Source Water

Mission:

The mission of the Environmental Finance Center Network's (EFC Network or EFCN) Unified Source Water Protection Project is to assist communities and water systems in ensuring the long term health of the drinking water sources by bringing communities and water systems together to develop a common Protection Plan that will benefit all. The communities or water systems in each project share the same source or face similar contamination issues.


As the lead EFC for this project, the NM EFC is working with the EFCs in Maryland, North Carolina, Boise State and New York, to develop resource-based or unified source water protection plans for clusters of communities in 8 different states. This project builds upon the work performed under the Mora County Unified Source Water Protection Plan Pilot Project and the skills of the other EFCs in the project.

This project involves assistance in the development of a source water protection council; the examination of potential sources of contamination; determining appropriate source water protection measures that may minimize or eliminate contamination concerns; preparing a unified source water protection plan; and implementing the plan. The EFCs will facilitate stakeholder and council meetings and provide technical information transfer.

Source Water Protection Vision Statement

The Source Water Protection Vision Statement was signed on February 17, 2006. EPA and thirteen national organizations signed a vision statement expressing the members' commitment to work together to protect drinking water now and in the future.

"This is an important step forward in our source water and watershed cooperative conservation efforts," said Benjamin H. Grumbles, Assistant Administrator for Water. "We look forward to working with our partners and stakeholders in shaping the nation's drinking water protection goals."

This Source Water Collaborative agrees to do the following:

  • Share information with each other, through regular communication and during quarterly meetings.
  • Develop recommendations together with stakeholders in land stewardship and planning, beginning with this document, about what is needed to protect sources of drinking water.
  • Package and disseminate recommendations, through the membership of their organizations, with partners and through the media, in ways that are useful in land-use and stewardship decisions.




For more information, check these related documents:
Signed Source Water Vision Statement
Final Project Report
Mora Final Report
 Environmental Finance Advisory Board
EPA Environmental Finance Program
EPA Region 6 Drinking Water Program