Safe DKIiMtlNG . Water H4Tiim. February 2003 Monthly Report Water Lines SDW Hotline Report In This Issue What's New 1 Monthly Trends 1 Calendar 2 Freauentlv Asked Qs & As 3 Did You Know? 3 Hotline Stats 4 Appendix A 6 Top Ten Topics Questions Percent of Topic (phone &e- Total* mail) Questions^ Tap Water Testing 293** 12 Household Wells 182 8 Local Drinking Water Quality 175 7 Non-EPA Environmental 101 4 Lead 99 4 Home Water Treatment Units 97 4 Other EPA 90 4 Other Background 83 4 Public Notification 83 4 Non-Environmental 76 3 *A total of 2,348 questions were answered by the Hotline (via telephone and e-mail) in February 2003. **Citizens who obtain their drinking water from private household wells asked 43 percent of the tap water testing questions. Calls E-mails Total 1,516 301 1,817*** ***A single call or e-mail may generate multiple questions. Published Monthly See past reports at http://intranet.epa.gov/ow/hotline Safe Drinking Water Hotline: National Toll-free No.: (800) 426-4791 or (877) EPAWATER For More Information Contact: Harriet Hubbard, EPA Project Officer (202) 564-4621 Operated by Booz Allen Hamilton Under Contract #GS-10F-0090J What's New New Publications: ¦ Stage 1 Disinfection Byproducts Rule: Laboratory Quick Reference Guide, EPA816-F-02-021, is now available at www.epa.gov/safewater/mdbp/ implement.html. ¦ System Partnership Solutions to Improve Public Health Protection, EPA816-R-02-022, is now available at www.epa.gov/safewater/smallsvs/ ssinfo.htm or by contacting the Safe Drinking Water Hotline. ¦ Sources of Technical and Financial Assistance for Small Drinking Water Systems, EPA816-K-02-005, is now available at www.epa.gov/ safewater/smallsvs/ssinfo.htm or by contacting the National Service Center for Environmental Publications. ¦ Using DWSRF Funds for Transmission and Distribution Infrastructure Needs, EPA816-F-03-003, is now available at www, epa. gov/safe wate r/dws rf. htm I# factsheets. Monthly Trends In the past three Monthly Reports, the Hotline has presented "monthly trends" related to public notification resulting from bacterial contamination in drinking water, specifically total coliform. In February 2003, the Hotline received a total of 83 questions related to public notification, forty percent of which were from concerned citizens who had received notices that their water systems were unable to achieve the removal requirements for total organic carbon (TOC). Systems regulated under the Stage I Disinfectants and Disinfection Byproducts Rule that serve 10,000 or more persons are required to meet the treatment technique for TOC removal beginning January 1, 2002, with compliance based on a running annual average (40 CFR 141.130(b)(1)). The notification process for violations of this treatment technique began after the annual average calculations were computed for 2002. In an effort to better address our callers' questions and concerns regarding the significance of the TOC removal violations for which they have received public notifications, the Hotline has developed the following special series of questions and answers. Q: What is total organic carbon (TOC)? A: TOC is a composite measurement of the amount of organic material in a water sample. It is an indicator of the natural organic matter which is found in source water that is treated to produce drinking water. Most of the organic material present in source water is due to decaying plant and animal matter. Generally, the treatment process removes some TOC from the water. Q: Is TOC a health concern? A: Disinfectants (such as chlorine) are added to drinking water to reduce the risk of disease from pathogens. However, the disinfectants can also react with organic material (measured as TOC) and inorganic material in water to form unintended disinfection byproducts (DBPs) (e.g., trihalomethanes). These DBPs may pose health risks at a certain level of exposure. By lowering the concentration