SCCMA Physicians Participate in Water Reuse Symposium with EPA
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r. Ken Yew and Dr. Santosh Pandipati attended the WateReuse 2023 Symposium this spring in Atlanta where they participated in a panel discussion, “Water and Health: A Physician Looks at Water Reuse (CA)” on the topic of water reuse, health professional’s perspective and its importance to public acceptance.
physicians in support of water reuse. The value of this partnership is enhanced by the emergence of regulations regarding the use of recycled water for direct potable reuse which will be emerging, state by state, over the next several years. SCCMA representatives acknowledged that given the role of physicians in responding to environmental health impacts, it is appropriate for EPA and medical associations to work together.
The WateReuse Association is dedicated to advancing laws, policy, funding, and public acceptance of recycled water. WateReuse represents a coalition of utilities that recycle water, businesses that support the development of recycled water projects, and consumers of recycled water. Their goal is to increase safe and reliable water supplies. With support from Valley Water, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), SCCMA physicians wrote a series of articles in 2022 about “Water and Health,” focusing on Valley Water’s Purified Water Project. The reception to the article series and panel presentation led to discussion about where the work on water reuse might go next, including continued EPA-SCCMA partnership, a possible American Medical Association (AMA) resolution, pollution prevention, medical education, and a possible WRAP item.
AMA Resolution
EPA-SCCMA Partnership EPA representatives appreciated that this is the first partnership developed between the Agency and a group of practicing
The group discussed the value and feasibility of obtaining a resolution from the AMA advocating the use of recycled water as a mitigation for the impacts of climate change for the benefit of public health. • SCCMA representatives offered to update CMA Resolution 118a-12 adopted in 2012 by the CMA advocating for water reuse, and to propose it for consideration by the CMA at the next meeting of the House of Delegates. The update places the benefits of recycled water in the context of the impacts of climate change and the need to ensure that adequate supplies of clean water are available to the public. Dr. Yew submitted the resolution on the CMA website after getting the endorsement of the SCCMA council and District VII delegation. • If passed, the resolution could then be forwarded to the AMA Technical Advisory Board (TAB) for consideration as a national resolution. EPA would be willing to provide the TAB with technical background information to
Dr. Ken Yew and Dr. Santosh Pandipati attended the WateReuse 2023 Symposium this spring in Atlanta where they participated in a panel discussion The Bulletin | 23