The Safe Drinking Water Act was enacted on
December 16, 1974 to protect public drinking water systems in the U.S. from harmful
contaminants. The Act directs EPA to develop:
- National primary drinking water regulations:
- Underground injection control regulations to protect
underground sources of drinking water;
- Protection programs for sole-source aquifers.
Unfortunately, implementation of the Act was slow.
So in 1986, Congress passed amendments in an effort to quicken EPA's pace in issuing
standards and implementing the various protection programs. Notably, the 1986 amendments
included provisions requiring EPA to:
- Set drinking water regulations for 83 specified contaminants
by 1989;
- Establish requirements for disinfection and filtration of
public water supplies and provide related technical assistance to small communities;
- Ban the use of lead pipes and lead solder in new drinking
water distribution systems;
- Establish an elective wellhead protection program around
public water supply wells;
- Establish an elective demonstration grant program for States
and local authorities having designated sole-source aquifers to develop ground water
protection programs;
- Issue rules for monitoring wells that inject wastes below a
drinking water source.
To date, EPA has established close to 80 National Primary
Drinking Water Standards. The agency has also issued secondary drinking water regulations
that protect the public from drinking water with an unpleasant odor or appearance. These
secondary standards are merely guidelines for public water utilities to follow;
they are not enforceable.
Features of the 1996 amendments include the establishment
of programs to train and certify competent water treatment plant operators, as well as the
establishment of key drinking water standards for Cryptosporidium, certain carcinogens,
and other contaminants that threaten drinking water in the U.S. In addition, the
amendments will require community water systems serving more than 10,000 customers to
notify them annually of the levels of federally regulated contaminants in their drinking
water. These notifications must also include information on the presence of suspicious but
still unregulated substances. If there is a violation, the notifications must contain
information about the health effects of the contaminants in question.
People who use private wells are not immune from water
problems either.
To find out why you should filter water from your public
water utility,
Click here.
To find out why you should filter water from your private
well,
Click here.
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