United States
Environmental Protection
^1 M »Agency
This document contains data extracted from the EPA "State Source Water Assessment and
Protection Programs Final Guidance," published in August 1997. The reference number is EPA
816-R-97-009. You can find the entire document at
http://www.epa.qov/safewater/sourcewater.cfm?action=Publications.
State Source Water
Assessment and Protection
Programs Final Guidance
Table of Contents
August 1997

-------
United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Office of Water
4606
EPA 816-R-97-009
August, 1997
STATE SOURCE WATER
ASSESSMENT AND
PROTECTION PROGRAMS
FINAL GUIDANCE

-------

-------
CONTENTS
Chapter 1: Overview of Source Water Assessment and Protection
and the Safe Drinking Water Act 	 1-1
I.	INTRODUCTION	 1-1
A.	Purpose of this Document	1-1
B.	Background	1-1
1.	EPA's Source Water Protection Goal 	1-2
2.	Past Accomplishments of EPA and its Partners	1-3
II.	SDWA AMENDMENTS OF 1996—NEW RESOURCES AND TOOLS FOR
SOURCE WATER PROTECTION 	1-4
A.	The Benefits of Public Involvement 	1-6
B.	Assessment Programs 	1-6
C.	Source Water Protection and Petition Programs	1-7
D.	Drinking Water State Revolving Fund and Other Financing	1-8
III.	COORDINATION AND INTEGRATION	1-10
A.	Source Water Assessment and Protection and Other Public Water
Supply Supervision Program Implementation Efforts	1-10
B.	Source Water Assessment and Protection and the Watershed Protection
Approach	1-10
C.	Source Water Assessment and Protection and Other Federal/State
Agency Programs 	1-11
IV.	EPA Technical Assistance 	1-12
V.	Conclusion 	1-13
l

-------
Chapter 2: Final Guidance for State Source Water Assessment Programs2-l
I.	INTRODUCTION 	2-1
II.	CONTENT OF STATE SUBMITTALS	2-3
A.	Adequate Public Participation in Developing the State Source Water
Assessment Program	2-3
B.	Requirements/Options for State Assessment Approaches	2-7
1.	Statutory Requirements 	2-7
2.	Strategic State Approaches 	2-7
3.	Requirements/Options for Delineations, Source
Inventories and Susceptibility Determinations	2-12
4.	Adequate Assessment(s) for Waters Which Cross State or
Country Borders, Boundary Rivers, Multi-State Rivers and the
Great Lakes and EPA's Role in Assisting States Accomplish
These Assessments 	2-19
C.	Requirements/Options for Making Assessments Available to the
Public	2-21
1.	Content of Understandable Assessments— Mapping Assessment
Information, Listings of Sources and Narrative Assessment
Reports Made Available to the Public	2-21
2.	Procedures for Making Assessments Available to the Public 2-22
D.	Requirements/Options for State Program Implementation 	2-24
1.	Timetables 	2-24
2.	Resources to be Committed to the Effort	2-25
3.	Delegations of Efforts 	2-26
4.	Role and Coordination of State Agencies and with Other
Federal/State/Tribal Programs	2-26
5.	Reporting of Program Progress 	2-27
6.	Updating the Assessments	2-27
li

-------
III.	PROGRAM SUBMITTAL PROCESS	2-28
A.	Process for Submitting the State Source Water Assessment Program and
for Program Implementation	2-28
1. Statutory Requirements 	2-28
B.	Outline of the Process For Submitting and Implementing a Program2-29
IV.	THE DRINKING WATER STATE REVOLVING FUND AND SOURCE
WATER ASSESSMENTS 	2-30
A.	The Intended Use Plan: The Key Funding Vehicle	2-30
B.	The Importance of Funding Source Water Assessment Programs .2-30
C.	Work Plans, Financing, and Implementing Assessments Prior to EPA
Approval of State Source Water Assessment Programs 	2-31
D.	DWSRF Funding for Programs Supporting State Source Water
Assessment Programs 	2-32
1.	Total Maximum Daily Load Program 	2-32
2.	Monitoring/Modeling Activities 	2-33
in

