United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Office of
Public Affairs (A-107)
Washington DC 20460
December 1986
&EPA
You and Your
Drinking Water
Reprinted from EPA Journal
Volume 12, Number 7, September 1986
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Drinking Water in America:
An Overview
"When the well's dry, we know the worth
of water"- Ben Franklin, Poor Richard's Almanac
Safe drinking water is a blessing many
Americans take for granted. It's not
hard to see why. What could be easier
than turning on the tap and getting
gallons of drinkable water? But behind
each gallon, behind each drop, is the
unceasing effort of scientists, engineers,
legislators, water plant operators, and
regulatory officials. It is their mission to
keep this precious resource clear, clean,
and—above all—safe.
Our drinking water comes from two
different categories of untreated water.
About half comes from rivers, streams,
and other forms of "surface" water. The
other half comes from reserves of water
hidden beneath the earth in areas
known as "aquifers." Protection of both
surface and ground water is vital if we
are to have drinking water that is not
only safe but plentiful.
Protection at the Source
Concern over the quality of our surface
and ground-water supplies is a function
of geography as well as the effects of
human activity. Water moves
constantly, often passing from areas
beneath the ground to the surface, and
vice versa. The cycles of precipitation
and evaporation continue ceaselessly,
day in and day out.
Various natural processes—physical,
chemical, and biological—occur as
water moves above, on, and below the
earth's surface. These processes all, to a
greater or lesser extent, affect the quality
of our water resources. Exactly what
effect these processes have is
determined by the type and extent of
the contact the water has with rock,
soil, vegetation, and other substances,
both soluble and insoluble.
Several different kinds of
contamination can result from natural
causes. Undissolved material—known as
"suspended matter"—shows up
frequently in untreated water, as do
dissolved minerals and salts, such as
sulfates, chlorides, and nitrates. A
well-known toxic metal, arsenic, occurs
naturally as an impurity in various
minerals and in the ores of certain
commercially mined metals. If
untreated, arsenic can cause liver and
kidney damage when it gets mixed into
drinking water supplies.
Another natural contaminant
controllable with modern technology is
fluoride. This inorganic chemical,
which is the seventeenth most abundant
substance in the earth's crust, can cause
skeletal damage as well as a brownish
discoloration of the teeth known as
"fluorisis." Fortunately, modern
technology is well equipped to manage
fluoride and other forms of natural
drinking water pollutants.
Today's treatment techniques are also
effective against radionuclides.
Radionuclides include naturally
occurring minerals such as radium and
uranium as well as the radioactive gas
known as radon. Radon is a particular
concern at the present time. This
colorless, odorless, tasteless gas poses
unique problems. The gas is a decay
product of uranium deposits located in
various regions of the United States. It
enters American homes dissolved in
drinking water. When that water is
heated or agitated in a shower or
washing machine, it becomes a
breathable drinking water contaminant
that may, in the opinion of scientists,
greatly increase the risk of lung cancer.
EPA is now considering the proposal of
formal controls on radon and uranium.
People, too, can have an adverse
effect on water quality. Human organic
waste has, throughout most of recorded
history, posed the greatest threat to the
safety of drinking water. Typhoid and
cholera epidemics were commonplace
for centuries. Cholera was brought
under control by the early 1870s, but
typhoid was still killing approximately
28,000 Americans a year at the turn of
the century.
Typhoid, cholera, and other
water-borne infectious diseases could
not be fully conquered until U.S.
citizens backed serious efforts to
improve the quality of our nation's
drinking water. Water systems
throughout the U.S. adopted
chlorination and filtration, sometimes
against opposition, and these methods
have been remarkably successful.
Pollutants other than bacteria are
posing new challenges to the guardians
of our drinking water: contaminants
such as viruses, protozoa, and toxic
chemicals. One chlorine-resistant
protozoan, Giordia, has caused 38
outbreaks of gastro-intestinal illness that
have infected 20,000 people since 1972.
Overall, waterborne illnesses afflicted
85,875 Americans from 1971 to 1982.
An analysis of these cases showed
that 49 percent were the result of
treatment deficiencies. Nearly one-third
were found to stem from defective
distribution systems. Surprisingly, these
figures represent a slight increase over
previous years, but most experts
attribute this seeming increase simply to
more active surveillance.
Whatever their cause—or trend—these
figures are clearly justification for
sustained vigilance. This is especially
true in view of the emergence in recent
years of a whole new group of
man-made drinking water contaminants.
Over 60,000 toxic chemicals are now
being used by various segments of U.S.
industry and agriculture. These
substances range from industrial
solvents and pesticides to cleaning
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• :
In Boston in 1896, crews work to Joy
water pipes under Boston Common. In
some cities in the eastern U.S.,
corrosion has causetl old water pipes to
leak, allowing treated wafer to esca]
and contaminants to enter.
preparations and septic tank degreasers.
When used or discarded improperly,
these chemicals can pollute ground and
surface waters used as sources of
drinking water.
Subsurface activities can also cause
problems. Mining operations, the
injection of waste chemicals and brines,
and the storage of substances in
underground tanks have all been linked
to the contamination of ground and
surface water.
Not all problems of drinking water
quality originate with the surface or
ground-water supplies. Sometimes
contamination can occur during the
treatment process itself. In other cases,
it can occur in transit from the
treatment plant to your home.
Certain disinfectants used to purify
water can create potentially hazardous
by-products. A good example is
chlorine, which has for many years been
the major disinfectant used at U.S.
drinking water treatment plants, In the
late 1970s, scientists at EPA and in
Europe discovered that chlorine can
react with natural and man-made
chemicals in water to create by-products
known as trihalornethanes. One of these
by-products—chloroform—has been
proved to cause cancer when
administered in large doses to
laboratory mice. Other disinfectants
have also been found to generate
undesirable by-products.