of TOC, public water systems can reduce DBP formation and exposure. Q: If DBPs are the concern, why am I receiving this notice about TOC? A: The Stage 1 Disinfectants and Disinfection Byproducts (DBP) Rule requires some water systems to remove a specific percentage of TOC from the water during treatment. Reducing the amount of TOC in the water should reduce the amount of DBPs that are formed. Your water system is notifying you that it did not remove as much TOC from the water as required by the Stage 1 DBP Rule. ------- February 2003 Calendar: Who? What? Where? When? More Information NDWAC Contaminant Candidate List Classification Process Workgroup RESOLVE, Inc. Suite 275 1235 23rd St. NW Washington, DC 2/5/2003 - 2/6/2003 • Contact RESOLVE at (202) 944-2300 NSF International Public Water System Compliance Using Point- of-Use and Point-of-Entry Treatment Technologies Orlando, FL 2/13/2003 - 2/14/2003 • For more information: www.nsf.ors/cBhe/BOu EPA SDWA Tribal Program Meeting Las Vegas, NV 2/25/2003 - 2/26/2003 NSTA National Science Teachers Convention Philadelphia, PA 3/23/2003 - 3/26/2003 NDWAC Contaminant Candidate List Classification Process Workgroup Washington, DC 3/27/2003 - 3/28/2003 NRWA Rural Water Rally Washington, DC 4/6/2003 - 4/8/2003 OW, OSWER, EPA Region 4 2003 EPA Science Forum Washington, DC 5/5/2003 - 5/7/2003 • For more information: www.eBa. eov/ord/scien ceforum National Association State Floodplain Managers Annual Conference St. Louis, MO 5/11/2003 - 5/16/2003 NDWAC Contaminant Candidate List Classification Process Workgroup Washington, DC 5/12/2003 - 5/13/2003 EPA Source Water Protection Conference Washington, DC 6/2/2003 - 6/4/2003 For more information: www.eBa.sov/safewater/ Brotect/swBeonf. html AWWA Annual Conference Anaheim, CA 6/15/2003 - 6/19/2003 NDWAC Contaminant Candidate List Classification Process Workgroup Washington, DC 7/16/2003- 7/17/2003 EPA Community Involvement Conference Philadelphia, PA 7/22/2003- 7/25/2003 -2- ------- February 2003 Frequently Asked Qs & As This section provides answers to frequently asked questions not necessarily represented in one of the Top Ten Topic categories. Q: When a public water system (PWS) asks its customers to collect first-draw samples for lead testing compliance, how long can the PWS wait before performing acidification on the samples? After acidification, must the first-draw samples stand for a certain period of time? A: A PWS has up to 14 days after the first-draw samples are collected to perform the acidification. After acidification, the samples must stand in the original containers for the time specified in the approved EPA method before the samples can be analyzed (40 CFR 141.86(b)(2)). Q: A community water system (CWS) is required to complete an annual Consumer Confidence Report (CCR). Is it necessary to include contaminants detected while monitoring for compliance with the Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule (UCMR)? A: Yes. The CCR table must contain detected unregulated contaminants for which a CWS is required to monitor, including the average and range at which the contaminant is detected. The report may include a brief explanation of why the CWS is monitoring for unregulated contaminants (40 CFR 141.153(d)(7)). Q: I plan to construct a new Class V underground injection control (UIC) well that will be associated with the recovery of geothermal energy for the production of electric power. Do I need to provide notification to anyone? If so, to whom do I need to send it and what information do I need to include in the notification? A: You must provide basic inventory information about your well to your state, tribal, or EPA UIC Director, if you have not already done so pursuant to 40 CFR 144.26. If you are in a state that has UIC Program primacy (i.e., the state runs the UIC Class V Program), then you must contact your state UIC Director to determine exactly what