Category: Hot topics

Hurricane season runs from June 1 through November 30, and Virginia’s water utilities play a critical role in community safety and resilience. Even storms that don’t make landfall in Virginia can bring heavy rainfall, flooding, power outages, and supply chain disruptions that affect water operations.

The Commonwealth is entering hurricane season, which runs from June 1 through November 30. Now is the time to prepare and review your emergency plans to ensure your utility is ready for severe weather impacts. Review the Hurricane Checklist to help stay prepared. Below is the link to the EPA Hurricane Incident Action Checklist: Water Sector Utility Incident Action Checklist – Hurricanes.

More information on hurricane season and emergency preparedness can be found here.

Virginia is currently experiencing severe drought conditions, with much of the Commonwealth under a drought watch or warning. Now is the time for utilities to ensure they are prepared should conditions continue to worsen by reviewing response plans, monitoring water supply levels, and coordinating with local partners. Utilities are encouraged to review the EPA Drought Checklist to assess preparedness and continue monitoring DEQ’s Drought webpage for the latest updates and conditions.

Please also find more information on the ODW Drought Monitoring Program – Drinking Water Webpage.

Provided is a recent drought report map.  To see the current drought monitoring maps and report click the link here.

 

Community waterworks must distribute an annual drinking water quality report, known as the CCR, to their customers and to the Office of Drinking Water, by July 1^st each year.  Updated guidance on optional electronic delivery can be found in the CCR Electronic Delivery Guidelines and updated guidance on CCR Preparation can be found in the Preparation Guidelines.  The Office of Drinking Water will review draft CCRs sent to field offices before May 1.

The deadline for wholesalers to provide their CCR information to their consecutive waterworks is April 1^st each year.

Each Community Waterworks must certify to the Office of Drinking Water how and when the CCR was distributed.  Certifications must be submitted to the Office of Drinking Water by October 1^st each year.  Here is the link to the CCR certification form

For more information, visit our CCR webpage here.

The October 2026 ODW Newsletter covers several important topics highlighted below:

• Technical and Regulatory Updates
• 2-Hour Reporting Requirements
• Funding Updates and Resources
• Cybersecurity Awareness Month
• Operator Licensure Resources
• Upcoming Training and Webinars

More information on all these topics can be found in the October 2026 Newsletter.

A link to previous ODW Newsletters and bulletins can be found on the ODW Newsletters page.

The MOR submittal form can be accessed here.

For instructions and guidance on how to submit the form please view the following recording and jump to 49:09 in the video.

On January 6, 2025 a winter weather-related power outage impacted operations at the City of Richmond’s water plant along the James River. As a result, the City of Richmond, Hanover, Henrico, and Goochland Counties were put under a Boil Water Advisory. The link below provides information on the Virginia Department of Health’s (VDH) response, investigation, and ongoing efforts to increase the City of Richmond’s drinking water system reliability.

More information on the city of Richmond Water Crisis can be found here