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SAFE DRINKING WATER ACT • 1974-2004 • PROTECT OUR HEALTH FROM SOURCE TO TAP
Meeting Drinking Water Standards
Water systems, states, and the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency (US EPA) each have a role in
monitoring and assuring drinking water quality. The
Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) requires US EPA to set
drinking water standards that public water systems (PWS)
(providing drinking water to the public) must meet (see
fact sheet on standards for more details. US EPA has set
standards for 90 contaminants. Under SDWA, states that
meet certain requirements, including setting regulations
that are at least as stringent as US EPA's, may apply
for, and receive primary enforcement authority, or
primacy. 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
primacy.
Monitoring Drinking Water
Quality
Individual water systems submit
samples of their water for laboratory
testing (monitoring) to verify that
the water they provide to the public meets all federal
and state standards. How often and where samples are
taken varies from system to system and contaminant to
contaminant.
US EPA in regulations specify the methods that must be
used to analyze drinking water samples. States or US
EPA certify the laboratories that conduct the analyses.
Requirements vary depending on the contaminant group,
whether the water system uses ground water or surface
water, and the number of people served. Water systems
must also test for certain contaminants for which there
are no current standards. These occurrence data are
used to help determine which contaminants should be
regulated by new standards, and the levels of those
standards.
Who is Protected
People whose water comes from public water systems,
which serve most cities and towns, schools, businesses,
campgrounds, and shopping malls, are protected by
drinking water standards. The 10 percent of Americans
whose water comes from private wells (individual
wells serving fewer than 25 persons) are not required
to be protected by these federal standards. People
with private wells are responsible for making sure
that their own drinking water is safe (www.epa.gov/
safewafer/pnvafewe//s). Some states do set standards
for private wells, so well owners should check their state
requirements. US EPA
recommends testing
your water once per
year to see if it meets
federal and state
standards. Call the
Safe Drinking Water
Hotline at 1-800-
426-4791 or see the
Safewater home page
at www.epa.gov/
safewafer/faq/sco.
html to find out how to
get a list of certified
testing labs in your state.
Bottled Water
Bottled water is regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug
Administration (FDA) as a food product, and is required
to meet the same standards that US EPA sets for tap
water.
Compliance
Public water systems are responsible for complying
with all regulations, including monitoring, reporting,
performing treatment techniques, record keeping, and
public notice requirements. States, in turn, keep the data
for systems in the files in state data systems. States report
violations of Maximum Contaminant Levels and treatment
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techniques, as well as monitoring violations, to US EPA.
Compliance Assistance
States and US EPA engage in a variety of activities to
help water systems remain in, or return to, compliance.
These activities include: visiting water systems and
reviewing their facilities, equipment, and operations;
helping systems invest in preventive measures; providing
financial assistance for system improvements; loaning
specialized monitoring equipment; conducting training
sessions; holding public information meetings; and
publishing newsletters and bulletins.
US EPA also participates with other organizations in the
Local Government Environmental Assistance Network
(LGEAN), which provides environmental management,
planning, and regulatory information for local
government elected and appointed officials, managers,
and staff. For more information on these resources, see
www. lgecm.org.
Enforcement
directly to a formal action.
There are many types of formal enforcement actions.
Administrative orders, either with or without penalty, are
issued by an executive agency of the state or federal
government. Judicial actions include civil and criminal
court cases.
For More Information
To learn more about drinking water monitoring,
compliance, and enforcement, call the Safe Drinking
Water Hotline at 1-800-426-4791 or visit the
safewater web site at www.epa.gov/safewater.
States and US EPA maintain a formal enforcement
program to ensure that violations are promptly addressed
and that public health is protected. As a condition of
primacy, states are required to have formal enforcement
authority. The 1996 SDWA amendments also require that
primacy states have administrative penalty authority.
In taking enforcement actions, states and US EPA
generally follow an enforcement management system or
policy. The first response to a violation is generally an
informal action (e.g., technical assistance or reminder
letter). When a PWS does not return to compliance or
incurs additional violations, formal enforcement action
should be initiated. When violations pose an immediate
risk to public health, states or US EPA often proceed
Office of Water (4606) www.epa.gov/safewater
EPA816-F-04-031 June 2004
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