information you must submit and by what date. If you are in a state that does not have primacy for its Class V UIC Program or in Indian Country, then EPA implements the Class V Program (i.e., Direct Implementation or Dl Programs) and you must submit the inventory information described in 40 CFR 144.83(a)(2) prior to construction of your well. The basic UIC inventory information required by both primacy states and Dl states or tribes includes the facility name and location, the name and address of a legal contact, the ownership of the facility, the nature and type of well(s), and the operating status of the injection well(s) (40 CFR 144.83). Q: What must a public water system using chlorine or chloramines measure to determine compliance with the maximum residual disinfectant level (MRDL)? A: For compliance with the Stage 1 Disinfectants and Disinfection Byproducts Rule, community water systems (CWSs) and non-transient non-community water systems (NTNCWSs) using chlorine to maintain a residual disinfectant must measure either free chlorine or total chlorine to determine compliance with the MRDL. CWSs and NTNCWs using chloramines to maintain a residual disinfect must measure either total chlorine or combined chlorine (63 FR 69390, 69425; December 16, 1998). Did You Know? Typically, less than one percent of the water produced in a PWS is used for drinking and cooking. (Cotruvo, Joseph A., Joseph A. Cotruvo Jr., "Nontraditional Approaches for Providing Potable Water in Small Systems," Journal American Water Works Association 95, No. 3 (2003): pp. 69-76.). -3- ------- February 2003 Monthly Summary of Hotline Service Total number of calls answered 1,516 Total number of e-mails received 301 Average wait time (in seconds) 0:31 Percent of calls satisfied immediately 99.9% Percent of all calls answered in < 1 min 85.4% Percent of callbacks answered in 5 days 100% Percent of e-mails answered in 5 days 100% Number of times callers listened to recorded message about local DW quality 1,154 Number of times callers listened to recorded message about arsenic rule 58 Comparison to Previous Year Calls E-mails February 2003 1,516 301 February 2002 1,517 300 Top Ten Referrals Inquiry Referred to: Number of Referrals Percent of Total* Referrals *A total of 1,341 referrals to other resources, agencies, and organizations were provided by the Hotline in February 2003. 1. State Lab Certification 255 19 2. EPA Internet 185 14 3. State PWSS 146 11 4. Local Water System 142 11 5. NSF/WQA/UL 116 9 6. AGWT/WSC 81 6 7. Local Public Health 60 4 8. EPA Regions 52 4 9. Non-EPA Internet 47 4 10. Other Hotlines 45 3 Customer Profiles Customer Calls E-mails Analytical Laboratories 20 3 Citizen - Private Well 281 48 Citizen - PWS 790 105 Consultants/lndustry/Trade (DW) 84 18 Consultants/lndustry/Trade (Other) 95 23 Environmental Groups 4 1 EPA 17 0 Other Federal Agency 9 5 Government, Local 11 8 Government, State 36 12 Government, Tribal 1 0 Spanish Speaking 5 0 International 1 23 Media 7 1 Medical Professional 4 3 Public Water System 99 13 Schools/University 30 38 Other 22 0 TOTALS 1,516 301 Daily Call Data Total Calls Average Wait Time Answered mm:sec 3-February 88 00:36 4-February 84 00:25 5-February 85 00:32 6-February 80 00:23 7-February 87 00:18 10-February 81 00:31 11-February 91 00:22 12-February 88 00:27 13-February 95 00:32 14-February 72 00:20 19-February 81 00:46 20-February 72 00:17 21-February 84 00:32 24-February 90 00:59 25-February 97 00:41 26-February 92 00:31 27-February 76 00:33 28-February 73 00:37 TOTALS 1,516 00:31 -4- ------- February 2003 Hotline Statistics Topic Categories Category Calls E-mails Microbials/Disinfection Byproducts Chlorine 13 5 Coliforms 34 6 Cryptosporidium 17 1 Disinfection/Disinfection Byproducts (Other) 39 6 Disinfection - Home Water 23 0 Other Microbials 6 0 Storage - Home Water 17 1 Surface Water Treatment (SWTR, ESWTR, LT1FBR) 58 3 Trihalomethane (THM) 21 3 