United States Office of Water EPA 816-F-99-002
pub 5/13 Environmental Protection (4606) May 1999
Agency
Revisions to Drinking Water Public
Notice Regulations
What action is EPA taking? EPA is proposing to revise the general public notification
regulations for public water systems to implement new requirements enacted in the 1996 Safe
Drinking Water Act (SDWA) Amendments. The proposed regulations were signed by the
Administrator on April 27,1999 and were published in the Federal Register on May 13, 1999
(64 FR 25963). EPA is also issuing for public comment a draft Public Notification Handbook,
which will assist water systems in implementing the revised regulations. EPA has scheduled
four public meetings to take comment on the proposed regulation and draft Handbook : May 26,
1999 in Madison, Wisconsin; June 3, 1999 in Washington, D.C.; June 8-9 in Allentown,
Pennsylvania; and June 23-24 in Phoenix, Arizona. The comment period on the proposed rule
closes on July 12, 1999. Comments on the Handbook will be accepted through July 31, 1999.
The final rule and Handbook should be published in December 1999.
Why are the existing regulations being modified? EPA is required under Section 1414(c)(l)
and (c)(2) of SDWA to issue regulations to define the form, manner, frequency, and content of
public notices. Public notification regulations were first issued in 1976 and revised in 1987. The
1996 SDWA Amendments made significant changes to the public notification provisions to
better target notices for serious violations posing a short-term risk to health and to make the
existing notification process less burdensome and more effective.
What are the benefits of the revised regulation? The rule will make significant improvements
to the existing public notice process by:
• Tailoring the form, manner, and content of public notification to the health risk from each
violation.
• Encouraging water systems to use annual consumer confidence reports to give public
notice for those violations without an immediate health risk.
• Giving greater latitude to States to develop alternative programs to meet their unique
needs.
• Providing greater flexibility to public water systems to tailor the way they reach all
persons served.
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Background to Public Notification Requirements
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What is public notification? The purpose of public notification is to alert consumers in a
timely manner to potential risks to their health from violations of drinking water standards and
the steps they should take (if any) to avoid or minimize such risks. Public notification of
violations is an integral part of the public health protection and consumer right-to-know
provisions of the 1996 Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) Amendments. The proposed public
notification regulations complement the Consumer Confidence Report (CCR) regulations
published on August 19, 1998, which require community water systems to prepare and distribute
annual reports on water quality to customers.
When is a public notice required? A public water system is required'to give public notice
when it fails to comply with existing drinking water regulations, has been granted a variance or
exemption from the regulations, or is facing other situations posing a potential risk to public
health. Public water s)'stems are required to provide such notices to all persons served by the
water system.
How often do violations occur that require a public notice? In FY 1996, there were more
than 230,000 violations of drinking water standards involving over 25 percent of the 170,000
public water systems. Over 90 percent of the violations were for failure to fully meet the
monitoring or testing procedure requirements. Less than 1.5 percent of the violations in FY
1996 were for violations of standards that could result in an acute health risk from short-term
exposure.
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Kev Elements of Revised Public Notification Regulation
How does the proposed regulation work? EPA is proposing to divide violations of drinking
water standards into three tiers:
• Tier 1, for violations and situations with significant potential to have serious adverse
effects on human health as a result of short-term exposure. Notice is required within 24
hours of the violation.
• Tier 2, for other violations and situations with potential to have serious adverse effects
on human health. Notice is required within 30 days, with extension up to three months at
the discretion of the State or primacy agency.
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• Tier 3, for all other violations and situations requiring a public notice not included in Tier
1 and Tier 2. Notice is required within 12 months of the violation, and may be included
in the consumer confidence report at the option of the water system.
t
What types of violations and situations are covered under each tier? The proposal outlines
the types of violations that fall under each tier and describes the situations that require public
notification. For example, a total coliform violation where fecal coliform is present falls under
Tier 1, which requires notification within 24 hours. See Table 1 for proposed list of violation
types and situations under each tier.
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How is the public notice structured? The form, manner, and frequency of the public notice is
determined by the tier to which the violation or situation is assigned. The proposed rule requires
that public water systems include 10 elements in the content of the notice, including mandatory
health effects language for Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL) and treatment technique
violations and standard language for monitoring violations. EPA has developed samples of how
a public notice can be structured. See the sample notice below illustrating a complete notice for
a fecal coliform violation.
