i

25 YEARS OF THE SAFE DRINKING WATER ACT: HISTORY AND TRENDS

Contents

Introduction ............................................................................................................................................................ 1

Drinking Water Prior to 1974 ................................................................................................................................. 1

Overview of Safe Drinking water Act (SDWA) and the National Drinking Water Program .................................. 2

The Original Safe Drinking Water Act ................................................................................................................... 6

The 1986 SDWA Amendments .............................................................................................................................. 7

The 1996 SDWA Amendments ............................................................................................................................ 10

The 1996 Amendments: Improving Public Access to Information and Increasing Opportunities

for Public Participation .................................................................................................................................. 11

The History of Drinking Water Treatment ............................................................................................................ 12

Protecting Drinking Water Sources ...................................................................................................................... 13

Compliance Trends for Community Water Systems ............................................................................................. 19

Waterborne Disease Outbreaks............................................................................................................................. 29

The Cost of Safe Drinking Water ......................................................................................................................... 30

Issues Facing Small Systems ................................................................................................................................ 32

Successes and Challenges Ahead ......................................................................................................................... 34

References ............................................................................................................................................................ 37

Appendix A: Glossary ......................................................................................................................................... 39

Appendix B: Contaminants Regulated Under the 1962 Public Health Service Standards .................................. 43

Appendix C: Commonly Used Drinking water Treatment Technologies ............................................................ 45

Appendix D: Legislation Related to the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) ....................................................... 47

Appendix E: Types of Underground Injection Wells........................................................................................... 49

Appendix F: Data from the Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS) ................................................ 51

1

25 YEARS OF THE SAFE DRINKING WATER ACT: HISTORY AND TRENDS

Introduction

Water is the liquid of life; it makes up two-thirds of

our bodies, yet most of us take the safety of our

drinking water for granted. The U.S. has one of the

safest public drinking water supplies in the world,

and the quality of our drinking water has improved

over the last 25 years. However, challenges exist now

and for the future which require the participation of

all consumers if we are to maintain high quality

water supplies.

As a global society, we have learned a great deal about

drinking water quality throughout history. However,

there is still much to learn about the health effects of

drinking water contaminants, the monitoring and

treatment technologies required to detect and remove

contaminants, and ways to protect our water sources.

The ability to improve drinking water quality and

human health through research, technology, and

protection programs is dependent on our commitment

as a society to invest in drinking water. To plan for

the future, we must first evaluate our progress thus far

in providing and protecting this vital resource. That

is the intent of this report.

Drinking Water Prior to 1974

Ancient civilizations established themselves around

water sources. While the importance of ample water

quantity for drinking and other purposes was apparent

to our ancestors, an understanding of drinking water

quality was not well known or documented. Although

historical records have long mentioned aesthetic

problems (an unpleasant appearance, taste or smell)

with regard to drinking water, it wasn’t until the early

1900s that standards for water quality, other than for

general clarity, existed.1 However, prior to that time,

people had observed that some waters seemed to

produce disease, while others did not. Gradually,

people recognized that their senses alone were not

accurate judges of water quality.2

During the 1800s, scientists began to gain a greater

understanding of the sources and effects of drinking

water contaminants, especially those that were not

visible to the naked eye. In 1855, epidemiologist Dr.

John Snow proved that cholera was a waterborne

disease by linking an outbreak of illness in London to a
2

U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

public well that was contaminated by sewage. In the

late 1880s, Louis Pasteur demonstrated the “germ

theory” of disease, which explained how microscopic

organisms (microbes) could transmit disease through

media like water.2 This explained the cause-effect

relationship between many contaminated drinking

water sources and nearby epidemics.

During the late nineteenth and early twentieth

centuries, concerns regarding drinking water quality

continued to focus mostly on disease-causing microbes (pathogens) in public water supplies. Scientists and engineers studied these waterborne pathogens, tried to determine their sources, and began to

develop techniques to remove them from, or render

them harmless in, water supplies.

Federal regulation of drinking water quality began

in 1914, when the U.S. Public Health Service set

standards for the bacteriological quality of drinking

water. The standards applied only to water systems

which provided drinking water to interstate carriers

like ships, trains, and buses, and only applied to

contaminants capable of causing contagious disease.2

The Public Health Service revised and expanded

these standards in 1925, 1946 and 1962. The 1962

standards, regulating 28 substances, were the most

comprehensive federal drinking water standards in

existence before the Safe Drinking Water Act of 1974

(see Appendix B).

3 With minor modifications, all 50

states adopted the Public Health Service standards

either as regulations or as guidelines for all of their

public water systems, even though they were not

federally mandated.4

By the late 1960s it became apparent that the

aesthetic problems, pathogens and chemicals

identified by the Public Health Service were not the

only drinking water quality concerns. Industrial and

agricultural advances and the creation of new manmade chemicals also had negative impacts on the

environment and public health. Many of these new

chemicals were finding their way into water supplies

through factory discharges, street and farm field

runoff, and leaking underground waste disposal

areas. Many of these chemicals were also suspected

of causing health problems.

These health concerns spurred the federal government to conduct several studies on the nation’s

drinking water supply. One of the most telling was a

water system survey conducted by the Public Health

Service in 1969 which showed that only 60 percent of

the systems surveyed delivered water that met all the

Public Health Service standards. Over half of the

treatment facilities surveyed had major deficiencies

involving disinfection, clarification, or pressure in

the distribution system (the pipes that carry water

from the treatment plant to buildings), or combinations of these deficiencies. Small systems, especially

those with fewer than 500 customers, had the most

deficiencies.5

A study in 1972 found that 36 chemicals were

detected in treated water taken from treatment plants

that drew water from the Mississippi River in

Louisiana.6 As a result of this and other similar

studies, new legislative proposals for a federal safe

drinking water law were introduced and debated in

Congress in 1973.

Chemical contamination of water supplies was only

one of many environmental and health issues that

gained the attention of Congress and the public in the

early 1970s. This increased awareness eventually led

to the passage of several federal environmental and

health laws dealing with polluted water, hazardous

waste, pesticides, etc. (see Appendix D). One of these

laws was the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) of

1974. That law, with significant amendments in 1986

and 1996, is administered today by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Ground Water

and Drinking Water (EPA) and its partners.

Overview of SDWA and the

National Drinking Water

Program

SDWA aims to ensure that public water supplies meet

national standards that protect consumers from

harmful contaminants in drinking water. EPA

regulations under SDWA apply to public water

systems (see Public Water Systems on next page).

Public water systems can be publicly or privately

owned. People who are not served by a public water

system use private wells.
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25 YEARS OF THE SAFE DRINKING WATER ACT: HISTORY AND TRENDS

EPA divides public water systems into categories

based on characteristics such as where they serve

customers and how often they serve the same people.

Water systems with different characteristics are then

subject to different regulations. This report focuses on

community water systems, because they are subject to

all SDWA regulations and serve the greatest number of

people on a continual basis.

Trends in the Number of Water Systems

The first public water system in the U.S. to pump its

water from a surface source and distribute it through a

system of pipes was built in Philadelphia in 1799. By

1860, more than 400 water systems had been developed to serve the nation’s major cities and towns. By

1900, this number had increased to more than 3,000

systems.7

This growth, however, was not necessarily an indication that more people had gained access to safer

drinking water. Some of these systems, ironically,

contributed to major outbreaks of disease in the early

1900s because, when contaminated, the pumped and

piped supplies provided a means for spreading

bacterial disease throughout communities.2

By the early 1960s, there were more than 19,000

public water systems in the U.S.2 In the late 1970s,

EPA began tracking the number of community and

non-community water systems in the nation through

periodic surveys. In 1980, there were about 62,000

community water systems serving approximately 200

million people in the U.S.8 Since then, the number of

public water systems in the U.S. has decreased. As the

cost of providing safe drinking water has increased,

consolidation (joining larger sytems) has proven to be

a cost-effective solution for some very small systems.

While the percentage of very large water systems has

remained constant since 1980, there are fewer very

small water systems and slightly more small, medium,

and large water systems, demonstrating this consolidation trend.

In 1980, 18 percent of the community water systems in

the U.S. drew their supply primarily from surface water

sources, and 82 percent of community water systems

drew primarily from ground water.8 These percentages

Public Water Systems

Public water systems provide drinking water to at

least 25 people or 15 service connections for at

least 60 days per year. Today, there are approximately 170,000 public water systems in the U.S.

providing water to more than 250 million people.

