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A* Understanding
1 | the Safe Drinking Water Act
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SAFE DRINKING WATER ACT • 1974-2004 • PROTECT OUR HEALTH FROM SOURCE TO TAP
The Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) was
originally passed by Congress in 1974 to protect
public health by regulating the nation's public drinking
water supply.
The law was amended in 1986 and 1996 and requires
many actions to protect drinking water and its
sources—rivers, lakes, reservoirs, springs, and ground
water wells. (SDWA does not regulate private wells
which serve fewer than 25 individuals.)
SDWA authorizes the United States Environmental
Protection Agency (US EPA) to set national health-
All public water systems must have at least 15
service connections or serve at least 25 people per
day for 60 days of the year.
Drinking water standards apply to water systems
differently based on their type and size:
Community Water System
re are approximately
rstem that serves the
ost residences including
homes, apartments, and condominiums in cities,
^ll towns, and mobile home parks are served by
rnunitv Water Systems.
Non-Community Water System
lie water
but does not serve the
are two types of non-
Non-Transient Non-Community Water System
water
system that serves the same people more than six
months per year, but not year-round, for example,
a school with its own water supply is considered a
non-transient system.
Transient non-community water system
water
system that serves the public but not the same
individuals for more than six months, for example,
a rest area or campground may be considered a
transient water system.
based standards for drinking water to protect against
both naturally-occurring and man-made contaminants
that may be found in drinking water. US EPA, states,
and water systems then work together to make sure
that these standards are met.
lions of Americans receive high quality drinking
water every day from their public water systems, (which
may be publicly or privately owned). Nonetheless,
drinking water safety cannot be taken for granted.
There are a number of threats to drinking water:
improperly disposed of chemicals; animal wastes;
pesticides; human threats; wastes injected
underground; and naturally-occurring substances can
all contaminate drinking water.
Likewise, drinking water that is not properly treated
or disinfected, or which travels through an improperly
maintained distribution system, may also pose a health
risk.
Originally, SDWA focused primarily on treatment as
the means of providing safe drinking water at the tap.
The 1996 amendments greatly enhanced the existing
law by recognizing source water protection, operator
training, funding for water system improvements, and
public information as important components of safe
drinking water. This approach ensures the quality of
drinking water by protecting it from source to tap.
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1996 SDWA Amendment Highlights:
Consumer Confidence Reports
tumty
iute
r they
provide, including information on detected
contaminants, possible health effects, and the
water's source.
Cost-Benefit Analysis
JS EPA must conduct a
t analysis for every new
ne whether the benefits of
ndard justify the costs.
Drinking Water State Revolving Fund
o help systems assess an
ates
make
ements
t their
Microbial Contaminants and Disinfectioi
Byproducts
gthen
• microbial contaminants,
ptosporidium, while strengthening
control over the byproducts of chemical
disinfection. The Stage 1 Disinfectants and
Disinfection Byproducts Rule and the Interim
Enhanced Surface Water Treatment Rule
Operator Certification
ter system
ified to ensure that
guidelines in February 1999 specifying
minimum standards for the certification and
recertif ication of the operators of community
and non-transient, noncommunity water
systems. These guidelines apply to state
Operator Certification Programs. All states
are currently implementing EPA-approved
operator certification programs.
ght to
know what is in their drinking water, where
it comes from, how it is treated, and how to
help protect it. US EPA distributes public
information materials (through its Safe
Drinking Water Hotline, Safewater web site,
and Water Resource Center] and holds public
meetings, working with states, tribes, water
systems, and environmental and civic groups,
to encourage public involvement.
imallW
ater Systems
mall water system
eration and resource;
under SDWA, to make sure they have the
managerial, financial, and technical ability to
comply with drinking water standards.
Source Water Assessment Programs
reservoirs, springs, and ground water wells]
to identify significant potential sources
of contamination and to determine how
susceptible the sources are to these threats.
'
Roles and Responsibilities:
SDWA applies to every public water system in
the United States. There are currently more than
1 70,000 public water systems providing water to
almost all Americans at some time in their lives. The
responsibility for making sure these public water
systems provide safe drinking water is divided among
US EPA, states, tribes, water systems, and the public.
SDWA provides a framework in which these parties
work together to protect this valuable resource.
US EPA sets national standards for drinking water
based on sound science to protect against health
risks, considering available technology and costs.
These National Primary Drinking Water Regulations
set enforceable maximum contaminant levels for
particular contaminants in drinking water or required
ways to treat
water to remove
contaminants.
Each standard
also includes
requirements for
water systems
to test for
contaminants
in the water
to make su re
standards are
ach ieved . In
addition to
setting these
standards, US
EPA provides
guidance,
assistance,
and public
information
about drinking
water, collects
drinking water data, and oversees state drinking water
programs.
The most direct oversight of water systems is
conducted by state drinking water programs. States
can apply to US EPA for "primacy," the authority to
implement SDWA within their jurisdictions, if they
can show that they will adopt standards at least as
stringent as US EPA's and make sure water systems
meet these standards. All states and territories, except
Wyoming and the District of Columbia, have received
primacy. While no Indian tribe has yet applied for
and received primacy, four tribes currently receive
"treatment as a state" status, and are eligible for
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primacy. States, or US EPA acting as a primacy agent,
make sure water systems test for contaminants, review
plans for water system improvements, conduct on-site
inspections and sanitary surveys, provide training and
technical assistance, and take action against water
systems not meeting standards.
