Identification of critical information gaps in the onsite/decentralized wastewater treatment field, and establishment of research and development priorities aimed at addressing these gaps has been an important activity of the National Decentralized Water Resources Capacity Development Project (NDWRCDP).  During Phase 1 of the grant, the 2002-2003 NDWRCDP Training, Research and Development Plan was developed to guide the research funding priorities. More details on the Phase 1 prioritization process can be found here.

In Phase 2, WERF and established two advisory bodies to help identify and address research needs. The first was the Decentralized Systems Advisory Committee (DSAC), which is comprised of representatives from WERF and its collaborative partners on the NDWRCDP. This committee helps evaluate national priorities and determine funding allocations for each of the research program areas: Environmental Science and Engineering, Management and Economics, Regulatory Reform, and Training and Education.

The other advisory body is the Decentralized Research Advisory Council (DRAC), which WERF established to develop the annual funding priorities for the Environmental Science and Engineering projects, and to help guide individual WERF-managed projects in this topic area once they are developed. Table 1 contains a list of ongoing and completed Phase 2 projects.

In March 2007, WERF held a long-range planning workshop (project 04-DEC-8W) to determine current and future research needs for the decentralized industry. A variety of experts from the US and abroad were invited to the 2-day facilitated meeting to provide input. A summary report was developed that charts a research agenda in support of an integrated, sustainable, decentralized water infrastructure.  Further, workshop attendees formulated a consensus vision called the Baltimore Charter, and signed this document as a commitment to design new water systems that mimic and work with nature.

Attendees at the Baltimore workshop.