Table 1. Size Categories of Public

Water Systems

Percent of Community

System Size Water Systems

(Population Served) 1980 1985 1990 1995

Very Small (25–500) 67 63 63 61

Small (501–3,300) 22 24 24 25

Medium (3,001–10,000) 6 7 7 8

Large (10,001–100,000) 4 5 5 6

Very Large (over 100,000) 1 1 1 1

There are two main types of public water systems:

Community Water Systems provide drinking

water to the same people year-round. Today, there

are approximately 54,000 community water

systems serving more than 250 million Americans

in their homes. All federal drinking water

regulations apply to these systems.

Non-Community Water Systems serve customers

on less than a year-round basis. Non-community

systems are, in turn, divided into two categories:

1) Those that serve at least 25 of the same people

for more than six months in a year but not

year-round (e.g., schools or factories that have

their own water source); most drinking water

regulations apply to the 20,000 systems in this

category.

2) Those that provide water to places like gas

stations and campgrounds where people do

not remain for long periods of time; only

regulations of contaminants posing immediate

health risks apply to the 96,000 systems in

this category.
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U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

Figure 1. Percentage of

Community Water Systems Using

Ground Water vs. Surface Water

82% Ground Water

18% Surface Water

1980

80% Ground Water

20% Surface Water

1998

nant level (MCL), which is as close to the MCLG as is

technologically feasible, taking cost into consideration.

Where analytical methods are not sufficiently developed to measure the concentrations of certain contaminants in drinking water, EPA specifies a treatment

technique, instead of an MCL, to protect against these

contaminants.

There has been a three-fold increase in the number of

contaminants regulated under SDWA since the

passage of the Act in 1974. Most of these standards

were set in the early 1990s (see Figure 2).

Implementing and Enforcing Drinking

Water Regulations

Beginning in 1974, SDWA gave EPA the authority to

delegate the primary responsibility for enforcing

drinking water regulations to states, territories or

tribes, provided that they meet specific requirements.

States with this responsibility are commonly referred

to as having “primacy.” To assist states in developing

and implementing their own drinking water programs, SDWA authorized EPA to provide grants to

the states and directed the agency to help states

administer their programs. All states but Wyoming

have assumed primacy and receive grants from EPA

to help pay for the oversight of water systems and

other program responsibilities. No tribal governments have yet been granted primacy.

With EPA’s oversight, states with primacy adopt,

implement, and enforce the standards established by

the federal drinking water program to ensure that the

public water systems in their jurisdictions provide

consumers with safe water.

Water systems are required to collect water samples at

designated intervals and locations. The samples must

be tested in state approved laboratories. The test

results are then reported to the state, which determines whether the water system is in compliance or

violation with the regulations. There are three main

types of violations:

(1) MCL violation — occurs when tests indicate that

the level of a contaminant in treated water is

above EPA or the state’s legal limit (states may

set standards equal to, or more protective than,

EPA’s). These violations indicate a potential

have also remained relatively stable over the years (see

Figure 1).

Establishing National Standards for

Drinking Water Quality

SDWA requires EPA to regulate contaminants which

present health risks and are known, or are likely, to

occur in public drinking water supplies. For each

contaminant requiring federal regulation, EPA sets a

non-enforceable health goal, or maximum contaminant

level goal (MCLG). This is the level of a contaminant

in drinking water below which there is no known or

expected risk to health. EPA is then required to

establish an enforceable limit, or maximum contami-
5

25 YEARS OF THE SAFE DRINKING WATER ACT: HISTORY AND TRENDS

health risk, which may be immediate or 

long-term.

(2) Treatment technique violation — occurs when a

water system fails to treat its water in the way

prescribed by EPA (for example, by not disinfecting). Similar to MCL violations, treatment

technique violations indicate a potential health

risk to consumers.

(3) Monitoring and reporting violation — occurs

when a system fails to test its water for certain

contaminants, or fails to report test results in a

timely fashion. If a water system does not

monitor its water properly, no one can know

whether or not its water poses a health risk to

consumers.

If a system violates EPA/state rules, it is required to

notify the public. States are primarily responsible for

taking appropriate enforcement actions if systems

with violations do not return to compliance. States

are also responsible for reporting violation and

enforcement information to EPA quarterly. The

information is stored in a federal database called the

Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS) and

is used to:

• Help EPA monitor the safety of the nation’s public

drinking water supply and track the status of

drinking water rule implementation;

• Help EPA determine when new regulations are

necessary to protect drinking water; and

• Share information with the public and Congress,

such as this report, on the status of public

drinking water.

Tracking Progress Toward Achieving

Drinking Water Goals

As required by the Government Performance and

Results Act, EPA has developed long-term goals and

objectives that ensure accountability for improving

various aspects of the drinking water program. In

addition to helping EPA measure its progress in

improving drinking water quality and implementing

regulations, the goals and objectives also serve as the

framework for the Agency’s planning and resource

allocation decisions.

As part of its overall goal to maintain clean and safe

water, EPA’s primary drinking water objective is to

protect human health so that, by 2005, 95 percent of

the population served by community water systems

will receive water that meets health-based drinking

0

20

40

60

80

100

1978

1984

1990

1996

Figure 2. Number of Contaminants Regulated Under the

Safe Drinking Water Act, by Contaminant Type

1976

1980

1982

1986

1988

1992

1994

1998

Radionuclides

Microbes

Organic Chemicals

Inorganic Chemicals
6

U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

water standards in place as of 1994. For any new

regulations, the objective is 95 percent compliance

within five years. Starting from a baseline of 83

percent in 1994, the population being served by

community water systems with no violations of

health-based standards has increased steadily to 89

percent in 1998 (see Figure 3).

The Original Safe Drinking

Water Act

The 1974 SDWA called for EPA to regulate drinking

water in two steps. The first step involved the

creation of national interim primary drinking water

regulations which, under Congressional direction,

were based largely on the 28 1962 Public Health

Service standards. These not only included MCLs,

but also established requirements for monitoring and

analyzing regulated contaminants in drinking water,

reporting analytical results, record keeping, and

notifying the public when a water system fails to meet

federal standards for any of the contaminants. These

interim MCLs were designed to be enforceable until

revised.

The second step involved the revision of these standards, as necessary, following a comprehensive review

by the National Academy of Sciences of the health

risks posed to consumers.

The first 18 interim standards were set in 1975 for:

• six synthetic organic chemicals (man-made

chemicals which contain carbon, such as

pesticides)

• ten inorganic chemicals (substances of mineral

origin that do not contain carbon)

• turbidity (the cloudiness of water)

• total coliform bacteria (bacteria that are used as

indicators of fecal contamination in water) 9

(Levels were set for coliform bacteria and turbidity

because, while not in and of themselves a health

concern, high levels of both may indicate the presence

of pathogens.)

Interim standards for radionuclides (combined

radium-226 and radium-228 and two other classes of

radionuclides) were promulgated in 1976. An interim

standard for total trihalomethanes (TTHMs), a group

of four volatile organic chemicals which form when

disinfectants react with natural organic matter in the

water, was set in 1979.

80

81

82

83

84

85

86

87

88

1994 1995 1996 1997 1998

Figure 3. Percent of Population Served by Community Water

Systems With No Violations of Health-Based Standards

89

90

Percent of Population
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25 YEARS OF THE SAFE DRINKING WATER ACT: HISTORY AND TRENDS

In 1979, EPA also set non-enforceable guidelines

(called national secondary drinking water regulations)

for contaminants that may cause aesthetic problems in

drinking water. These contaminants include chlorides, color, copper, corrosivity, foaming agents, iron,

manganese, odor, pH, sulfate, total dissolved solids

and zinc.10

The 1986 SDWA

Amendments

Although SDWA was amended slightly in 1977,

1979, and 1980, the most significant changes to the

1974 law occurred when SDWA was reauthorized in

1986.

During the mid-1980s, Congress was frustrated by

the slow pace at which EPA was developing new

regulations; only 23 contaminants had been regulated

between 1975 and 1985. Fluoride, one of the 18

contaminants for which an interim standard was

promulgated in 1975, was the only one of the 18

standards revised before the 1986 Amendments.

Congress also wanted to rectify major deficiencies in

the implementation of programs established by

SDWA. Of particular concern was the fact that

disease-causing microbial contamination had not been

sufficiently controlled under the original Act. Also,

during the early 1980s, synthetic chemicals of

industrial and agricultural origin were being detected

with increasing frequency, especially in ground water

sources.2 Some surface water sources were also being

contaminated with industrial and municipal wastes,

but many were showing improvements in water

quality due to the increased application of pollution

controls, such as waste water treatment plants.

