Cr
United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Office of Water (4606)
Washington, DC 20460
EPA-810-K-99-002
i's YOUR Drinking
Water: ^
Get to Know it
and Pro
How the right-to-know provisions of the
Safe Drinking Water Act can help you learn
about and protect your drinking water.
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The Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA)
requires that information be made available to the public
so that you can learn how to help protect your drinking
water and make personal health decisions about it
SDWA is the principal Federal statute that protects the
250 million Americans who drink water from public
supplies. When SDWA was amended in 1996, numerous
provisions were added that give consumers greater access
to information about, and opportunities for involvement
in, drinking water issues. This guide will help you take
advantage of these opportunities and find answers to
many of your questions about your drinking water.
F
NDING OUT WHETHER YOUR DRINKING WATER
MEETS NATIONAL SAFETY STANDARDS:
EPA sets health-based standards to protect the nation's drinking water
from unsafe amounts of contaminants. The standards are part of SDWA's
"multiple barrier" approach to protecting drinking water as it travels from
its source to your tap. In most cases, EPA delegates responsibility for
ensuring that the health standards are met to states. You can find out
whether your water system is meeting national standards through
several sources:
• Consumer Confidence Report: Starting in 1999.
these water quality reports will be prepared annually
Water Quality Report
by each community water system. Every customer or
a community water system will have access to a
report, most commonly through a direct mailing. The
report will provide information on the source of your
water supply, the level of any regulated contaminants detected in the
water, the health effects of contaminants detected above the safety limit,
and your water system's compliance with other drinking water regula-
tions. The report will also tell you where else you can go for
information about your local drinking water supply. If you haven't
received a report by the end of October 1999, call your water system to
obtain a copy.
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your State
Compliance Report
State Compliance Report: By January of each year.
every state must produce an annual report on whether
water systems within the state are meeting drinking
water standards. These reports are available through
your state drinking water program. Many are available
via the Internet. Call the Safe Drinking Water Hotline at
(800) 426-4791 to find out how to contact your state's drinking water
program, or visit EPA's web site at www.epa.gov/safewater/dwinfo.htm
and click on your state.
Database: EPA collects information on every public
drinking water system in the nation and stores it in a
database called the Safe Drinking Water Information
System (SDWIS). EPA uses this information to gauge
how safe America's drinking water is, and to track
water systems which are violating drinking water standards. You can
access information about your water system, such as how many people
it serves and whether it has been meeting drinking water safety stan-
dards, on the Internet at: www.epa.gov/safewater/dwinfo.htm
D
ETERMINING THE THREATS TO YOUR DRINKING
WATER:
Source Water Assessment: Between now and 2003,
states will be examining each of the nation's drinking
water sources (the rivers, lakes, groundwater, etc. from
which water systems derive their water) to determine how
susceptible they are to contamination. States must make
the results of these assessments available to the public when they are
completed. Call your state drinking water office or local water system to
get a copy of the workplan and eventually the assessment. Through these
assessments, your state and water supplier will obtain information to
answer your more detailed questions about the potential threats to the
quality of your drinking water. These assessments may need to be up-
dated in the future to maintain accuracy if land use or other changes occur
in the watershed. Consumer confidence reports will include a summary of
the Source Water Assessments once done, and may include more informa-
tion on threats.
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Web Sites and
National
Databases
Databases: The public will also have access to two
databases being created to assist EPA in its decision
making about which contaminants to regulate in the
future and which standards for regulated contaminants
to re-examine. These databases contain information on
the occurrence of contaminants in drinking water, but
don't identify contaminant sources. Both databases will be available on
EPA's web site atwww.epa.gov/safewater/.
O The Information Collection Rule Database will store information
that EPA has collected from large public water systems (those
serving at least 100,000 people) on occurrences of contamination
from disease-causing microbes and byproducts of disinfection. This
information will be available in August 1999.
^> The National Contaminant Occurrence Database being developed
by EPA will store information on the occurrences of regulated and
unregulated contaminants in drinking water throughout the country.
The information will be available in August 1999.
W
HAT HAPPENS WHEN THERE IS AN EMERGENCY
WITH YOUR DRINKING WATER:
Public Notification: If there is an immediate threat to
your health due to a violation of a drinking water
regulation or standard, SDWA requires that your
water system notify you promptly through the media
or posted signs. It is important that you follow any
instructions your water system may give you in the
notice.
©UU(Q)'
Emergency
Instructions
K
IONS THAT ARE BEING TAKEN TO PROTECT YOUR
DRINKING WATER AND HOW YOU CAN GET INVOLVED:
EPA, states, and water systems each work to protect the nation's drinking
water supply. Opportunities for public involvement exist at all of these
levels.
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Regulations
and
Funding
Decisions
At the Federal Level:
EPA activities to protect drinking water include
setting drinking water standards and overseeing the
work of states that enforce federal or their own.
stricter, standards. EPA is committed to seeking
public input as it develops new drinking water
standards and other requirements of the drinking water program.