To ensure that drinking water is safe, SDWA sets up
multiple barriers against pollution. These barriers
include: source water protection, treatment, distribution
system integrity, and public information. Public water
systems are responsible for ensuring that contaminants
in tap water do not exceed the standards. Water systems
treat the water, and must test their water frequently
for specified contaminants and report the results to
states. If a water system is not meeting these standards,
it is the water supplier's responsibility to notify its
customers. Many water suppliers now are also required
to prepare annual reports for their customers. The
public is responsible for helping local water suppliers
to set priorities, make decisions on funding and system
improvements, and establish programs to protect drinking
water sources. Water systems across the nation rely on
citizen advisory committees, rate boards, volunteers, and
civic leaders to actively protect this resource in every
community in America.
Protection & Prevention:
Essential components of safe drinking water include
protection and prevention. States and water suppliers
must conduct assessments of water sources to see
where they may be vulnerable to contamination. Water
systems may also voluntarily adopt programs to protect
their watershed or wellhead, and states can use legal
authorities from other laws to prevent pollution. SDWA
mandates that states have programs
to certify water system operators and
make sure that new water systems
have the technical, financial, and
managerial capacity to provide safe
drinking water. SDWA also sets a
framework for the Underground
Injection Control (UIC) program
to control the injection of wastes
into ground water. US EPA and
states implement the UIC program,
which sets standards for safe waste
injection practices and bans certain
types of injection altogether. All of
these programs help prevent the
contamination of drinking water.
US EPA sets primary drinking water
standards through a three-step process:
adversely affect public health and occur in drinking
water with a frequency and at levels that pose a
threat to public health. US EPA identifies these
contaminants for further study, and determines
contaminants to potentially regulate. Second, US
EPA determines a maximum contaminant level goal
for contaminants it decides to regulate. This goal is
the level of a contaminant in drinking water below
which there is no known or expected risk to health.
These goals allow for a margin of safety . Third,
US EPA specifies a maximum contaminant level,
the maximum permissible level of a contaminant in
drinking water which is delivered to any user of a
public water system. These levels are enforceable
standards, and are set as close to the goals
as feasible. SDWA defines feasible as the level
that may be achieved with the use of the best
technology, treatment techniques, and other means
which US EPA finds (after examination for efficiency
under field conditions] are available, taking cost
into consideration. When it is not economically or
technically feasible to set a maximum level, or when
there is no reliable or economic method to detect
contaminants in the water, US EPA instead sets a
required Treatment Technique which specifies a way
to treat the water to remove contaminants.
Setting National Drinking Water
Standards:
US EPA sets national standards for tap water which help
ensure consistent quality in our nation's water supply.
US EPA prioritizes contaminants for potential regulation
based on risk and how often they occur in water supplies.
(To aid in this effort, certain water systems monitor
for the presence of
contaminants for which
no national standards
currently exist and
collect information
on their occurrence).
US EPA sets a health
goal based on risk
(including risks to the
most sensitive people,
e.g., infants, children,
pregnant women,
the elderly, and the
immu no-compromised).
US EPA then sets a
legal limit for the contaminant in drinking water or a
required treatment technique—this limit or treatment
technique is set to be as close to the health goal as
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feasible. US EPA also performs a cost-benefit analysis
and obtains input from interested parties when setting
standards. US EPA is currently evaluating the risks
from several specific health concerns, including:
microbial contaminants (e.g., Crypfospon'dium); the
byproducts of drinking water disinfection; radon;
arsenic; and water systems that don't currently
disinfect their water but get it from a potentially
vulnerable ground water source.
Funding and Assistance:
US EPA provides grants to implement
state drinking water programs, and to
help each state set up a special fund to
assist public water systems in financing
the costs of improvements (called the
drinking water state revolving fund).
Small water systems are given special
consideration, since small systems
may have a more difficult time paying
for system improvements due to their
smaller customer base. Accordingly,
US EPA and states provide them with
extra assistance (including training
and funding) as well as allowing, on
a caseby- case basis, alternate water
treatments that are less expensive, but
still protective of public health.
Compliance and Enforcement:
National drinking water standards are legally
enforceable, which means that both US EPA and states
can take enforcement actions against water systems
not meeting safety standards. US EPA and states may
issue administrative orders, take legal actions, or
fine utilities. US EPA and states also work to increase
water systems, understanding of, and compliance with,
standards.
Public Information:
SDWA recognizes that since everyone drinks water,
everyone has the right to know what's in it and
where it comes from. All water suppliers must notify
consumers quickly when there is a
serious problem with water quality.
Water systems serving the same people
year-round must provide annual
consumer confidence reports on the
source and quality of their tap water.
States and US EPA must prepare annual
summary reports of water system
compliance with drinking water safety
standards and make these reports
available to the public. The public
must have a chance to be involved in
developing source water assessment
programs, state plans to use drinking
water state revolving loan funds, state
capacity development plans, and state
operator certification programs.
For More Information:
To learn more about the Safe Drinking Water Act or
drinking water in general, call the Safe Drinking Water
Hotline at 1-800-426-4791, or visit US EPA's Office
of Ground Water and Drinking Water web site: www.
epa.gov/safevvafer.
Office of Water (4606)
www.epa.gov/safewater
EPA 816-F-04-030 June 2004
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