To safeguard the public’s health, the 1986 Amendments required EPA to set MCLGs and MCLs for 83

named contaminants (this list included the interim

standards, except for TTHMs). The amendments

declared that the interim standards promulgated in

1975 were final primary drinking water standards,

included provisions for periodic review of the data

and studies upon which MCLGs and MCLs were

based, and allowed variances for systems that could

not meet certain requirements. The 1986 Amendments

also augmented the federal drinking water role by

requiring EPA to:

• establish regulations, beyond the 83 specified

contaminants, within certain time frames (e.g.,

regulate 25 additional contaminants every three

years starting in 1991)

• require disinfection of all public water supplies

• specify filtration requirements for nearly all water

systems that draw their water from surface

sources

• develop additional programs to protect ground

water supplies (e.g. a new Wellhead Protection

program and an enhanced Sole Source Aquifer

program)

• establish monitoring requirements for unregulated contaminants which states were required to

report on every five years so that EPA could

decide whether or not to regulate those

contaminants

• implement a new ban on lead-based solder, pipe

and flux materials in distribution systems

• specify the “best available technology” for

treating each contaminant for which EPA sets an

MCL. EPA specifies a “best” technology for all

of the major drinking water contaminant groups:

pathogens, organic and inorganic chemicals, and

disinfectant byproducts.

In 1988, SDWA was amended again by the Lead

Contamination Control Act, which established a

program to eliminate lead-containing drinking water

coolers in schools.

Although Congress’ 1986 SDWA revisions required

EPA to regulate or revise the standard for the 83

specified contaminants by 1989, time constraints and

limited resources at the state and federal levels

prevented this from occurring. By 1992, EPA had

issued regulations for 76 of the 83 mandated contaminants (those remaining were arsenic, radium,

radon, two other classes of radionuclides, and sulfate,

most of which had interim standards). These 76

contaminants fall into four basic rule categories, as

described below:
8

U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

The Total Coliform Rule

Coliforms are a group of bacteria that are common in

both the environment and the digestive tracts of

humans and animals. Most of these bacteria are

harmless; however, their presence in water at levels

which are above EPA’s standard indicates that

pathogens may also be in the water. Among the

health problems that pathogens can cause are

diarrhea, cramps, nausea and vomiting. Together

these symptoms comprise a general illness category

known as gastroenteritis. While gastroenteritis is not

usually dangerous for healthy adults, it can lead to

more serious health problems or even death for

people with undeveloped or weakened immune

systems, such as the very young, elderly, people with

HIV/AIDS or those who have undergone chemotherapy or organ transplants.

Testing water for each of a variety of microbes would

be difficult and expensive, but coliform can be easily

detected in water. Therefore, coliform levels are used

to indicate whether a water system may be vulnerable

to pathogens in the water.

In the Total Coliform Rule, EPA set a health goal

(MCLG) of zero for total coliforms. EPA also set an

MCL for total coliforms. Systems may not find

coliforms in more than 5.0 percent of the samples they

take each month. If more than 5.0 percent of the

samples contain coliforms, water system operators

must report this violation to the state and the public.

Most water systems test for coliforms throughout the

distribution system on a monthly basis. Some test

many times per day, depending on the system size

(larger systems test the most). The presence of

coliforms in drinking water may indicate that the

system’s treatment system is not performing properly

or that there is a problem with the distribution system.

To prevent or eliminate microbial contamination,

systems may need to take a number of actions,

including repairing the disinfection/filtration equipment, flushing or upgrading the pipes that carry water

to customers, and better protecting source water from

contamination.

The Surface Water Treatment Rule

EPA issued the Surface Water Treatment Rule in

response to Congress’ mandate to require systems that

draw their water from surface sources (rivers, lakes

and reservoirs) to disinfect their water before distribution and filter, where appropriate. The rule seeks to

reduce the occurrence of unsafe levels of diseasecausing microbes, including viruses, Legionella

bacteria, and the protozoan Giardia lamblia. These

pathogens are present at varying concentrations in

most surface waters.

Most of the country’s large water systems use surface

water as their source. Surface water is particularly

susceptible to microbial contamination from sewage

treatment plant discharges and farm field runoff.

These sources often contain high levels of fecal

microbes that originate in septic systems or livestock

waste.

Ingestion of Giardia and viruses can cause problems in

the human digestive system, generally in the form of

diarrhea, cramps, and nausea. Legionella in water are

a health risk if the bacteria are aerosolized (e.g. in an

air conditioning system or a shower) and then inhaled.

Inhalation can result in a type of pneumonia known as

Legionnaires’ Disease.

The rule sets MCLGs for Legionella, Giardia, and

viruses at zero because any exposure to these contaminants represents some health risk. Because it is not

feasible to accurately measure the level of pathogens in

drinking water, EPA requires surface water systems to

use certain treatment techniques to minimize the risk

from these contaminants.

Specifically, all surface water systems must filter and

disinfect their water to provide a minimum of 99.9

percent combined removal and inactivation of Giardia,

and 99.99 percent removal and inactivation of viruses.

The adequacy of the filtration process is determined by

measuring the turbidity of the treated water; higher

levels of turbidity are often an indicator that the

filtration process is not working as it should.

Some public water supplies that have pristine and

protected sources may be granted a waiver from the

filtration requirement. These supplies must provide
9

25 YEARS OF THE SAFE DRINKING WATER ACT: HISTORY AND TRENDS

the same level of protection as those that filter;

however, their protection is provided through disinfection alone. The vast majority of water supplies in the

U.S. that use a surface water source filter their water.

Because it is possible for microbes to enter the

distribution system (through cracks or joints in pipes),

water systems are also required to provide continuous

disinfection of the drinking water entering the

distribution system and maintain a detectable disinfectant level within the distribution system.

The Chemical Rules

The chemical contaminants that EPA regulated in

these rules generally pose long-term (i.e., chronic)

health risks if ingested over a lifetime at levels

consistently above the MCL. These chemicals can

cause a wide variety of health effects. For example,

some can accumulate in the liver or kidneys and

interfere with the functions of these organs. Others

can affect the nervous system or cause cancer.

Along with their long-term effects, some of these

contaminants can also cause immediate (i.e., acute)

health risks. Nitrate and nitrite can cause acute

health effects in infants by limiting the blood’s ability

to carry oxygen from the lungs to the rest of the body.

Therefore, EPA’s MCL for nitrate and nitrite was set

specifically at a level to protect infants.

The chemical contaminants enter the environment

through a wide variety of pathways. Some are used

in dry cleaners and automotive service stations.

Others come from frequently-applied fertilizers (e.g.,

nitrate) or pesticides (e.g., alachlor). Still others are

used in industrial processes to produce other chemicals or as solvents (e.g., trans-1,2-Dichloroethylene).

A number of contaminants may be naturally occurring,

including inorganic elements such as arsenic.

EPA also limits the amount of some chemicals that

water systems may add to water during the treatment

process (e.g., acrylamide and epichlorohydrin).

EPA set different monitoring schedules for different

chemicals, depending on the routes by which each

enters the water supply. In general, surface water

systems must take samples more frequently than

ground water systems because their water is subject to

more external influences and the water quality

changes more frequently due to seasonal and agricultural cycles. Systems which prove that they are not

susceptible to contamination can often get state

permission to reduce the frequency of monitoring.

However, if such systems detect contamination, they

must begin monitoring more frequently.

The Lead and Copper Rule

Lead and copper are both naturally-occurring metals.

Both were used to make household plumbing fixtures

and pipes for many years, although Congress banned

the installation of lead solder, pipes, and fittings in

1986. Water flowing through, or sitting in, pipes

containing lead or copper can pick up these metals.

Lead and copper have different health effects. Lead

is particularly dangerous to fetuses and young

children because it can slow their neurological and

physical development. Anemia (a condition in which

the blood is deficient in red blood cells, hemoglobin

or total volume) may be one sign of a child’s exposure to high lead levels. Lead may also affect the

kidneys, brain, nervous system, and red blood cells,

and is considered a possible cause of cancer.

Copper is a health concern for several reasons. While

it is essential to the body at very low levels, short-term

consumption of water containing copper at concentrations well above EPA’s legal limit could cause nausea,

vomiting, and diarrhea. It can also lead to serious

health problems in people with Wilson’s disease.

Exposure to drinking water containing copper above

the action level over many years could increase the

risk of liver and kidney damage.

To prevent these effects, EPA set health goals and

action levels for lead and copper. An action level

differs from an MCL in that an MCL is a legal limit

on the amount of a contaminant that is allowed in

drinking water, whereas an action level is a trigger for

requiring additional prevention or removal steps.

EPA requires water systems to not only evaluate the

pipes in their distribution systems, but also the age

and types of housing that they serve. Based upon this

information, the systems must collect water samples

at points throughout the distribution system where
10

U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

lead contamination is more likely to occur, including

regularly-used bathroom or kitchen taps.