After purified water leaves treatment
plants, it enters pipes and conduits that
may themselves be defective or
contaminated. Corrosion by-products
from rusting pipes can pollute treated
water. So can bacteria and other
growths. In some of the older eastern
cities, as much as 40 percent of treated
drinking water is lost through these
leaks caused by corrosion.
Contaminants can enter carefully
purified drinking water through these
leaks. Furthermore, water passing
through lead or lead-soldered pipes can
become contaminated with lead, one of
the most harmful of metals.
Protection at the Tap
The Safe Drinking Water Act sets a very
exacting standard for EPA to follow: it
requires the Agency to set primary
drinking water regulations for any
pollutants that "may" have an adverse
effect on human health. In other words,
the intent of the law is preventive as
well as reactive. EPA is responsible not
only for eliminating demonstrated
hazards, but also for preventing
potential adverse health effects.
The Agency is charged witli setting
contaminant levels at which "no known
or anticipated adverse effects on the
health of persons occur and which
allows an adequate margin of saletv."
But the Safe Drinking Water Act also
specifies that those levels must be
technically "feasible," taking cost into
account— that is, achievable in the real
world of locally operated public water
systems.
Today, as a result of the Sate Drinking
Water Act of 1974, the standards
governing the treatment of drinking
water in the; I'.S. are more rigorous and
uniform than they wore a decade ago.
As a matter of fact, drinking water has
reached a level of regulation in the U.S.
stricter than almost any place in the
world. Coining years will make
measures designed to protect our
drinking water oven more rigorous, as a
result of the !!)«(> amendments to the
Safe Drinking Water Act.
Before we look more closely at what's
been accomplished in the past decade—
and what lies ahead in the next few
years—let's pause to reflect on the
broader outlines of progress toward
safer drinking water both in the United
States and elsewhere in the world, o
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Water, Water Everywhere
Evaporation
peptic Tank/
1 Cesspool
1 Discharge
Injection Well
or Disposal
Discharge or
Injection,
The human body is mostly water:
55 to 65 percent water for women,
65 to 75 percent water for men.
People can survive without food
for two months or more, but no
one can survive without water for
more than a few days.
Only one percent of the water on
Earth is fresh and accessible for
human use. The remaining 99
percent is either unusable brine or
ice.
Every day 4.2 trillion gallons of
precipitation fall on the U.S. More
than half of this huge quantity of
water evaporates: 2800 billion
gallons. A sizable portion—1200
billion gallons—is carried by rivers
and streams across the U.S. border
to Canada or Mexico, or out into
the ocean. About 61 billion gallons
soak into U.S. aquifers.
The U.S. has 2 million miles of
streams and over 30 million acres
of lakes and reservoirs. In
addition, our country has untold
huge reserves of fresh water in
underground aquifers: 50 times
more, in fact, than our supply of
surface water.
Ground water supplies over 100
million people—about 50 percent
of all Americans—with their
drinking water.
The U.S. withdraws about 90
billion gallons of ground water
every day for all uses. This
includes 12 billion gallons per day
for public water supply.
Each day, public water systems
supply every person in the United
States with approximately 160
gallons of clean water.
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Landfill, Dump or Refuse ffile
Ocean Evaporation
Water Table Aquifer
-~
Confining Zone
^•••••••Unintentional Input
Artesian Aquifer (Saline)
The hydrologic cycle and sources
of ground-water contamination
-Ground Water Movement
i Intentional Input
The world has a vast quantity of
water: 326 trillion gallons. That
amount of water remains constant,
but the various forms it takes are
constantly changing.
The same water recirculates over
and over again: first evaporating,
then condensing, then falling to
the earth again as rain or snow.
This precipitation replenishes
supplies of surface and ground
water. The pull of gravity draws
the water down to coastal areas
and the ocean—where it
evaporates and sets the cycle in
motion once again.
Sources of Drinking Water
Before Treatment
Natural minerals and salts
Decay products of radon, radium, and
uranium
Human and animal organic waste
Defective storage tanks
Leaking hazardous waste landfills,
ponds, and pits
Intrusion of salt water into depleted
aquifers near the seashore
Agricultural run-off (fertilizers,
pesticides, etc.)
Surface run-off (overflowing storm
Contamination
sewers, rainwater from oil-slicked or
salt-treated highways, etc.]
Underground injection of industrial waste
During Treatment
Disinfection by-products
Other additives
After Treatment
Corrosion of piping materials, including
lead and asbestos
Bacteria and dirt from leaking pipes
Cross connections (incorrect pressure
gradients that can suck polluted water
into pipes instead of pushing it out)
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A Decade of Achievement:
Accomplishments Under the
Safe Drinking Water Act of 1974
«T~^\angerous" water According to a
LJ study completed in 1970, that's
what an estimated 360,000 Americans
were drinking. According to the same
study, while 59 percent of the U.S.
public was drinking "good" water, an
alarming 41 percent was drinking
"inferior" water. Fifty-six percent of
water systems, especially smaller ones,
were not constructed or operating
properly. Seventy-seven percent of
water plant operators lacked sufficient
training in microbiology, and 79 percent
of water systems had not been inspected
by federal officials in over two years.
With the exception of limited
regulations governing water supplies
serving interstate carriers, the United
States had no enforceable national
standards for drinking water. Each state
set its own standards, and these varied
in range and rigor from state to state.
This was the situation in 1972 when
the Clean Water Act became law. The
United Stales set 1983 as its goal for
ensuring that all surface water would be
"fishable and swimmable." In 1974,
with passage of the Safe Drinking Water
Act, "drinkable" water joined "fishable
and swimmable" water on the national
agenda. Over the past ten years, the U.S.
government has spent approximately
$42 billion in pursuit of these goals.
The first regulations under the Safe
Drinking Water Act took effect in 1977.
