jnnec Stales Office of Water Environmental Protection Office of Pesticides ana Agency Toxic Substances Fall 1990 &EPA National Pesticide Survey How EPA Will Use The National Pesticide Survey Results The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has completed its five-year National Survey of Pesticides in Drinking Water Wells (NPS). This fact sheet provides an overview of how EPA will use the NPS results. The results will allow EPA to understand the extent of the problem of contamination of drinking water wells from a national perspective. How Results Under the Safe Drinking Wtter Act Will Be Used Identify chemicals for future regulation (i.e., support the development of new Maximum Contaminant Levels). Identify the range of pesticide concentrations found in community water systems to help determine the feasibility of drinking water treatment. Determine appropriate monitoring requirements for public water supplies. Support analyses of cost and risk reduction impacts of new regulations on water suppliers and customers. Improve assessments by water suppliers of the vulnerability of their ground- water resources to contamination by pesticides and nitrate. Identify conditions where wellhead protection programs are needed. Identify steps that should be taken under wellhead protection programs to ^ prevent contamination of water supplies. ~> Determine whether legislative changes are needed to improve protection of public and private drinking water supplies. « Establish and maintain working relationships with the States to build and facilitate implementation of State drinking water programs related to pesticides and ground water. Under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodentlclde Act Identify candidates, set priorities, and make decisions on special reviews and restricted use, such as label restrictions. Identify pesticides for which EPA will require the registrant to conduct monitoring surveys or other studies to address concerns about the chemicals' potential to leach into ground water. NPS How EPA Will Utt Nation*! Pcst/c/d* Survey Rttuttt ------- Where to Go for More Information Identify factors that influence contamination of wells by pesticides and use the information to develop guidance for State pesticide management plans. Identify areas where full scale State management plans are required for pesticides subject to regulation under the State management plan approach. Work with States to focus State monitoring and regulation of pesticides, and State training and certification programs. Improve monitoring and environmental indicator strategies. Pollution Prevention Learn if there are some eariy warning signals to indicate where pesticide or nitrate contamination of drinking water may be a problem in the future. Use the information to set a pollution prevention strategy. Identify additional information that should be gathered by pesticide and fertilizer distributors, formulators and users to identify prevention control points and to serve as an eariy warning system for potential ground-water contamination. Research Work to reduce monitoring costs by teaming about the relationship between the ' results of one-time sampling compared to repeated sampling at the same well. Improve multimedia risk assessments of pesticide and nitrate exposures. This fact sheet is part of a series of NPS outreach materials, fact sheets and reports. The following additional fact sheets are available through EPA's Public Information Center (401 M Street SW, Washington DC 20460, 202-382-2080): Project Summary Analytical Methods Quality Assurance/ Quality Control Summary Resuffs Survey Anatyte* Fact Shaat for aach detected anafyta Survey Design G/o**ary Additional information on the Survey and on pesticides in general can be obtained from the following sources: U.S. EPA Safe Drinking Water Hotline 1-800-426-4791 On Washington, DC - 382-5533) Monday-Friday, 8:30 am to 4:30 pm Eastern Time National Pesticide Telecommunications Network 1-800-858-7378 24 hours a day U.S. EPA Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP) Docket Public Information Branch (H7506C) 401 M Street, SW Washington, DC 20460 Telephone: (703) 557-2805 Information on regulation of pesticides in drinking water Information on health effects and safe handling of pesticides Background documents for Survey (available for review) NPS How EPA Witt (/ National P»«tfc/d« Survey K ------- National Technical Information Service (NTIS) Copies of the 5285 Port Royal Road NPS Phase I Report Springfield, VA 22161 (available 1991) and (703) 487-4650 NPS Phase II Report (when available) If you are concerned about the presence of pesticides and nitrate in your private water well, contact your local or State health department. Other experts in your State environmental agency or agriculture and health department may also be helpful to you. If you receive your drinking water from a community water system and have questions about your water quality, contact your local community water system owner/operator or the State water supply agency. NPS Now EPA Will (/ Htton»l P«*tfctt« Sumy ------- U.S. EPA Regional Office Contacts HtQIOfl i (CT. ME, MA. NH. Rl, VT) II (NJ. NY. PR, VI) III (DE. DC. MD, PA. WV, VA) IV (AL. FL. GA, KY, MS, NC, SC, TN) V (IL, IN. Ml. MN, OH, Wl) VI (AR, LA. NM, OK. 7X? VII (IA. KS, MO, NE) VIII (CO, MT. ND, SD, UT, WY) IX (A2, CA, HI, NV) X (AK, ID, MM, OR; Drinking Water Water Quality Branch (617) 5654531 Drinking/Qround-Water Protection Branch (212) 264-1800 Drinking Water/Ground-Water Protection Branch (215) 5974227 Water Quality Management Branch (404) 347-2126 Sale Drinking Water Branch (312) 353-2151 Water Quality Management Branch (214) 655-7135 Drinking Water Branch (913)551-7032 Drinking Water Branch (303) 293-1430 Drinking Water Branch (415) 465-2110 Drinking Water Branch (208)442-4082 Peeileldee Office of Peeticidee and Toxic Subetancee (617) 56S3273 PeeticidM and Toxic Subetancea Branch (212) 340-6765 Toxic* and Peeticide* Branch (215)597-6596 PeeticidM and Toxice Subetancea Branch (404) 347-5201 Pesticide* and Toxic Subetancea Branch (312)666-6006 Peeticidea and Toxice Branch (214) 655-7239 Toxic* and Peeticidee Branch (913) 551-7020 Toxic Substance* Branch (303) 293-1730 Peeticidea and Toxic* Branch (415)556-5628 Peeticidee and Toxic Subetancee Branch (206)442-1196 Ground Water Ground-Water Management and Water Supply Branch (617) 565-3610 Drinking/Ground-Water Protect on Branch (212)264-1800 Drinking Water/Ground-Water Protection Branch (215) 597-6227 Ground-Water Protection Branch (404) 347-3666 Office of Ground Water (312) 886-1490 Water Quality Management Branch (214) 655-7135 Office of Ground-Water Protection (913) 551-7033 Ground-Water Branch (303) 293-1796 Water Quality Planning and Standard* Branch (415) 465-2181 Drinking Water Branch (206)442-4092 WPS How EPA wm (/ NfOontl P**0ddo Survey f--. f» ------- |