When the concentration of lead or copper reaches the

action level in ten percent of the tap water samples,

the water system must begin certain water treatment

steps. For example, water systems can reduce the

amount of lead or copper that leaches out of pipes by

taking measures to make the water less acidic (i.e.,

less corrosive).

When a water system exceeds the action level for

either metal, it must also assess its source water. In

most cases, there will be little or none of either

contaminant in the source water and no treatment will

be necessary. If there are high levels in the source

water, treatment, in addition to corrosion control,

further lessens the chance that consumers will have

elevated levels of lead and copper at their taps.

The rule requires systems that exceed the lead action

level to educate the affected public about how to

reduce lead intake. Consumers can further reduce

the potential for elevated lead levels at their taps by

ensuring that all plumbing and fixtures meet local

plumbing codes. A system which continues to exceed

the lead action level after completing corrosion

control and treatment of source water must replace

some of its lead distribution pipes.

The 1996 SDWA

Amendments

In the late 1980s and early 1990s, several reports were

released about the national drinking water program

which drew attention to the need for amending

SDWA. The reports raised issues such as whether

implementation schedules for new SDWA regulations

were realistic; whether public health was being

threatened by many water systems’ non-compliance

with EPA regulations; whether funding for regulation

development, implementation and compliance was

adequate; and whether EPA and states’ enforcement

of regulations was lacking.11 There was also a general

recognition that the numerous contaminant-specific

standard setting requirements of the 1986 amendments resulted in a “regulatory treadmill [which]

dilutes limited resources on lower priority contaminants and as a consequence may hinder more rapid

progress on high-priority contaminants,” according

to Mr. Robert Perciasepe, former Assistant Administrator of EPA’s Office of Water in Congressional

testimony on January 31, 1996.12

After much discussion, SDWA was amended in 1996,

emphasizing comprehensive public health protection

through risk-based standard setting, increased funding,

reliance on best available science, prevention tools and

programs, strengthened enforcement authority for

EPA, and public participation in drinking water issues.

The Amendments improved upon the existing regulatory framework in two important ways. First, they

created a new focus on setting contaminant regulation

priorities based on data about the adverse health effects

of the contaminant, the occurrence of the contaminant

in public water systems, and the estimated reduction in

health risk that would result from regulation. The Act

also increased requirements for research to give EPA

more sound scientific data on which to base regulatory

decisions. For each proposed regulation, EPA must

also conduct a thorough analysis of the costs to water

suppliers and benefits to public health, including

people with weakened immune systems. Public health

protection remains the primary basis for deciding the

levels at which drinking water standards are set.

Second, states were given greater flexibility to

implement SDWA to meet their specific needs while

arriving at the same level of public health protection.

The 1996 Amendments seek to prevent drinking

water contamination by increasing states’ and water

systems’ capacity to provide safe water.

For example, funding for infrastructure and other water

system improvements, especially for small water

systems, has significantly increased through the

establishment of a new multi-year, multi-billion dollar

drinking water state revolving loan fund. New

prevention programs, such as source water assessments, will give states and water suppliers information

they need to prevent contamination of drinking water

sources, thereby providing another barrier of defense

against contamination, in addition to treatment. The

Amendments also require national minimum guidelines

for states to certify operators of drinking water

systems, and a water system capacity development
11

25 YEARS OF THE SAFE DRINKING WATER ACT: HISTORY AND TRENDS

Consumer Confidence Reports

Every community water system must provide its

customers with an annual water quality report starting

in 1999. The reports tell customers about the source of

their water supply, the level of any regulated contaminants detected in their water, and the health effects of

contaminants detected above the safety limit.

Source Water Assessments

No later than 2003, states will be examining each of

the nation’s drinking water sources to identify contaminant threats and determine how susceptible

drinking water sources are to contamination. Communities may assist their state and water system in

conducting the assessments, and the states must make

the results of the assessments available to the public.

Drinking Water State Revolving

Fund (DWSRF)

This federal grant program provides money for states,

who, in turn, provide loans to water systems to

upgrade their facilities and ensure compliance with

drinking water standards. A portion of each state’s

federal grant money can be set aside for several

specific purposes, including acquiring land to buffer

drinking water sources from contamination and

funding other local protection activities. Each year,

every state develops an intended use plan for how it

intends to use all funds, including a list of water

systems that will be receiving loan assistance to

upgrade their treatment facilities. This list is available

to the public, and states are required to seek public

input into the development of their intended use plan.

State Capacity Development Strategies

By October 2000, states must develop strategies to

ensure that all public water systems have the technical,

financial and managerial capability to ensure that safe

drinking water is provided to their customers. States

are required to involve the public in the development

of these strategies, and to make the final strategy

available to the public.

Operator Certification Revisions

States that need to revise their existing programs to

certify operators of public water systems, in order to

meet new requirements, must submit their program

changes to EPA by February 2001. These states

must obtain public input while revising their

programs, and are encouraged to use citizen

advisory committees to help implement these

programs.

Public Notification Improvements

Public water systems must notify their customers

when they violate a drinking water standard. EPA

is revising the existing Public Notification rule to

better tailor the form, manner, and timing of the

notices to the relative risk to health. The proposed

rule will make notification easier and more effective

for both water systems and the public.

New Publicly-Accessible Drinking

Water Contaminant Databases

EPA has collected information from water systems

on the occurrence of contaminants in drinking

water to assist in its decision-making about which

contaminants to regulate in the future and which

standards for regulated contaminants to reexamine.

The data is accessible to the public via the Internet

at www.epa.gov/enviro/ under “Drinking Water

Occurrence” and “Drinking Water Microbial and

Disinfection Byproduct Information.”

Annual Compliance Report

Every year states must publish a report listing

systems in their jurisdiction with violations of

federal drinking water standards. EPA must

summarize this information in a national report and

make it available to the public.

Health Care Provider Outreach and

Education

EPA and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and

Prevention (CDC) must jointly establish a national

health care provider training and public education

campaign to inform both the professional health

care provider community and the general public

about waterborne disease and the symptoms that

may be caused by infectious agents, including

microbial contaminants.

The 1996 Amendments: Improving Public Access

to Information and Increasing Opportunities

for Public Participation
12

U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

program to ensure that water systems have the managerial, technical, and financial capacity to effectively

protect drinking water supplies.

Finally, the Amendments reflect the fact that effective

drinking water protection must be founded on government and water system accountability, and onpublic

awareness and involvement. “Right-to-know”

provisions in the Amendments will give consumers

the information they need to make their own health

decisions, allow increased participation in drinking

water decision-making, and promote accountability at

the water system, state and federal levels.13

The History of Drinking

Water Treatment

People first treated water to improve its aesthetic qualities. Methods to improve the taste

and odor of drinking water were recorded as

early as 4000 B.C. Ancient Sanskrit, and Greek

writings recommended water treatment methods

such as filtering through charcoal, exposing to

sunlight, boiling, and straining.14

Visible cloudiness (turbidity) was the driving force

behind early water treatments, as many source waters

contained particles that had an objectionable taste and

appearance. To clarify water, the Egyptians reportedly used the coagulant alum (a chemical that causes

suspended particles to settle out of water) as early as

1500 B.C.15 During the 1700s, filtration was established as an effective means of removing particles

from water, although the degree of clarity was not

measurable at that time.1 By the early 1800s, slow

sand filtration was beginning to be used regularly in

Europe, mainly to improve water’s aesthetic qualities.

By the late 1800s and early 1900s, slow sand filtration

was used by water systems in some U.S. cities such as

Philadelphia.15

Soon after, scientists learned that turbidity was not

only an aesthetic problem; particles in source water

such as fecal matter could harbor disease-causing

microbes. The design of most drinking water treatment systems built in the U.S. during the early 1900s

was driven by the need to reduce turbidity, thereby

removing microbial contaminants which were

causing typhoid, dysentery and cholera epidemics.

While filtration was a fairly effective treatment

method for reducing turbidity, it was disinfectants like

chlorine that played the largest role in reducing the

number of waterborne disease outbreaks in the early

1900s. In 1908, chlorine was used for the first time as

a primary disinfectant of drinking water in Jersey City,

New Jersey. The use of other disinfectants such as

ozone also began in Europe around this time, but were

not employed in the U.S. until several decades later.15

Today, filtration and chlorination remain

effective treatment techniques for protecting

U.S. water supplies from harmful microbes,

although additional advances in disinfection

have been made since the early 1900s.