Unfortunately, there is no benchmark
data from that year, so it is hard to
quantify the exact impact the law has
had. But it is clear that substantial
progress has been made over the past
ten years.
The enforcement universe of the Safe
Drinking Water Act consists of the
58,000 community water supply
systems in the United States that serve
25 or more people, or have 15 or more
service connections. Also subject to the
Safe Drinking Water Act are
approximately 160,000 non-residential
water suppliers.
Water from both these sources reaches
the drinking glasses of 200 million
Americans—83 percent of the U.S.
population.
Today 87 percent of these 58,000
water systems in the United States are
in compliance with Safe Drinking Water
Act maximum contaminant levels
(MCLs). MCL standards are laid out in
the regulations that EPA has
promulgated over the past decade for 26
important drinking water pollutants:
two microbiological contaminants, four
radionuclides, 10 organic chemicals,
and 10 inorganic chemicals.
During the same period, EPA has set
sodium monitoring and reporting
requirements to deal with the problem
of salt in drinking water, as well as
monitoring and distribution system
composition requirements for corrosion.
Responsibility for enforcing these
standards originally resided with EPA.
But 95 percent of the states have
qualified for what is known as
"primacy" in the enforcement of
EPA-promulgated maximum
contaminant levels. Primacy means
responsibility for enforcing standards at
least as stringent as those set by EPA.
As of August, 1986, only the District of
Columbia and the states of Wyoming
and Indiana do not yet have Safe
Drinking Water Act primacy.
Recent data show that the states are
rising to the challenge of their
enforcement responsibilities. In fiscal
year 1985, 72 percent of all public water
systems met EPA's monitoring and
reporting requirements. Approximately
89 percent of all public water systems
met all national microbiological MCL
standards, while nearly 95 percent were
in full compliance with turbidity MCLs.
Fewer than three percent of water
systems were found to be "persistent
violators" of turbidity and
microbiological MCL requirements. A
persistent violator is one who has been
out of compliance with federal
standards for four months or longer
during the year.
EPA does more than simply
promulgate drinking water standards for
states to enforce. The Agency also tries
to help the states become more effective
in exercising primacy. EPA has awarded
grants to many states for the purpose of
improving their testing and analytical
capabilities. In addition, the Agency has
expanded programs to train and certify
water system operators.
EPA has also sponsored research into
many different aspects of drinking water
pollution, including important research
on organic chemicals and radionuclides.
One of the most significant EPA-funded
research initiatives uncovered the
problem of trihalomethane (THM)
contamination. Further EPA action
helped to bring this potentially
dangerous group of chlorination
by-products under control. THMs are
now being monitored and regulated by
approximately 93 percent of U.S.
surface water systems.
EPA is also responsible for ensuring
that its own officials and those of states
with "primacy" notify the public in the
event that contaminant levels exceed
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~*
A water treatment operator opens a
drain vaJve for a settling basin. EPA has
expanded programs to train and certify
water system operators.
federal water quality standards. These
notices of violation must explain the
health significance of the violation in
non-technical terms. This important
requirement is a keystone of EPA's
efforts to assure compliance with the
national drinking water regulations and
to protect public health. It also fosters
awareness of the importance of safe
drinking water and encourages the
public to assist in solving water quality
problems. Q
Other Laws Protecting
Drinking Water Supplies
• The Clean Water Act
sets water quality standards for all
significant bodies of surface water,
requires sewage treatment, and
limits the amount of industrial
effluents that can be discharged
into the nation's surface waters.
• Under the Resource
Conservation and Recovery Act
(RCRA), EPA has developed
"cradle to grave" regulations
governing the generation, storage,
transport, treatment, and disposal
of hazardous wastes. RCRA gives
EPA the power to protect
all sources of ground water from
contamination by hazardous waste.
This law also prohibits pollution
of surface water and air by
hazardous waste sites.
• The Comprehensive
Environmental Response,
Compensation, and Liability Act
(CERCLA), better known as
"Superfund," is used to clean up
existing hazardous waste sites thai
pose a threat to water or other
resources.
• The Federal Insecticide,
Fungicide, and Rodcnticide Act
(FIFRA) and the Toxic Substances
Control Act (TSCA) give EPA the
power to regulate pesticides and
toxic substances that may have an
adverse effect on the environment,
including ground water and other
sources of drinking water.
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Drinking Water Treatment Process
Typical Drinking Water Treatment Process
COAGULA JION & FLOCCULATON
Who Keeps
Your
Water Safe
Drinking
Local Water Systems:
• Site wells and intakes (pipes
that suck water into drinking water
systems)
• Treat water to meet standards
• Sample water and maintain test
records
• Notify the public: if problems
arise
Local Pollution Control Agencies:
• Protect surface water
• Protect ground water from
contamination by controlling
contaminating sources
• Monitor ground water and
detect contaminants
State Drinking Water Programs:
• 95 percent of the states have
primary enforcement
responsibility, obtained by
establishing state drinking water
standards at least as stringent as
the national standards
• Train staff of local water
systems
• Inspect systems and maintain
records
• Take enforcement action against
systems that violate monitoring
and reporting regulations or
drinking water standards
• Regulate underground injection
wells if primacy in that sphere has
been granted by EPA
State Ground-Water Protection
Agencies:
• Develop comprehensive
ground-water protection strategies
• Develop programs and laws to
control contaminating sources and
activities
• Conduct statewide monitoring of
ground water
EPA Drinking Water Program:
• Retains primary enforcement
responsibility in three areas that
have not attained "primacy":
Wyoming, Indiana, and the District
of Columbia.
• Sets primary and secondary
drinking water standards
• Establishes monitoring and
reporting requirements
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What Happens to Your Water Before It Comes Out of the Faucet?
1 EPA and the states work to
protect the quality of ground and
surface water needed to keep the
United States supplied with safe
drinking water.