Public Meetings and Comment. EPA holds many public meetings on
issues ranging from a proposed drinking water standard for arsenic to the
development of the National Contaminant Occurrence Database. You can
also comment on proposed regulations and drafts of other upcoming EPA
activities. A list of public meetings and regulations that are open
for comment can be found on EPA's drinking water web site at
www.epa.gov/safewater/pubinput.html or you can call the Safe Drinking
Water Hotline at (800) 426-4791.
At the State Level:
SDWA gives states flexibility in implementing drinking water protection
efforts so that they can meet the specific needs of their citizens while
maintaining a national level of public health. States are required to seek
public input on the activities listed below. To find out whom to contact
in your state about any of these activities, call the Safe Drinking Water
Hotline at (800) 426-4791 or visit EPA's web site at
www.epa.gov/safewater/dwinfo.htm and click on your
state.
The Drinking Water State Revolving Fund
(DWSRF). This federal grant program provides
money for states, who, in turn, provide loans to
drinking water systems to upgrade their facilities and ensure compliance
with drinking water standards. Each year, your state develops an intended
use plan for how it intends to use its grant, including a list of water
systems that will be receiving funds to upgrade their treatment facilities.
This list is available to the public, and your state is required to seek public
input in the development of the intended use plan.
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with Conducting
Your Source Wate,
Assessment*
Source Water Assessments. States have developed
and are implementing programs to assess and protect
all sources of public drinking water. States have also
established citizen advisory committees to help
develop their programs, and may continue to seek
input as they conduct assessments between now and
2003. You can help implement your source water
assessment program by assisting your state (or your
local government or water system if the state delegates the responsibility)
as it conducts your drinking water source assessment. This may include
helping your state inventory the potential pollution threats to your
drinking water source. Also, a portion of your state's federal grant money
from the DWSRF can be set aside specifically for aquiring land to buffer
your drinking water source or to fund local protection activities. You can
contact your state agency to find out if and how your state plans to use
these set-aside funds.
Capacity Development Program. By October 2000, states must
develop strategies to ensure that all water systems have the technical,
financial, and managerial capability to ensure that safe drinking water is
provided to their customers. States are required to
involve the public in the development of these strate- [p) [f@^odl©
gies, and to make the final strategy available to the IDDISyft
public. _ to Your State
Operator Certification Program. Some states are
currently revising their existing programs to certify
operators of public water systems to meet new require-
ments. These states are required to submit their program changes to EPA
by February 2001. States whose current programs already meet the new
requirements must resubmit their programs to EPA by August 2000. EPA
guidelines require states to include ongoing stakeholder involvement in the
revision of operator certification programs. EPA's guidelines strongly
recommend that states use stakeholder boards or advisory committees to
help implement these programs. Call your state to find out how you can
provide input as your state revises and implements its program.
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At the Local and Water System Level:
Consumer Confidence Reports. Your water system is the first source for
specific information about your drinking water. By late October 1999, your
water supplier must make its first consumer confidence report (also called a
drinking water quality report) available to the public. Beginning in 2000.
water suppliers must provide their annual report to the public by July. The
information contained in these reports on the condition of the drinking water
and opportunities for public involvement can spark a dialogue between the
water supplier and its customers. You can also ask your water supplier for
more information beyond the report. Having this information will allow you
to better understand and participate in decisions by your water system
regarding treatment improvements and protection efforts.
Source Water Protection. Protection of drinking water is everyone's
responsibility. You can help protect your community's drinking
water source in several ways. For example, your state P^iif'ii'nfpnifi^fe
may delegate the responsibility to conduct the assess-
ment of your drinking water source to your local t°protei:ty°u>'
J & J
government or water supplier. If this is the case, you
can help your local government or water supplier as it
creates an inventory of potential pollution threats to the
source of your drinking water. You can also work with
them to periodically update the assessment to include
any land use changes that may occur over time.
You can work with your water supplier, local government, an existing
community watershed group, or start your own community group and
use the information gathered through the assessment to create or improve a
broader source water protection program. Some communities that get their
water from ground water wells already have drinking water protection
programs, called wellhead protection programs, where pollution prevention
measures are being implemented. If you live in such a community, you can
contact your water supplier or local government for information on how to
participate in the wellhead protection program. Again, there is funding
available through the DWSRF for community protection activities.
ter
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EPA has created several publications that help communities develop and
implement drinking water protection programs. They can be ordered
through EPA's Safe Drinking Water Hotline [1-800-426-4791] and are
also available on the Internet at: www.epa.gov/safewater/Pubs/new/
pipdws.html
A 1
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HERE YOU CAN GO FOR MORE DRINKING WATER
INFORMATION:
Hotline: EPA operates the Safe Drinking Water
Hotline [1-800-426-4791], which can answer questions
about the regulations and programs developed under the
Safe Drinking Water Act, and provide federal and state
contacts for specific information. It can also provide
information on drinking water publications.
Internet: EPA's drinking water web site
[www.epa.gov/safewater] provides information on
EPA's implementation of SDWA, the contaminants
regulated under SDWA, educational activities and
publications on drinking water, links to other drinking
water web sites and much more.
Web Sites and
National
Databases
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