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National Research Needs Conference Proceedings: Risk-Based Decision Making for Onsite Wastewater Treatment

Publication Date: March 2001
Cooperating Institution: EPRI
Principal Investigator: N/A
Project Budget: N/A
Project Identifier: N/A

DESCRIPTION
On May 19-20, 2000, the Research Needs Conference for "Risk-Based Decision Making for Onsite Wastewater Treatment" was convened in St. Louis, Missouri. This conference, funded by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), was the culmination of an eighteen-month long effort by the National Decentralized Water Resources Capacity Development Project (NDWRCDP) to assist onsite wastewater leadership in identifying critical research gaps in the field. The five "White Papers" included in this Proceedings, along with the reviewer comments for four of these papers, provided the basis for extended discussion. Topics for the papers had been determined from input at three prior daylong forums in Tampa, Florida; Kingston, Rhode Island; and Seattle, Washington.

Research needs forums were convened in three different areas of the country, in order to uncover the differences in regulatory concerns, treatment capacity of soils, climate, etc. At each of these sessions, regulators, industry leaders, academics, planners, and others were asked to make presentations or otherwise participate in breakout sessions. Approximately two hundred experts participated in one or more of these meetings. Written comments were also submitted. The NDWRCDP considered it vital to take the time necessary to identify research needs through a systematic, inclusive process of discussion and feedback throughout the country. 

In coming years, the Capacity Development Project will use the research needs analysis in the five White Papers as a template for funding of research projects. Participants in the May 19-20, 2000 conference will be sent surveys and asked to rank research needs identified by the White Paper authors. These national rankings will be used to develop Requests for Proposals (RFP's) in the highest-priority areas.

Associated Documents
National Research Needs Conference Proceedings