United States     •           Office of Water               EPA 816/F-97-014
                   Environmental Protection         (4606)                     October 1997
                   Agency

 &EPA   SAFE DRINKING  WATER HOTLINE

                                  1-800-426-4791

 Hours of Operation:             Monday through Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.,
                               Eastern Time, excluding Federal holidays
 International Callers:            1-703-285-1093
 Fax Number:                   1-703-285-1101
 E-Mail Address:                hotline-sdwa@epamail.epa.gov
. EPA Homepage:     .    .       http://www.epa.gov
 Drinking Water Homepage:      http://www.epa.gov/OGWDW

 Background:

 The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Safe Drinking Water Hotline is -available to help
 the public, drinking water stakeholders, and state and local officials understand the regulations
 and programs developed in response to the Safe Drinking  Water Act (as amended in 1986 and
 1996). This includes information about EPA's drinking water regulations, source water
 protection programs, guidance, and public education materials. Specifically, hotline staff can:

    Clarify drinking water regulations and provide appropriate Federal Register and Code of
    Federal Regulation citations, explain EPA's policies and guidelines, and provide updates on
    upcoming rules and public meetings;

    Provide information on EPA source water protection  programs and ground water programs,
    including source water assessments, wellhead protection, sole source aquifer protection, and
    aspects of the underground injection control program;

    Provide information on the availability of information such as brochures for the public,
    technical publications, guidance documents, and regulations regarding'drinking water and
    • ground water, and take orders for documents available from EPA;

    Provide federal, state, and local contacts for specific information on local drinking water
    conditions, bottled water, home water treatment units, and ground water protection; and,

    Provide state contacts for EPA-certified labs that test drinking water. Each state lab, -
    certification officer can provide callers with certified labs in their area,

 Staffing:

 The hotline is operated by LAB AT-ANDERSON INCORPORATED under contract to EPA's
 Office of Ground Water and Drinking Water. The Information Specialists have expert .knowledge
 of EPA's drinking water regulations and ground water programs.

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