-------
Chapter 3: Tools for State Source Water Protection Implementation
Including Petition Programs and the Drinking Water
State Revolving Fund 	3-1
I.	INTRODUCTION	3-1
A. Local Source Water Protection Programs	3-2
II.	OPPORTUNITIES FOR SUPPORT OF STATE AND LOCAL SOURCE
WATER PROTECTION EFFORTS UNDER THE SDWA OF 1996 	 3-3
A.	Funding for State Source Water Protection Programs under SDWA
Section 1452(g)(2)(B)	3-3
B.	Funding for State Wellhead Protection Programs Under SDWA Section
1452(k)(l)(D) 	3-7
C.	Funding for State Petition Programs Under SDWA Section
1452(k)( 1)(A)(iii) 	3-7
D.	Loans for Voluntary Incentive-Based Source Water Quality Protection
Programs 	3-7
E.	Land Acquisition and Conservation Easements 	3-8
III.	GUIDANCE FOR STATE SOURCE WATER QUALITY PROTECTION
PARTNERSHIP PETITION PROGRAMS 	3-8
A.	State/Local Program Procedures	3-9
1.	Substance of Petitions and Process for Submission of
Petitions To the State	3-9
2.	Recommended State Procedures for Approval/Disapproval of
Petitions Submitted by Local Voluntary Partnerships	3-10
3.	Technical and Financial Assistance Available to
Localities with Approved Petitions 	3-10
4.	EPA/State Procedures for Grants	3-11
5.	Additional Funding for Local Source Water Petition Prograrrft-13
B.	Benefits and Limitations of the Petition Program 	3-14
iv

-------
Chapter 4: Relationship Between Source Water Assessments, Source
Water Protection Programs, and the Public Water Supply
Supervision Program	 4-1
I.	INTRODUCTION	4-1
II.	WELLHEAD PROTECTION	4-1
III.	INTERIM MONITORING RELIEF	4-1
IV.	ALTERNATIVE MONITORING	4-2
V.	CHEMICAL MONITORING REFORM 	4-3
VI.	SURFACE WATER TREATMENT/DISINFECTION
BYPRODUCTS RULES	4-4
VII.	UNDERGROUND INJECTION CONTROL: CLASS V WELLS 	4-6
VIII.	SANITARY SURVEYS 	4-8
IX.	GROUND WATER DISINFECTION RULE 	4-9
X.	CAPACITY DEVELOPMENT	4-9
XI.	OPERATOR CERTIFICATION	4-10
Chapter 5: Coordination of Source Water Assessments, Source Water
Protection Programs, and Other EPA and Federal Programs 5-1
I.	INTRODUCTION	5-1
II.	INTEGRATING SOURCE WATER ASSESSMENTS AND PROTECTION
WITH OTHER EPA WATER PROGRAMS 	5-2
III.	LINKAGES TO OTHER EPA PROGRAMS 	5-20
IV.	LINKAGES TO OTHER FEDERAL PROGRAMS	5-21
V.	CONCLUSION	5-26
v

-------
Appendices:
A. EPA Outreach Process for Notice and Comment by Stakeholders on National
Source Water Assessment and Protection Programs Guidance 	 A-l
B.	Process for State Submittal and Implementation of Source Water
Assessment Programs	 A-3
C.	Enhancing Topographic Delineations for Surface Water Based Source
Water Protection Areas	 A-5
D.	Conjunctive Delineation of the Zone of Ground Water Contribution and the
Area of Surface Water Contribution to Public Water Systems	 A-9
E.	Partial List of Potential Sources of Contamination Found In Wellhead
Protection
Areas and In Watersheds	 A-13
F.	Factors to Consider When Doing Adequate Contamination Source Inventories
and Susceptibility Determinations	 A-17
G.	Timetable for Certain Actions Under the 1996 SDWA Amendments . . . A-21
H.	Glossary of Terms	 A-23
I.	Requirements for Implementing Sections 1453 and 1428 of the Safe Drinking
Water Act for State Source Water Assessment Programs	 A-27
J. List of Acronyms	 A-31
vi

-------