By the 1960s, standard drinking water treatment

techniques in the U.S. also included aeration, flocculation, and granular activated carbon adsorption (for

removal of organic contaminants). In the 1970s and

1980s, advancements were made in membrane

filtration development for reverse osmosis and other

new treatment techniques such as ozonation (see

Appendix C).

15

According to a 1995 EPA survey, approximately 64

percent of community ground water and surface water

systems disinfect their water with chlorine. Almost all

of the remaining surface water systems, and some of

the remaining ground water systems, use another type

of disinfectant, such as ozone or chloramine.18

Some treatment advancements have been driven by

the discovery of chlorine-resistant pathogens in

drinking water that can cause illnesses like hepatitis,

gastroenteritis, Legionnaire’s Disease, and cryptosporidiosis. Other advancements resulted from the

need to remove more and more chemicals found in

sources of drinking water.

Over the years, the number of water systems applying

some type of treatment has increased. According to

several EPA surveys, from 1976 to 1995, the percentage of small and medium community water systems

that treat their water has steadily increased. For

example, as figure 4 shows, in 1976 only 33 percent

of systems serving fewer than 100 people provided

treatment. By 1995, that number had risen to 69

percent.16-18
13

25 YEARS OF THE SAFE DRINKING WATER ACT: HISTORY AND TRENDS

Most large systems have provided some treatment

from the beginning, as they draw their water from

surface sources which are more susceptible to

pollution. These systems also have the customer base

to provide the funds needed to install and improve

treatment equipment. Because distribution systems

have extended to serve a growing population (as

people have moved from concentrated urban areas to

more suburban areas), additional treatment has been

required to keep water safe until it is delivered to

all customers.

Protecting Drinking Water

Sources

Although treatment techniques can be very effective at

removing contaminants from drinking water, they can

sometimes be expensive to employ. Also, removing

contaminants from drinking water does not necessarily remove them from the environment (e.g., contaminants removed from water are often disposed of on

land or released into the air). A more environmentally-sustainable solution to drinking water contamination is to prevent pollutants from reaching drinking

water sources in the first place.

Until the 1970s, ground water was thought by many to

be naturally protected from dangerous contaminants.

Since then, scientists have learned that contaminants

from various commercial, industrial, residential and

agricultural activities have reached some ground water

sources (see Figure 5).17

The nature of ground water makes it especially

difficult to clean up once contamination occurs, and

clean-up can cost millions of dollars and take many

years to complete. Therefore, pollution prevention is

a more prudent and, in many cases, more costeffective approach to protecting ground water used

for drinking water.

Approximately 80 percent of the community water

systems in the U.S. draw their water from underground

sources, so it is crucial to public health that these

sources be protected from contamination. Since the

early 1970s, Congress has enacted a range of laws,

including provisions in SDWA, to regulate waste

disposal wells and underground storage tanks, and

remediate and regulate hazardous waste disposal sites

(see Appendix D).

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

1976 1982 1986 1995

Figure 4. Percentage of Community Water Systems Providing

Any Treatment, by Population Served

0-100

101-500

501-1,000

1,001-3,300

3,301-10,000
14

U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

Underground Injection Control

The Underground Injection Control Program, mandated by the 1974 SDWA, was one of the first SDWA

provisions created specifically to protect underground

sources of drinking water. This program regulates

wells that are used by various municipal, agricultural,

commercial and industrial entities to inject fluids

underground for the purpose of disposal, hydrocarbon

production and storage, or mineral recovery. Fluids

may also be injected into underground wells to

replenish depleted aquifers (natural underground

layers of sand or gravel that contain water) with

surface water for later retrieval, and to prevent salt

water intrusion into underground sources of drinking

water.

Shallow drainage systems which discharge contaminants above or directly into underground sources of

drinking water are additional examples of waste

injection practices regulated under this program.

Injection practices not regulated by the Underground

Injection Control program include small drainage

systems (serving fewer than 20 persons) which inject

only sanitary waste.

For regulatory purposes, EPA groups injection

practices which have similar functions and/or

construction and operating features into one of five

classes of injection wells (see Appendix E). EPA also

establishes minimum requirements for states and

territories with primacy for Underground Injection

Control programs. These requirements are designed to

ensure that injected fluids stay within the wells and the

intended injection zones and do not endanger underground sources of drinking water.

Today, 36 states and territories have primacy for

Underground Injection Control programs and EPA

directly implements 17 programs. These programs

regulate more than 400,000 injection wells and up to

89 percent of all hazardous waste that is land-disposed

in the U.S.

Sole Source Aquifers

Another ground water protection effort established by

SDWA is the sole source aquifer protection program.

Congress included this provision in the 1974 SDWA,

and has not modified it since. The program allows

communities, individuals, and organizations to petition

EPA for protection of an aquifer that is the “sole” or

principal source of drinking water for the local

population.

A region is eligible for sole source aquifer status if

more than 50 percent of the population in the defined

area relies on the designated aquifer as its primary

source of drinking water. Once EPA designates a sole

source aquifer through a public process, EPA has the

authority to review and approve federal financiallyassisted projects that may potentially contaminate the

Ground Water Movement

Intentional Input

Unintentional Input

Figure 5. Sources of Ground Water Contamination

Septic

Tank

Cesspool

Discharge Deep

Injection

Well

Fertilizer

Drinking

Water Well

Waste Lagoon

Factory

Pumping

Well

Sewer Leakage

Aquifer

Confining Zone

Confining Zone

Water

Table

Injection Zone

Leakage

Aquifer

Unlined

Landfill Pesticides
15

25 YEARS OF THE SAFE DRINKING WATER ACT: HISTORY AND TRENDS

aquifer. If the proposed project poses no threat, then

the project continues as planned. However, if there is

potential for contamination of the aquifer, EPA must

work with the project leader and associated federal

agency to recommend protective modifications.

Examples of federally funded projects that EPA

reviews because the activity may impact ground water

quality include:

• transportation-related improvement and

construction;

• infrastructure upgrades of public water supply

systems and waste water facilities;

• agricultural projects which involve animal waste

management concerns; and

• construction ofmulti-family housing, business

centers, gasoline stations, and hospitals.

Since the first sole source aquifer designation in 1975,

EPA has designated 70 aquifers in 25 states and

territories (see Figure 6).

Wellhead Protection

A third provision of SDWA aimed at preventing

groundwater contamination is the Wellhead Protection

Program. The 1986 SDWA Amendments established

this voluntary program, under which each state is

required to develop and implement a comprehensive

program to protect the land areas around water supply

wells from contaminants that may enter the ground

water and adversely affect human health.

EPA approves state wellhead protection programs and

provides technical support to state and local governments to implement the programs. Although initially

hampered by lack of funding, most states persevered in

developing and implementing wellhead protection

programs. The states worked hard to overcome other

obstacles, including a general lack of public awareness

about the need to protect wellhead areas, local

reluctance to require land-use controls to prevent

contamination, and shortages of technical data and

expertise necessary to properly delineate (determine

the boundaries of) wellhead protection areas and

identify contaminant sources of concern.

Working primarily with the assistance of EPA regional

offices, the number of states obtaining federal approval

for their wellhead protection programs has increased

steadily since 1990. Today, 49 states and territories

have approved wellhead protection programs in place

(see Figure 7).

Every two years, states/territories report to EPA on

their progress in implementing wellhead protection

0

5

10

15

Number of Aquifers

20

1975

1977

1979

1981

1983

1985

1987

1989

1991

1993

1995

1997

Figure 6. Number of Sole Source Aquifers Designated Per Year
16

U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

2. Delineation (determination of the land area to be

protected)

3. Source identification (potential sources of

contamination within the delineated area have

been identified)

0

2,000

4,000

6,000

8,000

1993 1995 1997

Figure 8. National Wellhead Protection Program Implementation,

Summary of Biennial Data for Community Water Systems

Getting Started

Delineation

Source Identification

Source Management

Contingency Planning

Number of Community Water Systems

programs for community water systems. Figure 8

shows the number of community water systems where

one or more of the five steps of a local wellhead

protection effort has taken place. The five steps are:

1. Getting started (usually means that a community

planning or work team has been established)

0

10

20

30

40

50

1986

1987

1989

1991

1993

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

Figure 7. Number of States/Territories with Federally Approved

Wellhead Protection Programs, by Year 1988 1990 1992 1994
17

25 YEARS OF THE SAFE DRINKING WATER ACT: HISTORY AND TRENDS

Alaska Hawaii

Neither Program Approved

Wellhead Protection Program Approved

Wellhead Protection and Comprehensive Ground Water

Protection Programs Approved

Figure 9. States with Approved Wellhead

Protection and/or Comprehensive State

Ground Water Protection Programs

Guam Puerto Rico Virgin Islands

Northern

Mariana Islands

their programs and must complete assessments by

2003. The Act encourages states and communities to

use the information from assessments to develop and

implement source water protection programs. These

programs would identify measures to protect the

watershed of each public water system.

