. The 1996 Act also included authorization for 18 additional water reclamation and reuse projects in California, Utah, New Mexico, Nevada, and Texas. Title XVI was again

amended in October 1998 by P.L. 105–321 to include authorization

for the Willow Lake Natural Treatment System Project in Oregon.

The use of reclaimed water in the arid West is significant, especially in areas experiencing groundwater overdraft or facing reduced freshwater supplies. While municipal uses are the primary

benefits of the program, there can be significant indirect benefits

for other consumptive uses, such as agriculture, and non-consumptive uses, such as augmenting in-stream flows or reducing depletions.

The Denver Nonpotable Reuse Project will treat secondary wastewater for irrigation and industrial uses around the Denver International Airport and Rocky Mountain Wildlife Refuge. The project

ultimately is designed to provide 15,000 acre feet, freeing up potable supplies for 30,000 homes. The reuse will also aid Denver in

complying with the Blue River Decree, signed by the Secretary of

the Interior, under which Denver conveys water from Colorado’s

western slope to its eastern slope customers. The total project cost

for all three phases is about $100 million. Under the cost-share

limitations of Public Law 104–566, the Federal funding contribuVerDate 11-MAY-2000 06:20 Sep 30, 2000 Jkt 079010 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\SR437.XXX pfrm03 PsN: SR437
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tion will be limited to $20 million, notwithstanding the 25 percent

limitation in the legislation.

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

S. 1848 was introduced by Senator Campbell on November 3,

1999. The Subcommittee on Water and Power held a hearing on

June 21, 2000. At the business meeting on September 20, 2000, the

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources ordered S. 1848, as

amended, favorably reported.

COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION AND TABULATION OF VOTES

The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in open business session on September 20, 2000, by a unanimous voice vote

with a quorum present, recommends that the Senate pass S. 1848,

if amended as described herein.

COMMITTEE AMENDMENT

During the consideration of S. 1848, the Committee adopted an

amendment in the nature of a substitute that rewrites the legislation to make it a freestanding bill, rather than amending title 16

of Public Law 102–575, which established the Wastewater reclamation program. The title of the bill was also amended to reflect that

change.

COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS

The Congressional Budget Office estimate of the costs of this

measure has been requested but was not received at the time the

report was filed. When the report is available, the Chairman will

request it to be printed in the Congressional Record for the advice

of the Senate.

REGULATORY IMPACT EVALUATION

In compliance with paragraph 11(b) of rule XXVI of the Standing

Rules of the Senate, the Committee makes the following evaluation

of the regulatory impact which would be incurred in carrying out

S. 1848. The bill is not a regulatory measure in the sense of imposing Government-established standards or significant economic responsibilities on private individuals and businesses.

No personal information would be collected in administering the

program. Therefore, there would be no impact on personal privacy.

Little, if any, additional paperwork would result from the enactment of S. 1848, as ordered reported.

EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS.

On June 16, 2000, the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources requested legislative reports from the Department of the

Interior and the Office of Management and Budget setting forth

Executive agency recommendations on S. 1848. These reports had

not been received at the time the report on S. 1848 was filed. When

the reports become available, the Chairman will request that they

be printed in the Congressional Record for the advice of the Senate.

The testimony provided by the Commissioner of the Bureau of Reclamation at the Subcommittee hearing follows:

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STATEMENT OF ELUID L. MARTINEZ, COMMISSIONER,

BUREAU OF RECLAMATION, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Thank you for the opportunity to appear today to provide the Administration’s views on S. 1848, concerning the

Denver Water Reuse Project. My name is Eluid Martinez.

I am Commissioner of the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation

(Reclamation).

S. 1848 would amend the Reclamation Wastewater and

Groundwater Study and Facilities Act (43 U.S.C. 390h et

seq.) [Title XVI of P.L. 102–575 (1992)] to authorize the

Secretary of the Interior (Secretary) to participate in the

design, planning, and construction of the Denver Water

Reuse Project in the service area of the Denver Water Department in the city and County of Denver, Colorado. S.

1848 limits the Federal share of project costs to 25 percent

of the total costs and restricts the Secretary from providing funding for the operation and maintenance of this

project. While Reclamation strongly encourages local water

recycling efforts, we must oppose authorizing this additional Federal recycling project for the reasons descried

below.

Mr. Chairman, in 1992, Congress adopted, and the

President signed, the Reclamation Projects Authorization

and Adjustment Act (Public Law 192–575). Title XVI of

this Act, the Wastewater and Groundwater Study and Facilities Act, authorized the construction of five water reclamation and reuse projects. Four of these projects are in

California and the fifth is in Arizona. The Secretary was

also authorized to undertake a program to identify other

water recycling opportunities throughout the 17 western

United States, and to conduct appraisal level and feasibility level studies to determine if those opportunities are

worthy of implementation. The Bureau of Reclamation has

been administering a grant program to fund these Title

XVI projects since FY 1994.

In 1996, Public Law 104–266, the Reclamation Recycling

and Water Conservation Act was enacted into law. This

Act amended Title XVI and authorized the Secretary to

participate in the planning, design, and construction of 18

additional projects, including two desalination research

and development projects. These new projects are distributed within five states, including California, Nevada,

Utah, Texas, and New Mexico. Title XVI of Public Law

102–575 was further amended in 1998 by Public Law 105–

321 to authorize Reclamation to participate in the design,

planning, and construction of the Willow Lake Natural

Treatment System Project in Salem, Oregon. To date, Congress has provided funding to construct 14 of these

projects, and to conduct feasibility studies on an additional

three projects.

Municipal, industrial, domestic, and agricultural wastewater reuse efforts can assist states and local communities

in solving contemporary water supply problems. However

the Department opposes authorizing additional projects in

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the absence of feasibility studies to determine whether

these particular projects warrant Federal funding. In general, Reclamation places priority on funding new projects

that (1) are economically justified and environmentally acceptable in a watershed context; (2) are not eligible for

funding under another Federal program; and (3) directly

address Administration priorities of the Reclamation program, such as reducing the demand on existing Federal

water supply facilities.

The Department also opposes enactment of this legislation because authorizing new projects is likely to place an

additional burden on Reclamation’s already tight budget.

To date, Reclamation has been unable to provide the full

authorized funding amounts for any of the water reclamation and reuse projects presently authorized by Title XVI.

At current funding levels, it will take Reclamation more

than 10 years to complete funding of the 24 currently authorized projects.

For all of the above reasons, the Department of the Interior cannot support authorizing this new construction request.

This concludes my prepared testimony. I would be happy

to answer any questions.

CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW

In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the Standing

Rules of the Senate, the Committee notes that no changes in existing law are made by the bill S. 1848, as ordered reported.

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