2 Water is moved from surface and
ground-water sources to storage
areas. Sometimes copper sulfate is
added to control algae growth.
3 Water is strained to remove
debris.
4 A chemical such as alum is
added to coagulate particles.
5 Water moves slowly through
sedimentation basins while solid
particles sink to the bottom.
6 Water then flows through beds of
gravel and sand for final filtering.
7 Chlorine or other disinfectants
are added as a final treatment to
kill bacteria.
8 Water is then tested for purity to
ensure that it does not contain any
quantities of pollutants in excess
of EPA's Maximum Contaminant
Levels.
CHLORINATOR
9 Treated water goes to reservoirs
or holding tanks. In some cases, it
goes directly into the water
system.
10 Drinking water comes gushing
out of the faucet in your kitchen or
bathroom.
n
FINISHED WA TER
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ion.
• Provides funds and technical
assistance to the states, including
Health Advisories on unregulated
contaminants; steps in to help
during emergencies
• Sets rules for operation of
underground injection wells
• Conducts research
EPA Ground-Water Protection
Program:
• Manages EPA Ground-Water
Protection Strategy
• Assists states in developing
comprehensive programs
• Focuses EPA programs on
ground water
• Administers wellhead protection
and sole-source aquifer protection
programs
You, the Citizen:
• Have the right to know who is
supplying your water, where it
comes from, how it is treated, how
it is tested, and what its quality
level actually is
• When necessary, lend political
and financial support to efforts to
improve the quality of drinking
water
• Should follow results of
drinking water tests in your area;
attend public hearings; and keep
track of other developments
relating to the quality of your
drinking water
• Should exercise your right to
bring civil suits when your local
water system, your state, or your
federal officials fail to do their job
• Should be aware of potential
sources of ground and surface
contamination; also, support
efforts aimed at protecting these
vital resources
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View of a water filtration plant in Maryland.
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Drinking Water Milestones
We have come a long way since the
days when water-borne diseases such as
cholera and typhoid were deadly killers.
To appreciate what vast progress has
been made toward safer drinking water,
it helps to take a backward glance:
2000 BC: Sanskrit manuscript observes
that "It is good to keep water in copper
vessels, to expose it to sunlight, and
filter it through charcoal."
Circa 400 BC: Hippocrates emphasizes
the importance of water quality to
health and recommends the boiling and
straining of rainwater.
1832 AD: The first municipal water
filtration works open in Paisley,
Scotland.
1849: Dr. John Snow discovers that the
victims of a cholera outbreak in London
have all used water from the same
contaminated well in Broad Street.
1877-1882: Louis Pasteur develops the
theory that disease is spread by germs.
1882: Filtration of London drinking
water begins.
1890s: The Lawrence Experiment
Station of the Massachusetts Board of
Health discovers that slow sand
filtration of water reduces the death rato
from typhoid by 79 percent.
Late 1890s: The Louisville Water
Company innovates by combining
coagulation with rapid sand filtration.
This treatment technique eliminates
turbidity and removes 99 percent of
bacteria from water.
1908: Chlorination is introduced at U.S.
water treatment plants. This
inexpensive treatment method produces
water 10 times purer than filtered water.
In this 19th century woodcut, a cholera
victim lies unattended in the street. In
the background, men carry the casket of
another victim to burial. A few years
after this woodcut was done, a British
scientist established a link between
cholera and contaminated water.
1912: Congress passes the Public Health
Service Act, which authorizes surveys
and studies of water pollution,
particularly as it affects human health.
1914: The first standards under the
Public Health Service Act are
promulgated. These introduce the
concept of maximum permissible safe
limits for drinking water contaminants.
The standards, however, apply only to
water supplies serving interstate meaius
of transportation.
1948: Congress approves a Water
Pollution Control Act. Its provisions,
too, are restricted to water supplies
serving interstate carriers.
1972: The Clean Water Act, a major
amendment to the Federal Water
Pollution Act, contains comprehensive
provisions for restoring and maintaining
all bodies of surface water in the U.S.
1974: The Safe Drinking Water Act is
passed, greatly expanding the scope of
federal responsibility for the safety of
drinking water. Earlier Acts had
confined federal authority to water
supplies serving interstate carriers. The
1974 act extends U.S. standards to all
community water systems with 15 or
more outlets, or 25 or more customers.
1977: The Safe Drinking Water Act is
amended to extend authorization for
technical assistance, information,
training, and grants to the states.
1986: The Safe Drinking Water Act is
further amended. Amendments set
mandatory deadlines for the regulation
of key contaminants; require monitoring
of unregulated contaminants; establish
benchmarks for treatment technologies;
bolster enforcement powers: and
provide major new authorities to
promote protection of ground-water
resources.
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What Lies Ahead:
Our Nation's Agenda Under
the Safe Drinking Water Act
of 1986
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Et's do more to protect the quality of
our drinking water, and let's do it
faster: that's the message of the new
amendments to the Safe Drinking Water
Act. Signed into law in June 1986, these
amendments change and strengthen the
Safe Drinking Water Act in many
important ways.
Protecting Drinking Water
Quality
Accelerated regulation of contaminants
is probably the single most important
provision of the new law. During the
first 12 years of the Safe Drinking Water
Act, EPA developed final Maximum
Contaminant Levels (MCLs) for 26
contaminants. Under the new
amendments, the Agency must speed up
its regulatory efforts. EPA has until 1989
to issue MCLs for 83 contaminants, and
until 1991 to issue MCLs for 25 more.
It should be emphasized that the
target of 83 includes the 26
contaminants already subject to
enforceable Maxmimum Contaminant
Levels. For 43 of these, EPA has already
proposed Recommended Maximum
Contaminant Levels (Health Goals). The
Agency has also proposed MCLs for
eight volatile organic chemicals.