Each assessment will provide essentially the first

three steps of a full prevention program: delineating

the source water protection area, inventorying the

significant potential sources of contamination, and

understanding the susceptibility of the source waters

of each public water system to contamination. These

assessments should lead to protection because they are

a tool for further efforts, not a complete process in and

of themselves. States must make the results of each

assessment available to the public. Then, each state,

public water system and locality can decide what

preventive actions to take based upon the findings.

Beginning in 2001, states will incorporate information

on the status of their wellhead protection programs into

4. Source management (a plan has been developed

and implemented to adequately manage identified

potential sources of contamination)

5. Contingency planning (a plan has been established to protect the water source in case of an

accidental spill of hazardous materials or some

other emergency)19

State Ground Water Protection Programs

In July 1991, EPA released a ground water protection

strategy which encourages states to develop comprehensive ground water protection programs that

establish state-wide priorities for prevention and

remediation activities. In 1992, EPA published

national guidance detailing the exact program a state

would have to implement in order to be endorsed by

EPA as being comprehensive.

These voluntary programs encourage federal and

state programs to set common priorities for protective and remedial actions and to coordinate all

programs to achieve common ground water protection and remediation goals. Programs to protect

current and reasonably expected future drinking

water supplies include wellhead protection, hazardous and other waste management, pesticides,

underground storage tanks, and wetlands programs.

Today, eleven states have EPA-endorsed comprehensive ground water protection programs (see Figure 9).

Each state has made progress in comprehensive

program development, but many states still have

fragmented and incomplete programs. Current data

show that localized contamination still exists in every

state from sources such as septic systems, underground storage tanks, animal feeding operations,

agriculture and manufacturing industries.

Source Water Assessments

The 1996 SDWA Amendments expand the statutory

basis for assessing and protecting ground water sources

of drinking water and establish new efforts to assess

and protect surface sources of drinking water (i.e.,

source water assessments). The Amendments require

states to implement statewide programs to assess the

susceptibility to contamination of each public water

system. States must first receive EPA approval for
18

U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

their source water assessment reports. States will

expand their wellhead protection efforts beyond the

five steps discussed under State Ground Water

Programs to include completion of a susceptibility

determination and presentation of the final assessment

report to the public.

The Clean Water Act

Source water assessment and protection programs are

not the only means by which surface water sources are

protected from pollution. The Clean Water Act also

seeks to protect these sources of drinking water. The

1977 Clean Water Act amended the 1972 Federal

Water Pollution Control Act, which established the

framework for regulating the discharge of pollutants to

waters of the U.S. Aggressive use of this Clean Water

Act authority can reduce the contaminant loading that

might otherwise have to be removed by a drinking

water treatment facility to protect public health.

The Clean Water Act requires states and authorized

Native American tribes to set water quality standards

which consist of two parts: 1) states and tribes assign

“designated uses” to each of the waterbodies in their

jurisdiction, such as serving as public drinking water

sources, providing fish and shellfish for safe human

consumption, and allowing recreational activities like

swimming; 2) then states and tribes set water quality

criteria (e.g., maximum pollutant concentrations) to

support the designated uses.

If pollutant standards are not met for part or all of a

waterbody, the state must establish a “total maximum

daily load” (TMDL) for the pollutant. The TMDL is

the maximum amount of a pollutant that a waterbody

can receive and still meet water quality standards. The

TMDL is allocated among individual dischargers of

the pollutant, including both point and nonpoint

sources.

The Clean Water Act requires that states survey, assess

and report on the degree to which their surface waters

support designated uses. Some Native American

tribes also report this information. Thirty-eight states,

tribes or territories submitted data to EPA in 1998 that

address the support of public drinking water use (see

Figure 10). According to that data, the majority of

waterbodies designated as public water supplies are

fully supporting that use (86 percent of assessed rivers

and streams, and 85 percent of assessed lakes and

reservoirs).20

In the early 1990s, only a small percentage of rivers,

streams, lakes, and reservoirs were assessed for

drinking water use. In 1996, EPA published state

guidelines for assessing the extent to which

waterbodies are of sufficient quality to support their

use as drinking water supplies. EPA modified these

guidelines in 1998 to provide states more flexibility.

That additional flexibility has resulted in an increasing

number of states performing drinking water use

assessments under the Clean Water Act. The number

of states that are reporting data on how they classify

waterbodies for drinking water use, and on the sources

of water contamination, is also increasing.

However, many challenges remain. In 1998, twelve

states did not report on whether, or how, their water

quality standards support drinking water use and many

of the 38 states that reported water quality data did not

explain how they classify waterbodies to support

drinking water use, or on the sources of contamination

affecting those waterbodies. The source water

assessments that are required by SDWA to be comAlaska Virgin Islands Hawaii Puerto Rico

Submitted Drinking Water Use Support Data

No Drinking Water Use Support Data Submitted

Figure 10. States Submitting 1998

Drinking Water Use Support Data to EPA
19

25 YEARS OF THE SAFE DRINKING WATER ACT: HISTORY AND TRENDS

pleted no later than 2003 should help strengthen

reporting from the states.

Compliance Trends for

Community Water Systems

One way to gauge whether the quality of our nation’s

drinking water has improved under SDWA is to

examine water systems’ compliance with federal

regulations.

Over the past year, EPA has been evaluating the quality

of the data used to assess the effectiveness of the

drinking water program. The evaluation assessed

quality using many different approaches. Data

verification audits (performed in states by an independent EPA contractor) from the past three years were

used to quantify data quality, because these audits look

at data quality from the perspective of what data should

have been reported by public water systems to local

and state governments, as well as what data should

have been transmitted from state governments to the

Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS),

EPA’s drinking water database.

This analysis concluded that about 90 percent of

monitoring and reporting violations which should have

been reported were reported incorrectly or not at all.

About half of the MCL violations were not reported.

EPA does not believe that these results are cause for

immediate concern because they may be unrelated to

public health. We are still investigating whether the

under-reporting by states is due to poor documentation,

different interpretations of regulatory requirements,

inadequate staffing, or other causes. Much work

remains to be done.

EPA, with its partners, is committed to correcting

data deficiencies. These deficiencies make it difficult

to look at historical compliance trends using SDWIS

data — but this is the best source of drinking water

data that exists on a nationwide basis. Therefore,

EPA presents the following data on trends, realizing

that the magnitude of certain trends may be inaccurate as some states have provided little or no data for

certain regulations over a period of months or years.

While the general trend is downward, the actual

number of systems in violation may be higher than

shown in the following compliance figures.

Although water systems began reporting data to states

for the earliest regulations in the late 1970s, most

compliance data was not entered into EPA’s electronic

database until around 1980. For this reason, the

historical data presented here begins in 1980.

Delays in Achieving Compliance

Under the original SDWA and its 1986 amendments,

water systems were given 18 months to comply with

new regulations. States used this time to obtain

authority from their legislatures to adopt the new

rules, promulgate their own rules (which must be at

least as strict as the federal requirements), and

convey to water systems the new requirements.

Over the years, many water systems have taken longer

than allowed to implement new monitoring schedules,

purchase and install new treatment devices, or make

improvements in their existing treatment techniques.

In many cases, late compliance has been due to a lack

of funding and other resources at the water system

level. This is especially the case when several new

regulations are issued around the same time. Nevertheless, water systems that do not meet a new rule’s

requirements within the allotted implementation time

are considered to be in violation because they may not

be providing the level of public health protection that

the rule intends.

When several new regulations, including the Surface

Water Treatment Rule and the chemical rules, were

promulgated after the 1986 Amendments and were

scheduled to go into effect in the early 1990s, many

water systems had difficulty meeting all the new

requirements at once. The number of systems

reported by states as violating these new rules generally peaked a few years after the rules were promulgated (see Figure 19). This was likely due to a combination of late water system compliance and a delay

in the reporting of violation data by states to EPA.

To give states and water systems a more realistic

amount of time to comply with new regulations, the

1996 Amendments extended the time between

promulgation and implementation to three years for

most new regulations.
20

U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

Total Trihalomethanes (TTHMs) and

Nitrates

TTHMs form when disinfectants react with natural

organic matter in water and have potential chronic

health effects. TTHMs occur mostly in surface water

systems because these systems are most likely to have

elevated levels of organic matter in their source water,

which can create these byproducts during disinfection.

