Dr. Greg Pierce
Director, UCLA Water Resources Group, UCLA, USA
Dr. Greg Pierce is the co-director of the Luskin Center for Innovation and the director of the Human Right to Water Solutions Lab within the center. He is also the co-director of the UCLA Water Resources Group within the Institute of the Environment and Sustainability, and serves as faculty in the department of urban planning. Since joining the Luskin Center in 2015, he has been instrumental in guiding the Center's leadership to produce rigorous, engaged research which informs drinking water system and Human Right to Water policy in California, as well as across the United States. He has authored 50+ peer-reviewed journal articles and numerous major research reports. His broader research interests lie at the intersection of public finance, infrastructure planning and environmental justice. Greg holds a PhD in Urban Planning from UCLA.
Dec 5, 2023, 9:25AM -9:40AM EST
New Water Quality Regulations: Challenges and Opportunities in the United States
Based on a set of research projects and collaborations with regulators, water utilities, communities and non-profit organizations, this presentation will discuss new drinking water quality regulations in the United States in light of the historical trajectory of the Safe Drinking Water Act, as compared to similar sets of regulation in other OECD countries. The presentation will discuss the push for the addition of emerging contaminants such as PFAS/PFOA to primary standards, as well as efforts to address old problems such as lead, and its implications for systems, communities and private industry. The presentation will also discuss how a relative and cumulative health risk indicator can add clarity to an increasingly scattered regulatory and advocacy landscape. Finally, the presentation will discuss the role of point of use and point of entry filtration in the regulatory and consumer space, including both emerging opportunities based on technology and policy innovation, as well as enduring challenges compared to the air quality monitoring and filtration space.