f/EPA
United States Office of Water EPA 816-F-98-002
Environmental Protection (4606) April 1998
Agency	
DEFINITION OF A
PUBLIC WATER SYSTEM
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is publishing, for public
comment, draft guidance to the primacy agencies and EPA's regional offices for
their implementation of the Safe Drinking Water Act's (SDWA) 1 996 Amendments
to the definition of a public water system (PWS) in Section 1401(4). This guidance
was developed with information from States, water suppliers, and citizens groups.
CHANGES TO THE PWS DEFINITION BY THE 1996 AMENDMENTS
"Constructed Expands the means of delivering water to include not only
Conveyances" systems which provide water for human consumption through
pipes, but also systems which provide water for human
consumption through "other constructed conveyances."
Regulation	"Constructed conveyance" suppliers newly subject to the PWS
Date	definition will not be regulated until August 6, 1998.
Exclusions	Provides three means by which "constructed conveyance"
water systems may be excluded from this definition and two
means by which certain piped irrigation districts may be
excluded from this definition.
GUIDANCE ON IMPLEMENTING THE NEW PWS DEFINITION
Definitions
Human Consumption. Defined to include drinking, bathing,
showering, cooking, dishwashing, and maintaining oral hygiene.
Constructed Conveyance. Broadly interpreted to refer to any
manmade conduit such as ditches, culverts, waterways, flumes,
mine drains, or canals.
Determining
Constructed
Conveyances
Natural Waterways. Factors that a primacy agency should
consider to determine whether or not a natural waterway is
considered a "constructed conveyance" include whether or not
it exists in its current configuration substantially from human
modifications, who owns or controls the water, and the reason
why water is present.
Counting. Whether a "constructed conveyance counts as a
connection depends on whether the water supplier knows or

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should know that the connection exists or that the individuals
are using the water from that connection for human
consumption.
Water Suppliers' A supplier cannot limit its SDWA liability by not making efforts
Liability	to gather necessary information and documentation regarding its
users' water use, or solely by requiring its users to sign a waiver
agreement.
Constructed	Other Than Residential Use Exclusion. A "constructed
Conveyance	conveyance" system may automatically exclude a connection
Exclusions	from being counted if its use is exclusively for purposes other
than residential uses.
Alternative Water Exclusion. A "constructed conveyance"
system may exclude a connection from being counted if the
primacy agency makes a factual determination based on
documentation submitted by the water supplier that the water
supplier is providing its users at that connection with alternative
water that provides the equivalent level of public health
protection as the applicable NPDWRs.
Treatment Exclusion. A "constructed conveyance" system may
exclude a connection from being counted if the primacy agency
makes a factual determination based on documentation
submitted by the water supplier that the water at the
connection is treated to provide the equivalent level of public
health protection as the applicable NPDWRs.
Piped Irrigation
Exclusion
If in existence prior to May 18, 1994, and providing primarily
agricultural service with only incidental residential use, a piped
irrigation district may not be considered a PWS if all of its
connections comply with the alternative water or treatment
exclusions (above) for "constructed conveyance" suppliers.
EPA has published in the Federal Register the draft guidance and is soliciting
comments until June 22, 1998. Copies may also be obtained by calling the Safe
Drinking Water Hotline at 800-426-4791. Comments should be addressed to Jon
Merkle, Drinking Water Office - (WTR-6), EPA Region 9, 75 Hawthorne Street, San
Francisco, California, 94105. Comments may also be submitted electronically to
merkle.jon@epamail.epa.gov.

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