Nitrates have potential acute health affects and occur

mostly in ground water systems (which tend to be

smaller). Because trihalomethanes and nitrates are

two of EPA’s earliest regulated contaminants, tracking

compliance with these standards provides a general

sense of public drinking water quality over time.

The 1979 standard for TTHMs applies to about 3,500

community water systems (those serving at least

10,000 people). The number of community water

systems with at least one violation of the TTHM

MCL has been decreasing fairly steadily since the

mid-1980s, going from a peak of about 70 systems

(2 percent of the total that must comply) violating in

1985 to fewer than 10 systems violating in 1998 (see

Figure 11). The number of community water systems

with monitoring and reporting violations for TTHMs

has also been decreasing fairly steadily, going from

about 180 systems violating in 1985 to about 70

violating in 1998.

The standard for nitrate applies to all types and sizes of

public water systems. The number of community water

systems with MCL violations for nitrate has been

decreasing slightly since the mid-1980s, going from a

peak of about 340 systems violating in 1985 to

approximately 190 systems in 1998 (see Figure 12).

As with TTHMs, the peak number of systems with

reported violations represents a small fraction — less

than one percent — of the total systems which must

comply with the nitrate MCL. There is no clear trend

regarding the number of community water systems

with monitoring and reporting violations for nitrates.

Inorganic Chemicals

From 1976 to 1986, nine drinking water regulations

existed for inorganic contaminants, including nitrate.

Seven additional inorganic chemicals were assigned

MCLs when the interim standards were finalized by

the 1986 SDWA Amendments.

Despite these additions, the number of community

water systems with MCL violations of inorganic

contaminants other than nitrate declined steadily from

its peak (about 700 systems) in 1984 by an average of

36 systems per year, to about 100 systems in 1998

(see Figure 13). This peak number of 700 violating

systems represents less than two percent of the total

Figure 11. Number of Community Water Systems with

Violations for Total Trihalomethanes (TTHMs)

0

20

40

60

80

100

160

180

140

120

200

1981

1983

1985

1987

1989

1991

1993

1995

1997

MCL Violations

Monitoring/Reporting Violations
21

25 YEARS OF THE SAFE DRINKING WATER ACT: HISTORY AND TRENDS

number of community water systems that must comply

with MCLs for inorganic chemicals other than nitrate.

No trend is decipherable in the number of community

water systems violating monitoring and reporting

requirements for inorganic compounds.

Synthetic Organic Chemicals

Synthetic organic chemicals were also some of the

earliest contaminants regulated under SDWA. Six

of them were assigned interim standards (mainly

pesticides), and twenty-six more were regulated

Figure 12. Number of Community Water Systems with

MCL Violations for Nitrates

0

50

100

150

200

300

350

250

400

0

200,000

400,000

600,000

800,000

1,000,000

1,200,000

1,400,000

1,600,000

1980

1982

1984

1986

1988

1990

1992

1994

1996

1998

Number of Systems

Population Served

Population

Systems with

Violations

Nitrite added

Nitrate revised

0

100

200

300

400

500

600

700

800

1980

1982

1984

1986

1988

1990

1992

1994

1996

1998

Figure 13. Number of Community Water Systems with MCL

Violations of Inorganic Chemicals (Other than Nitrates) Fluoride revised 9 standards until 1992 2 new standards; 6 revised Nickel remanded
22

U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

beginning in 1993. The number of community water

systems with MCL violations for synthetic organic

chemicals generally increased from a few systems

violating in the early 1980s to a peak of 60 systems

violating in 1995. The number of systems violating

the MCL declined since then to fewer than 20 in

1998 (see Figure 14). This peak number of violating

systems represents less than one percent of the total

community water systems that must comply with

MCLs for synthetic organic chemicals. No trend is

decipherable in the number of community water

systems violating monitoring and reporting requirements for synthetic organic compounds.

Volatile Organic Chemicals

As mentioned previously, TTHMs were the only

volatile organic compounds regulated under the

original SDWA. In the 1986 amendments, EPA set

MCLs for 21 additional volatile organic compounds,

most of which became effective in 1989. The number

of community water systems with MCL violations of

these volatile organic compounds peaked in 1992 at

about 70 systems (representing less than one percent

of the total community water systems that must

comply with MCLs for volatile organic chemicals

other than TTHMs). Since 1992, the number of

systems violating has declined by about eight per year

to 25 systems violating in 1998 (see Figure 15).

The greatest number of people were affected by these

violations in the first few years of implementation.

Between 1989 and 1991, the population affected by

violations of volatile organic compound MCLs

dropped by more than 60 percent, going from about

1.5 million people affected to less than 500,000

people affected. The population affected then

increased gradually to about 600,000 in 1994 and

has declined steadily since (see Figure 15).

Radionuclides

The interim regulations for radionuclides included

standards for combined radium-226 and -228 and two

other classes of radionuclide contaminants. These

standards remain the same today, although revisions

are under consideration at this time. A standard for

radon has also been proposed.

The number of community water systems with MCL

violations for radionuclides increased fairly steadily

from 1980 to 1992. By 1992, EPA had proposed a

less stringent standard for radium so that national

resources could be focused on control of radon, which

posed a higher risk and was found more frequently

Figure 14. Number of Community Water Systems with

Violations of Synthetic Organic Chemicals

0

10

20

30

40

60

80

70

50

90

0

200

400

600

800

1,000

1,200

1,600

1,400

1,800

1980

1982

1984

1986

1988

1990

1992

1994

1996

1998

MCL Violations

Monitoring/Reporting Violations

MCL Violations

Monitoring/Reporting

Violations

6 standards until 1992

13 new standards; 5 revised

15 new standards

1 revised
23

25 YEARS OF THE SAFE DRINKING WATER ACT: HISTORY AND TRENDS

than radium. Many states may have stopped reporting

water systems’ radium violations in anticipation of the

new standard, causing the decrease in MCL violations

seen in figure 16 after 1992.

Figure 15. Number of Community Water Systems with MCL Violations

For Volatile Organic Chemicals (Other than TTHMs)

0

10

20

30

40

60

70

50

80

0

200,000

400,000

600,000

800,000

1,000,000

1,200,000

1,400,000

1,600,000

1987

1989

1991

1993

1995

1997

Number of Systems

Population Served

Population

Systems with

Violations

8 new

standards

12 new

standards

3 new

standards

Total Coliform

The Total Coliform Rule became effective in December 1990, although a less stringent standard for total

coliform existed (in combination with a turbidity

0

100

200

300

400

500

1980

1982

1984

1986

1988

1990

1992

1994

1996

1998

Figure 16. Number of Community Water Systems with

MCL Violations for Radionuclides
24

U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

standard) as one of the interim regulations under the

original SDWA. Community water systems with total

coliform violations have accounted for the vast

majority of community water systems with MCL

violations each year. Monitoring is required more

frequently for total coliform, thus creating more

opportunities for detecting MCL violations.

The number of systems with MCL violations of total

coliform has decreased fairly steadily since 1980, at a

rate of about 200 systems per year (see Figure 17).

Since 1980, over 80 percent of all community water

systems with any MCL violation had a MCL violation for total coliform (see Figure 18). With the

exception of the Surface Water Treatment Rule, no

other contaminant or rule has been the cause for

more than 1,000 systems having MCL/treatment

technique violations. However, even the peak

number of systems violating the total coliform MCL

(approximately 7,000 systems in 1980) represents

only about 13 percent of the total number of community water systems that must comply with the

standard.

The number of systems with MCL violations of total

coliform did not increase after the 1990 rule went

into effect. However, the population affected by

community water systems with Total Coliform Rule

MCL violations more than doubled between 1990 and

1993, going from roughly 12.5 million people affected

in 1990 to 28 million in 1993. The population

affected has declined steadily by about 4 million

people per year since 1993 to about 8 million in 1998

(see Figure 17).

The number of systems with monitoring and reporting

violations for total coliform has declined steadily since

1980 by a rate of about 600 systems per year, from

approximately 20,000 systems in 1980 to about 7,000

systems violating in 1998. The population affected by

these monitoring and reporting violations has also

generally decreased since 1980 (see Figure 19).

Surface Water Treatment Rule

The Surface Water Treatment Rule took effect in

December 1990. The number of community water

systems violating the rule’s treatment technique

requirement increased from about 10 in 1991 to

approximately 1,500 in 1994, and then dropped to just

under 1,000 by 1998 (see Figure 20). When noncompliance was at its highest, the number of systems

violating the surface water treatment rule represented

about 14 percent of the total number of community

water systems that must comply with the rule.