Having more contaminants to regulate
will put a premium on effective
enforcement. Under the new
amendments to the Safe Drinking Water
Act, EPA will be better able to take
enforcement action against violators.
Stiffer penalties against violators will
give greater weight to these enforcement
actions when they occur. The net effect
of these and other provisions of the new
amendments should be safer drinking
water for all Americans.
But even with this head start, EPA
will need a major increase in funding to
meet its heavy new workload. In fiscal
year 1986, $63.59 million was
appropriated to implement the Safe
Drinking Water Act. For fiscal year
1987, the Reagan Administration will
make a much higher authorization
request: approximately $170 million.
Increased funding will go farther with
a slightly streamlined process for
promulgating Maximum Contaminant
Levels. The amended Safe Drinking
Water Act enables EPA to eliminate one
stage in the process required by the old
law. Under the old law, EPA issued
Recommended Maximum Contaminant
Levels (RMCLs) prior to promulgating
final MCLs. From now on, EPA will
propose Maximum Contaminant Level
Goals (MCLGs)—the new term for the
old RMCLs—at the same time MCLs are
set. This will make it somewhat easier
for EPA to issue regulations, from a
procedural standpoint. But all of the
same technical assessments will still
need to be done—with less time to do
them.
Moreover, enforcing all these new
MCLs—plus the old ones—will be both
difficult and expensive. In most cases
(95 percent), the states have primary
responsibility for enforcement. Many
states will find their resources strained
once the number of regulated drinking
water contaminants more than triples.
Local water systems will have to
scramble to monitor and control all of
these newly regulated contaminants.
Simply finding laboratory facilities
adequate to handle increasingly
sophisticated and numerous procedures
will be difficult. Drinking water systems
will also face another burden:
mandatory monitoring of unregulated
contaminants at least once every five
years.
The added cost of all this extra work
will, most likely, be passed along to
American consumers, who currently
enjoy much cheaper water than their
neighbors in Europe and eastern Asia.
Under the revised Safe Drinking
Water Act, it will be easier for EPA to
ensure that the states take enforcement
action swiftly and effectively. The new
law gives the Agency added authority to
take action against public water systems
found to be in violation of SDWA
standards. EPA can also impose heavier
fines on violators.
Effective enforcement is vital to the
success of the amended Safe Drinking
-------
Water Act. At present, small water
systems pose the greatest challenge.
Lack of resources and expertise often
impede small systems in their efforts to
meet federally mandated drinking water
standards. To alleviate such problems,
EPA will provide technical assistance to
such systems over the next three years.
Even large systems will have trouble
meeting some of the requirements of the
revised Safe Drinking Water Act. For
example, one amendment mandates that
granular activated carbon filtration—a
highly regarded but also expensive
technology—should be considered to be
the best available technology for
controlling synthetic organic chemicals.
Two other technological provisions of
the amended law will also force water
systems, both large and small, to invest
in new equipment. One of
these—designed as a safeguard against
Giardia and other forms of
contamination—requires filtration of
surface supplies of drinking water that
are not otherwise adequately protected
against contamination. The other
mandates the disinfection of all
drinking water supplies: a practice long
under way in large communities but not
in many small ones.
Several other key provisions of the
amended Safe Drinking Water Act
include:
• An immediate ban on all future use of
lead pipe and lead solder. Lead
contamination of drinking water has
been a source of growing concern in the
United States. It is hoped that a ban on
future use of lead pipe and lead solder
will help to reduce the risk of lead
poisoning in the years ahead.
• A requirement for EPA to evaluate
methods of monitoring Class I
(industrial and municipal disposal)
underground injection wells. Rules for
the monitoring of these deep man-made
wells already exist, but Congress has
asked EPA to investigate the best
methods of performing required
monitoring.
• The stipulation that EPA may now
deal with Indian reservations as
sovereign entities in all matters
pertaining to drinking water and ground
water. In the past, EPA has safeguarded
the quality of drinking water on Indian
reservations. Now, if Indian tribes can
meet the same criteria as states that
have attained "primacy," they too can
exercise primary authority in this
sphere. If primacy is granted, EPA will
provide grant money to qualified tribes.
The Agency will also distribute
development grants to tribes seeking to
attain primacy.
In a major initiative unrelated to
passage of the 1986 Safe Drinking Water
Act amendments, EPA is also
considering whether to undertake the
regulation of the 20,000 non-community
water systems supplied with water from
private sources. These systems provide
the drinking water for public places,
such as schools, offices, and factories.
Such facilities are already subject to
Safe Drinking Water Act standards in
areas where drinking water is drawn
from public water supplies.
Protecting Ground-Water
Quality
Ground water, which supplies half of
U.S. drinking water, will get its own
special protection under the new Safe
Drinking Water Act. Our dependence on
this source of water is growing greater
by the day. Two provisions of the new
Safe Drinking Water Act are specifically
designed to protect ground water:
• States are to develop programs for
preventing contamination of surface and
subsurface areas around public water
wells.
EPA will cover from 50 to 90 percent
of the cost of these "wellhead
protection" programs, including
determining the area to be protected,
inventorying sources of contamination,
and designing protection programs.
• EPA will administer a grant program
to demonstrate innovative methods of
protecting the critical aquifer areas of
designated sole-source aquifers. These
are areas in which ground water is the
sole or principal source of drinking
water for a large population and the
ground water is particularly vulnerable
to contamination. Support will go to
states or local agencies for this effort,
which will highlight both technical and
institutional means of protecting
sole-source aquifers.
EPA will implement the new
ground-water provisions of the SDWA
as part of its Ground-Water Protection
Strategy. This strategy, developed in
1984, calls for better coordination of all
federal and state efforts aimed at the
protection of ground water. Specific
goals of the strategy are to:
• Build and enhance state ground-water
protection strategies and programs.
