Discover how Cadmus supports source water protection, helping EPA, states, and utilities safeguard drinking water
Develop source water protection tools, strategies, and workshops
Cadmus experts have supported EPA, federal partners, states, water utilities, and many more stakeholders with protecting drinking water at the source. Source water protection resides at the intersection of the Clean Water Act and Safe Drinking Water Act, is a critical step in the multi-barrier approach to protecting drinking water, and source water protection activities can provide many co-benefits such as wildlife habitat restoration and improving water quality for recreational use. These are just a few of the ways Cadmus has been involved in protecting drinking water at the source:
- Plan and facilitate source water workshops. Working with national, state, and local partners, Cadmus staff have supported over 100 workshops and forums that educate, promote collaboration, and lead to action to implement source water protection strategies and actions more effectively.
- Work closely with EPA, state agencies, and local partners to develop strategic plans for Source Water Collaboratives. Two examples of this work are the Safe Water Conservation Collaborative in West Virginia and the Octoraro Source Water Collaborative in Pennsylvania. Cadmus worked with these groups to develop mission, vision, and value statements that align with their organizational principles and build on their previous successes. The outcomes of the projects are new goals that support long-term operations and growth and published aspirational strategic plans while being realistic and providing long-term guidance with short-term actions.
- Collaborate with water systems to draft source water protection plans. One example of this work is the support Cadmus experts provided to the Charleston Water System (CWS) in South Carolina to develop a Source Water Protection Program for their primary water supply, Bushy Park Reservoir. We worked closely with CWS to draft a source water protection plan for the Bushy Park Reservoir watershed using the American Water Works Association (AWWA) G300 Source Water Protection standard. The support Cadmus provided included a draft source water protection plan program vision; characterization of the watershed and potential sources of contamination; source water protection goals; a source water protection action plan; and a procedure for periodically evaluating and revising the plan.
- Develop tools to support source water protection programs. Two examples are working with EPA to develop, launch, and update the Funding Integration Tool for Source Water (FITS) and working with ASDWA to develop the ASDWA PFAS – Source Water Protection Guide and Toolkit. FITS helps states, water systems, practitioners, and other partners understand which federal funding sources support activities that protect sources of drinking water. It includes 14 federal funding sources across agencies, provides tips on leveraging funds, and includes real-world examples. The ASDWA PFAS – Source Water Protection Guide and Toolkit consists of a Technical Appendix, Mapping Guidance, and a Decision-Support Tool. The toolkit helps states understand the scope of potential PFAS contamination within their state, provides information about possible sources and actions that can be taken by state primacy agencies and source water protection programs to improve source water protection from PFAS contamination, and facilitates informed decision-makers and information sharing between states.
How can we help you take your source water protection program to the next level?