Inorganic Chemicals (IOC)/Synthetic Organic Chemicals (SOC) Arsenic 39 5 Fluoride 12 5 Methyl-ferf/ary-butyl-ether (MTBE) 10 1 Perchlorate 8 0 Phase I, II & V 25 7 Sodium Monitoring 5 2 Sulfate 5 0 Lead and Copper Copper 15 0 Lead 94 5 Lead Contamination Control Act (LCCA)/Lead Ban 3 0 Radionuclides Radionuclides (Other) 20 2 Radionuclides (Radon) 58 6 Secondary DW Regulations Secondary DW Regulations 36 9 SDWA Background/Overview Definitions & Applicability 19 10 MCL List 56 3 Other Background 60 23 SDWA 11 3 Category Calls E-mails Water on Tap 14 5 Other DW Regulations Analytical Methods (DW) 19 10 Contaminant Candidate List/ Drinking Water Priority List 4 0 Consumer Confidence Report (DW) 69 6 DW Primacy (PWS) 0 1 Operator (PWS) Certification 5 1 Other Drinking Water Security 18 9 Public Notification (PWS) 81 2 Security Planning Grants 11 5 State Revolving Fund (DW) 5 15 Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule (UCMR) 48 0 Other Drinking Water Additives Program 5 3 Bottled Water 28 4 Complaints about PWS 34 13 Compliance & Enforcement (PWS) 11 6 Home Water Treatment Units 86 11 Infrastructure/Cap. Development 5 5 Local DW Quality 152 23 Tap Water Testing 277 16 Treatment/BATs (DW) 17 20 Drinking Water Source Protection Ground Water Rule 4 0 Sole Source Aquifer 0 0 Source Water/Wellhead Protect. 16 8 UIC Program 13 4 Out of Purview Household Wells 153 29 Non-Environmental 60 16 Non-EPA Environmental 58 43 Other EPA (Programs) 71 19 TOTALS 1,968 380 EPA DISCLAIMER Answers to questions in the Safe Drinking Water Hotline monthly report are intended to be purely informational and are based on SDWA provisions, EPA regulations, guidance, and established policy effective at the time of publication. The answers given reflect EPA staffs best judgment at the time and do not represent a final or official EPA interpretation. This report does not substitute for the applicable provisions of statutes and regulations, guidance, etc., nor is it a regulation itself. Thus, it does not impose legally-binding requirements on EPA, States, or the regulated community. An answer to a question in this report may be revised at any time to reflect EPA's revisions to existing regulations, changes in EPA's approach to interpreting its regulations or statutory authority, or for other reasons. EPA may provide a different answer to a question in this report in the future. Also, an answer provided in this report may not apply to a particular situation based upon the circumstances. Any decisions regarding a particular case will be made based on the applicable statutes and regulations. Therefore, interested parties are free to raise questions and objections about the appropriateness of the application of an answer in this report to a particular situation, and EPA will consider whether or not the recommendations or interpretations in the answer are accurate and appropriate in that situation. The information in this report is not intended, nor can it be relied upon, to create any rights enforceable by any party in litigation with the United States. -5- ------- SAFE DRINKING WATER HOTLINE MONTHLY REPORT February 2003 Appendix A: Federal Register Summaries NOTICE "Agency Information Collection Activities; OMB Responses" February 3, 2003 (68 FR 5288) This document announced Office of Management and Budget (OMB) responses to Agency clearance requests, in compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501 et. seq.). Specifically, EPA ICR No. 2085.01, "2003 Drinking Water Infrastructure Needs Survey," was approved November 27, 2002. This Information Collection Request (ICR), OMB No. 2040- 0251, expires November 30, 2005. Also, EPA ICR No. 1912.01, "Information Collection Request: National Primary Drinking Water Regulation for Lead and Copper (Final Rule)," was granted a short-term extension on December 19, 2002. This ICR, OMB No. 2040-0210, now expires on March 31, 2003. -6- ------- |