• Expand controls over currently
uncontrolled sources of contamination.
• Achieve greater consistency in
ground-water protection and cleanup.
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• '-
Drinking water of tht: future? At San
/)ic.t;o's Aquaculture Plant, water
hyacinths pull nutrients from sewage
whirl! flows through ponds hundrri'
fed lo;ig (foreground). In closeup.
Yvonne Hrhg of the San Diego Water
[/tili'tir.s Department holds two
dramatically diljerent water samples.
The cloudy water in the. cone on the left
contains untreated sewage. The other
cone contains water from ivhidi 90
percent of the pollutants have been
removed by water hyacinths.
Department employees hope that further
treatment will render this water safe to
drink.
• Strengthen EPA's nationwide
organization for ground-water
protection.
EPA is developing classification
guidelines for use in defining different
types of ground water. These will
enable the Agency to tailor its
protection efforts to the usage patterns
of aquifers, and their vulnerability to
contamination. EPA also has a grant
program to support state ground-water
protection efforts.
You, the American Citizen
What about you, the average U.S.
citizen and consumer of drinking water?
Some of the revisions in the 1986 Safe
Drinking Water Act will improve your
access to key information about the
quality of your drinking water supply.
EPA and state authorities now have
the flexibility to devote the lion's share
of their attention to keeping the public
informed of truly serious health risks
and truly persistent violators.
Previously, time and resources were
wasted on routine notification of minor
violations.
Notification of Maximum
Contaminant Level violations posing a
serious health risk must now occur
within 14 days of their detection. Such
notification must explain to the public:
• What the violation was
• What adverse health effects it is likely
to have.
• Steps that are being taken to correct
the violation.
• The need for alternate; water supplies.
When violations are continuous, such
notification must also continue every
three months. For less serious
violations, only annual notification is
now required.
Congress has presented EPA and the
nation with a major challenge. Making a
reality of the stricter provisions of the
1986 Safe Drinking Water Act will
require redoubled efforts by all those
involved in protecting your drinking
water: local, state, and federal officials.
scientists, engineers, and water plant
operators.
But once these provisions are a
reality, we will all reap the benefits and
reassurance of even safer drinker water
than we already enjoy. And no one can
exaggerate the importance of safe
drinking water to the health and
prosperity of the United States, n
-------
Regulated Contaminants
and Their Health Effects
Drinking water regulations fall into
two basic categories: primary and
secondary.
Primary regulations determine
how clean drinking water must be
to protect public health.
Enforceable primary regulations
are known as Maximum
Contaminant Levels (MCLs). These
must be set as close to generally
more stringent Recommended
Maximum Contaminant Levels
(RMCLs) as is "feasible." Feasible
means consistent "with the use of
the best technology, treatment
techniques and other means,
which the Administrator (of EPA)
finds . . . are available (taking cost
into consideration)."
To retain "primacy," states must
adopt laws that are at least as strict
as EPA's primary drinking water
regulations. They also must meet
certain reporting and monitoring
requirements.
In addition to interim Maximum
Contaminant Levels, most of the
contaminants listed below have a
proposed Recommended
Maximum Contaminant Level
(RMCL). One of them, fluoride, has
a final RMCL.
What is an RMCL? An RMCL is
an ideal health goal, which is not
enforceable. As a result of the 1986
amendments to the Safe Drinking
Water Act. they will be known
henceforward as Maximum
Contaminant Level Goals (MCLGs).
Here we will refer to them by their
old name: RMCLs.
RMCLs have been proposed at
levels that, in the opinion of EPA,
present no known or anticipated
health effect with a margin of
safety. They set goals for
contamination compatible with
virtually zero risk of cancer and
and other major illness. The
purpose of Recommended
MCLs—like that of the new MCL
Goals—is to serve as targets for the
revision of interim MCLs, the
enforceable drinking water
standards. "Health Goals." whether
RMCLs or MCLGs, are set without
regard to technical feasibility or
cost.
Secondary drinking water
regulations are not health-related.
They are intended to protect
"public welfare" by offering
unenforceable guidelines on the
taste, odor, or color of drinking
water, as well as certain other
non-aesthetic effects. Water
systems are not required to comply
with secondary standards. EPA
recommends them to the states as
reasonable goals for the aesthetics
of drinking water.
EPA also issues guidance
documents called Health
Advisories, which assist the states
in the implementation of their
drinking water programs by
identifying potentially hazardous
contaminants and their health
effects, along with available
analytical measurement techniques
and technologies for controlling
the contaminants.
Primary Regulations
Over the past 10 years. EPA has
set interim Maximum Contaminant
Levels for 26 drinking water
contaminants. These MCLs art-
called "interim," because the 1974
Safe Drinking Water Act stipulated
that EPA was to issue its MCLs on
an interim basis and then
periodically to revise them. Thus
far, only the MCL for fluoride has
been issued in final revised form.
Listed below, with their health
effects, are the 25 drinking water
contaminants with interim
Maximum Contaminant Levels,
plus the twenty-sixth regulated
contaminant, fluoride, which is tin-
only one thus far that has a final
revised Maximum Contaminant
Level. The contaminants are
divided by category.
Also listed here are two other
drinking water regulations
promulgated by KPA since H174:
one governing the monitoring and
reporting of sodium: the other
establishing rules for monitoring
distribution systems to see if they
are corroded or have other
problems.
Under tin; heading "Proposed
Regulations," you will find a
complete list of Maximum
Contaminant Levels and
Recommended Maximum
Contaminant Levels that were
proposed by EPA prior to tin;
passage of the 1986 Safe Drinking
Water Act amendments. None of
these is yet in force.
Giardia lamblia cysts taken from a
human donor but similar to those found
in contaminated water.