Implementation of the New Requirements
Which public water systems are affected by the regulation? The proposed rule will affect all
public water systems with violations of drinking water regulations. It will also require States
with primary enforcement authority to revise their approved primacy programs to adopt
regulations no less stringent than the revised EPA regulations. Under the proposal, States are
allowed to develop alternative public notification provisions related to the form and content of
the notice as long as the same type and amount of information is provided.
How is EPA helping public water systems with new requirements? EPA and the Association
of State Drinking Water Administrators (ASDWA) are working together to develop a Public
Notification Handbook to assist water systems in implementing the revised regulation. This
Handbook will provide templates for notices and other aids to help water systems develop
notices for violation situations. The draft Handbook is currently available for public review.
Copies of the proposed regulation and the draft Handbook may be obtained by calling the Safe
Drinking Water Hotline at 1-800-426-4791 or by downloading the documents from EPA's web
site (www. epa. gov/safewater).
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TABLE 1
Violations and Situations Requiring Public Notice Under Proposal
Tier 1 Public Notice - Required Within 24 Hours
• Violation of the maximum contaminant level (MCL) for total coliform,, when fecal
coliform or E. coli are present, or failure to test for fecal coliform or E. coli after the
presence of coliform bacteria is confirmed.
• Violation of the MCL for nitrate, nitrite, or combined nitrate+nitrite.
• Violation of the maximum residual disinfectant level (MRDL) for chlorine dioxide, when
one or more repeat samples taken in the distribution system exceed the MRDL, or when
required repeat samples are not taken.
• Occurrence of a waterborne disease outbreak.
• Other violations or situations with significant potential to have serious adverse effects on
human health as a result of short term exposure, as determined by the primacy agency.
Tier 2 Public Notice - Required Within 30 Days (Unless Extended to 90 Pays by State)
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• All violations of the MCL, MRDL, and treatment technique requirements not in Tier 1.
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• Violations of the monitoring requirements where the primacy agency determines that a
Tier 2 public notice is required.
• Failure to comply with the terms and conditions of any variance or exemption in place.
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Tier 3 Public Notice — Required Within 1 Year
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• Monitoring violations, unless the primacy agency determines a Tier 2 notice is required.
• Failure to comply with an established testing procedure.
• Operation under a variance granted under § 1415 or exemption granted under § 1416 of the
Safe Drinking Water Act.
• Any other violations and situations determined by the primacy agency to require a Tier 3
public notice.
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The Required Elements of a Public Notice
Fecal Coliform (Tier 1)
2) When the
violation
occurred -
5) Should--
alternate
water
supplies
be used
6) Actions
consumers
should take.
7) What is..
being done
to correct
the violation
10) Required
distribution
language ^
WARNING
Effective Immediately
People served by Oxford Water Department (this includes
Oxford as well as the cities of Cambridge, Sussex, and
Canterbury)
BOIL YOUR WATER BEFORE USING
Fecal coliform bacteria were found in your water supply on April 17.
Bring all water to a boil, let it boil for one minute, and let cool before using,
or use bottled water. Boiled or bottled water should be used for drinking,
/ making ice, brushing teeth, washing dishes, and food preparation until
further notice.
What does this mean?
Fecal coliforms and E. coli are bacteria whose presence indicates'that the
water may be contaminated with human or animal wastes. Microbes in
these wastes can cause diarrhea, cramps, nausea, headaches, or other
symptoms. They may pose a special health risk for infants, young children,^-
and people with severely compromised immune systems.
The symptoms above, however, are not caused only by organisms in
drinking water, but may be caused by other factors. If you experience any
of these symptoms and they persist, you may want to seek medical advice.
People at increased risk should seek advice about drinking water from their
health care providers.
What is the water system doing?
We are chlorinating and flushing the distribution system and conducting
additional sampling to determine the source of the problem. We are also
inspecting our disinfection systems to make sure they are working correctly.
We will inform you when tests show no bacteria and you no longer need to
boil your water. We anticipate resolving the problem within the next week.
For more information on this situation, please contact Carl O'Brien of the \
Oxford Water Department at (419) 555-4656. Guidelines on ways to lessen
the risk of infection by microbes are available from the Safe Drinking Water
Hotline at 1(800)426-4791.
If other people, such as tenants, residents, patients, students, or employees.
receive water from you, it is important that you provide this notice to them
by posting it in a conspicuous location or by direct hand or mail delivery.
1) Description
^ of the
violation
3) Potential
/ health
effects
4) The
population
at risk
8) When the
system will
return to
compliance
9) Phone
number for
more
information
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