Many small and very small drinking water systems require repair and upgrading if they are to comply with the Safe Drinking Water Act of 1974 and its amendments. Often, dispersed population makes infrastructure expensive on a per‐capita basis. Funding shortages at the federal, state, and water system levels compound the problem, leading to budget deficits, layoffs, and furloughs that affect small systems' capability to conduct repairs. Various alternative financial assistance mechanisms are available to small systems to fund improvements. The funding options include loans and grants from federal and state agencies, banks, foundations, and other sources. This article provides a comprehensive review of the sources of such financial assistance. In addition, it supplies names of publications that can direct the reader to further assistance.

Most package plants surveyed for this article were in compliance, but recordkeeping was inadequate and standardized levels of operator certification were lacking. A joint field study was conducted by AWWA and the Drinking Water Research Division of the US Environmental Protection Agency to evaluate existing small community systems that use package plant technology. Forty‐eight package plant systems representing a geographic and technological cross section were evaluated through an examination of historical water quality, financial records, site visits, and analysis of samples of raw and finished water. Most systems were performing adequately; however, a few were not in compliance with standards for turbidity or inorganic contaminants. Standardized levels of operator certification, knowledge and use of technical assistance, and good management practices were lacking in many systems. In addition, several systems would have difficulty complying with parts of the Disinfectants/Disinfection By‐products Rule or the Enhanced Surface Water Treatment Rule.

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Climate change is a critical scientific and social issue of our time, yet the topic is not frequently discussed by the general public. Additionally, misconceptions about the topic persist. One important aspect of climate change is the greenhouse effect. This activity adds a greenhouse gas discussion to an existing module about molecular shape and modeling. The module links the greenhouse effect to climate change. The activity has been used in several introductory chemistry settings. A discussion of studentgenerated answers and student-reported learning gains is presented.