-------
Existing Standards
MICROBIOLOGICAL CONTAMINANTS
Microbiological organisms were the first drinking water
contaminants to arouse concern. The first federal standards to
control these "microbials" dale back to 1914. Cholera has been
under control in this country since tbe 1870s, and typhoid since
about 1910. Two types of microbial-relaled contaminants are now
subject to regulation under the Safe Drinking Water Act.
Interim Maximum
Contaminant Levels in
Force: Principal Health Effects:
Total Coliforms
(Coliform bacteria, fecal
coliform, slreptococcal.
and other bacteria)
Although not necessarily in
themselves disease-producing
organisms, coliforms can be
indicators of organisms thai cause
assorted gastro-enteric infections,
dysentery, hepatitis, typhoid fever.
cholera, and other diseases of
surface water; also interferes with
the disinfection process
INORGANIC CHEMICALS
Most inorganic chemicals, such as arsenic and fluoride, are
present naturally in water from geological sources. Others, such as
lead, enter the water as the result of human intervention.
Interim MCLs In l-'orce For: Principal Health Effects:
Arsenic
Barium
Cadmium
Chromium
Lead
Mercury
Nitrate and Nitrite
Selenium
Silver
Final Revised MCL
In Force For:
Dermal and nervous system toxicity
effects
Circulatory system effects
Kidney effects
Liver/kidney effects
Central and peripheral nervous
system damage; kidney effects;
highly toxic to infants and pregnant
women
Central nervous system disorders;
kidney effects
Melhemoglobinemia
("Blue-Baby Syndrome")
Castro-intestinal effects
Skin discoloration (Argyria)
Principal Health Effects:
Fluoride
Skeletal damage
ORGANIC CHEMICALS
The organic chemicals listed here—except Irihalomethanes, a
chlorination by-product—fall into two main categories: synthetic
organic chemicals (SOCs) and volatile synthetic organic chemicals
(VOCs). In scientific terms, "volatile" means capable of being
readily vaporized, evaporating readily at normal temperatures,
Synthetic Organic Chemicals
SOCs are synthetic organic compounds used in the manufacture
of a wide variety of agricultural and industrial products. The
best-known SOCs are pesticides and herbicides.
Interim MCLs In Force For: Principal Health Effects:
Endrin
Lindane
Methoxychlor
2,4-D
2,4,5-TP Silvex
Toxaphene
Nervous system/kidney effects
Nervous system/liver effects
Nervous system/kidney effects
Liver/kidney Effects
Liver/kidney effects
Cancer risk
Volatile Organic Chemicals
VOCs are a broad class of synthetic chemicals used commercially
as degreasing agents, paint thinners, varnishes, glues, dyes, and
pesticides. They are most commonly used in urban industrial
areas, where they can contaminate ground water if improperly
disposed.
No interim MCLs are yet in force for VOCs, but RMCLS (now
known as MCL Goals) have been promulgated, and MCLs have
been proposed.
Other Organics (Disinfection By-Products):
Interim MCLs In Force For: Principal Health Effects
4 Types of
Trihalomethanes
Cancer risk
RADIONUCLIDES
Radionuclides are radioactive compounds sometimes found in
drinking water. Radionuclides get into drinking water drawn from
ground-water wells. On occasion, these wells can become
contaminated by uranium and radon deposits that occur naturally
in the soil of various regions. In a few cases, man-made
radionuclides—from radioactive waste—can be the source of
contamination. Like other drinking water contaminants,
radionuclides pose a threat to human health when ingested.
Interim MCLs
In Force For:
Principal Health Effects:
Gross alpha particle
activity
Beta particle and photon
radioactivity from
man-made radionuclides
Radium-226
Radium-228
Cancer
Cancer
Bone cancer
Bone cancer
Monitoring Regulations
In Force For:
MISCELLANEOUS
Health Effects:
Sodium monitoring and
reporting
Monitoring of distribution
systems for corrosion and
other problems
Hypertension
Lead poisoning and other problems
SECONDARY
Non-enforceable secondary standards exist for the following:
Contaminant: Effects:
pH
Chloride
Copper
Foaming agents
Sulfate
Total dissolved solids
(Hardness)
Zinc
Fluoride
Color
Corrosivity
Iron
Manganese
Odor
Water should not be loo acidic or
too basic: must fall between 6.5 and
8.5 on the pH scale
Taste; corrosion of pipes
Taste; staining of porcelain
Aesthetic
Taste and laxative effects
Taste; possible relation between low
hardness and cardiovascular
disease; Also an indicator of
corrosivity (Lead problems); can
damage plumbing and limit
effectiveness of soaps and
detergents
Taste
Dental fluorosis (A brownish
discoloration of the teeth)
Aesthetic; consumers turn to
alternative supplies
Aesthetic; also health related
Taste
Taste
Aesthetic
-------
Proposed Standards
EPA already has a head start on many of the regulatory tasks
mandated in the 1986 amendments to the Safe Drinking Water
Act.
Maximum Contaminant Levels (MCLs) and Maximum
Contaminant Level Goals (MCLGs, formerly known as
Recommended Maximum Contaminant Levels—or RMCLs) have
been proposed for a whole range of drinking water contaminants.
MCLGs, like RMCLs before them, are to be set at a level at
which, in the judgment of the EPA Administrator, "no known or
anticipated adverse effects on the health of persons occur and
which allows an adequate margin of safety." MCLGs and RMCLs
are known as "Health Goals" both because they are unenforceable
and because they do not take feasibility factors, such as cost and
available technology, into account.
MICROBIOLOGICAL CONTAMINANTS
RMCLs Proposed: Principal Health Effects:
Giardia lamblia
Viruses
RMCLs Proposed:
Castro-enteric disease (Giardiasis;
sometimes known as "Backpacker's
Disease")
Gastro-enteric and other disease
INORGANIC CHEMICALS
Principal Health Effects:
Arsenic
Asbestos
Barium
Cadmium
Chromium
Copper
Lead
Nitrate
Nitrite
Selenium
Dermal and nervous system toxicity
effects
Possible cancer
Circulatory system effects
Kidney effects
Liver and kidney disorders
Gastro-intestinal disturbances
Central and peripheral nervous
system damage; kidney effects;
highly toxic to infants and pregnant
women
Melhemoglobinemia ("Blue Baby
Syndrome")
Melhemoglobinemia ("Blue Baby
Syndrome")
Selenosis (Liver damage from very
high doses; other effects from lower
doses)
ORGANIC CHEMICALS
Volatile Organic Chemicals
MCLs Proposed For: Principal Health Effects:
Benzene
Carbon tetrachloride
p-Dichlorobenzene
1,2-Dichloroethane
1,1-DichIoroethylene
1,1,1-Trichloroethane
Trichloroethylene
Vinyl chloride
Cancer
Possible cancer
Possible cancer
Possible cancer
Liver/Kidney effects
Nervous system effects
Possible cancer
Cancer
RMCLs Proposed:
Principal Health Effects
Chlorobenzene
Trans-1,2-dichloroethylene
Cis-1,2-dichloroethylene
Nervous system/liver effects
Liver/kidney effects
Liver/kidney effects
Final RMCLs In Place For: Principal Health Effects:
Benzene
Carbon Tetrachloride
1,1-Dichloroethylene
1,2-Dichloroethane
Trichloroethylene
1,1,1-Trichloroethane
Vinyl chloride
Synthetic
RMCLs Proposed For:
Cancer
Possible cancer
Liver/kidney effects
Possible cancer
Possible cancer
Nervous system effects
Cancer
Organic Chemicals
Principal Health Effects:
Acrylamide
Alachlor
Aldicarb, aldicarb
sulfoxide, and aldicarb
sulfone
Chlordane
Carbofuran
Dibromochloropropane
(DBCP)
1,2-Dichloropropane
Epichlorohydrin
Ethyl benzene
Ethylene dibromite . . .
Heptachlor
Heptachlorepoxide
Penlachlorophenol
Polychlorinated biphenyls
(PCBs)
Styrene
Toluene
Xylene
Possible cancer
Possible cancer
Nervous system effects
Possible cancer
Nervous system effects
Possible cancer
Liver/kidney Effects
Possible cancer
Liver/kidney effects
Possible cancer
Possible cancer
Possible cancer
Liver/kidney effects
Possible cancer
Liver effects
Nervous system/liver effects
Nervous system effects
RADIONUCLIDES
EPA is now considering proposal of a Maximum Contaminant
Level for the most significant of all the radionuclides linked to the
contamination of drinking water: radon.
This colorless, odorless, tasteless gas occurs naturally in several
types of rock and soil found in certain parts of the U.S. These can
contaminate adjacent ground water with radon. Wells pump this
radon-laden water into homes. When it is heated or agitated by
showers or washing machines, this dissolved gas can be released
into the air.
This presents a health problem, especially in air-tight dwellings,
because the inhalation of radon gas may greatly increase the risk
of lung cancer. Thus, radon is a drinking water contaminant that
is dangerous not when drunk, but when breathed. And
preliminary health data suggest that it may be one of the most
harmful to human health.
A Maximum Contaminant Level for uranium is also under
consideration.
Also on EPA's agenda is revision of its existing interim MCLs
for other radionucfides, including radium-226 and radium-228.
All of EPA's interim MCLs for other categories of contaminants
will be subjected to a similar process of review and updating.
-------
U. S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
REGIONAL ORGANIZATION
EPA Regional Offices
EPA Region 1
Water Supply Branch
JFK Federal Building
Boston, MA 02203
(617) 853-03610
Connecticut, Massachusetts,
Maine. New Hampshire, Rhode
Island, Vermont
EPA Region 2
Water Supply Branch
26 Federal Plaza
New York, NY 10278
(212) 264-1800
New Jersey, New York, Puerto
Rico, Virgin Islands
El1 A Region :t
Water Supply Branch
841 Chestnut Street
Philadelphia, PA 19107
(215) 587-8227
Delaware, Mary/and,
Pennsylvania,
Virginia. West Virginia, District of
Columbia
EPA Region 4
Water Supply Branch
345 Courtland Street, N.E.
Atlanta, GA 30365
(404) 881-8731
Alabama, Florida. Georgia,
Kentucky, Mississippi, North
Carolina, South Carolina,
Tennessee
EPA Region 5
Water Supply Branch
230 South Dearborn Street
Chicago, 1L 60604
(312) 353-2650
Illinois, Indiana. Michigan,
Minnesota, Ohio, Wisconsin
EPA Region 6
Water Supply Branch
1201 Elm Street
Dallas, TX 75270
(214) 767-2618
Arkansas, Louisiana, Neiv Mexico,
Oklahoma. Texas
EPA Region 7
Water Supply Branch
726 Minnesota Avenue
Kansas City, KS 66101
(913)236-2815
Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, .Vrhrusku
EPA Region 8
Water Supply Branch
One Denver Place
999 18th Street. Suite 1300
Denver, CO 80202-2413
(303) 293-1413
CoJorando, Montana. North
Dakota,
South Dukola, Utah, Wyoming
EPA Region 9
Water Supply Branch
215 Fremont Street
San Francisco, CA 94105
(415) 974-0912
Arizona, California, Huivaii
Nevada, American Samoa. Guam,
Trusl Territories of (he Pacific
EPA Region 10
Water Supply Branch
1200 Sixtn Avenue
Seattle, WA 98101
(206) 442-4092
Alaska, Idaho, Oregon,
Washing ton
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-------
The Environment
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The EPA JOURNAL
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