Figure 17. Number of Community Water Systems with

MCL Violations of Total Coliform

0

2,000

4,000

6,000

8,000

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

1980

1982

1984

1986

1988

1990

1992

1994

1996

1998

Number of Systems

Population Served (in millions)

Total

Coliform

Rule Population

Systems with

Violations
25

25 YEARS OF THE SAFE DRINKING WATER ACT: HISTORY AND TRENDS

The population affected by these violations increased

from about 140,000 people in 1991 to about 26 million

in 1994. This population affected was higher than for

any other contaminant or rule with the exception of the

total coliform rule in 1993. The population affected

gradually decreased to about 18 million in 1998 (see

Figure 20).

The number of systems with monitoring and reporting

violations of the Surface Water Treatment Rule rose

from about 120 systems in 1992 to a peak of approximately 600 systems in 1994, and has generally

decreased since (see Figure 21). The number of

people served by systems with violations of monitoring

and reporting requirements peaked at 5 million people

0

1,000

2,000

3,000

4,000

5,000

6,000

7,000

8,000

1980

1982

1984

1986

1988

1990

1992

1994

1996

1998

Figure 18. Number of Community Water Systems with Any MCL Violations

TCR/T

TTHM

VOC

SOC

NIT

IOC

RAD

Figure 19. Number of Community Water Systems with

Monitoring/Reporting Violations for Total Coliform

0

5,000

10,000

15,000

20,000

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

1980

1982

1984

1986

1988

1990

1992

1994

1996

1998

Number of Systems

Population Served (in millions)

Population

Systems with Violations
26

U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

Figure 20. Number of Community Water Systems with Treatment

Technique Violations of the Surface Water Treatment Rule

0

400

800

1,400

200

600

1,000

1,600

0

5

10

20

1,200

15

30

35

25

40

1991 1992 1993 1995 1997 1998 1994 1996

Number of Systems

Population Served (in millions)

Population

Systems with Violations

Figure 21. Number of Community Water Systems with Monitoring/

Reporting Violations of the Surface Water Treatment Rule

0

200

400

600

100

300

500

700

0

1

2

4

3

6

5

7

1992 1993 1995 1997 1998 1994 1996

Number of Systems

Population Served (in millions)

Population

Systems with Violations

in 1994, and declined to about 2 million in 1997. The

population affected then rose to about 3.7 million in

1998 (see Figure 21).

One reason for the high number of systems with

treatment technique violations as compared to monitoring and reporting violations is that many systems

received treatment technique violations for failure to

filter. Because installing filtration is expensive, many

large systems have needed more time than the regulations allow to get filtration systems in place.
27

25 YEARS OF THE SAFE DRINKING WATER ACT: HISTORY AND TRENDS

Lead and Copper Rule

The Lead and Copper Rule became effective in

December 1992. The number of community water

systems with treatment technique violations increased

from just a few systems in the early 1990s to a peak of

about 800 systems 1994, and then decreased by about

200 systems per year to 145 systems by 1998 (see

Figure 22). At its peak, less than two percent of the

community water systems that must comply with the

Lead and Copper Rule were in violation.

The population affected by systems with Lead and

Copper treatment technique violations jumped from

about 120,000 people in 1992 to about 7 million in

1993. The population affected was somewhat erratic

(above 4 million) through 1997 and then dropped to

about 400,000 in 1998 (see Figure 22).

The number of systems with monitoring and reporting

violations for the Lead and Copper Rule rose from

about 1,600 in 1992 to more than 11,000 in 1994,

higher than any other contaminant or rule. This

number dropped to about 2,300 systems in 1995, and

has declined slightly since then (see Figure 23).

The population affected by Lead and Copper

monitoring and reporting violations peaked in 1992

at 43 million, which is also higher than any other

contaminant or rule has ever been (monitoring and

reporting violations for the Total Coliform Rule

peaked at 25 million in 1992). By 1994, this number

dropped to 10 million and has decreased steadily

since then to under two million people affected in

1998 (see Figure 23).

System Size Affects Violation Trends

Community water systems of all sizes have generally

followed the same decreasing trend in violations since

1980, except for a period in the early 1990s when

systems of all sizes struggled to comply with several

new regulations (see Figure 24).

Medium, large and very large systems saw a significant increase in violations in 1992 as new rules

(specifically, the Surface Water Treatment Rule in late

1990) became effective. Very small and small systems

saw a similar increase in 1993 (perhaps due to other

new regulations, like the 1992 Lead and Copper Rule,

which applies to all system sizes). This time difference in violation increases may also be partly due to

the fact that some states require larger systems to

begin implementing new rules earlier than smaller

systems.

Figure 22. Number of Community Water Systems with Treatment

Technique Violations of Lead and Copper Rule

0

200

400

600

800

0

2

4

6

8

1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998

Number of Systems

Population Served (in millions)

Population

Systems with

Violations
28

U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

In recent years, it appears that the gap between the

percentage of small, medium, large and very large

systems with violations has been closing. However,

very small systems are still almost 50 percent more

likely to incur violations than all other system sizes.

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

1980

1982

1984

1986

1988

1990

1992

1994

1996

1998

Figure 24. Percent of Community Water Systems with

Any Violations, by System Size

Very Small

Small

Medium

Large

Very Large

Generally, larger systems have more resources

available to comply with regulations, so fewer

violations are incurred, despite the fact that larger

systems must comply with more regulations than

smaller systems.

Figure 23. Number of Community Water Systems with Monitoring

or Reporting Violations for Lead and Copper

0

2,000

4,000

6,000

8,000

10,000

12,000

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

1992

1993

19941995

1996

1997

1998

Number of Systems

Population Served (in millions)

Population

Systems with Violations
29

25 YEARS OF THE SAFE DRINKING WATER ACT: HISTORY AND TRENDS

Waterborne Disease

Outbreaks

Another way to determine whether the quality of our

nation’s drinking water has improved as a result of

SDWA is to examine whether the number of people

becoming ill from contaminated water has decreased

over the last 25 years. The Centers for Disease

Control and Prevention (CDC) defines an outbreak of

waterborne disease caused by microorganisms as

occurring when: (1) two or more persons experience a

similar illness after consumption or use of water

intended for drinking, and (2) epidemiologic evidence

implicates the water as a source of illness. CDC also

defines a single case of illness as a waterborne disease

outbreak if a study indicates that the water has been

contaminated by a chemical.21

Despite existing drinking water regulations, outbreaks

continue to occur. Health records show that the

number of outbreaks has decreased dramatically in

recent decades compared to the early part of this

century when typhoid and cholera epidemics were

common.

EPA and CDC believe that the vast majority of

waterborne disease outbreaks and cases (people

affected by outbreaks) are never identified and

reported. Few states have an active outbreak surveillance program and disease outbreaks are often not

recognized in a community or, if recognized, are not

traced to contaminated drinking water. EPA and

CDC also believe that a major factor in the failure to

recognize outbreaks is that the vast majority of people

experiencing waterborne disease do not seek medical

attention. This is because most agents of waterborne

disease cause diarrhea and stomach cramps —

symptoms common to many illnesses. Physicians

usually cannot attribute a limited number of cases of

gastrointestinal illness to any specific source, such as

water, food or contact with another person.

The gathering and reporting of waterborne disease

outbreak data by states is largely a voluntary effort.

States that have active outbreak surveillance programs

often appear to have more outbreaks than states

without active programs. An obstacle to reliable

waterborne disease outbreak recognition and reporting is often a lack of formal communication among

the state agencies responsible for public health and

water suppliers.

The number of outbreaks reported to CDC in any

given year may also depend on the resources allocated to CDC and other organizations to seek

outbreak information from states and published

literature.

0

5

10

15

20

Number of Outbreaks

25

30

35

1974

1976

1978

1980

1982

1984

1986

1988

1990

1992

1994

1996

Figure 25. Number of Waterborne Disease Outbreaks in Community

Water Systems and Their Causitive Agents (1974-1996)

Unknown

Chemical

Viral

Parasitic

Bacterial
30

U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

Despite these hindrances, EPA and CDC have been

working together since 1971 to gather information on

waterborne disease outbreaks across the country.

According to this data (see Figure 25), the number of

outbreaks in the U.S. since 1974 was highest in the

early 1980s, but appears to have generally decreased

since then.

Of the waterborne disease outbreaks that were

reported in community water systems from 1974 to

1996, 12 percent were caused by bacterial pathogens,

33 percent were caused by parasites, five percent were

caused by viruses, 18 percent were caused by chemical contaminants, and 31 percent were caused by

undetermined agents.22

Although the number of reported outbreaks in the U.S.

over the past 25 years has declined, some of the more

recent outbreaks have been very serious, causing

numerous people to become ill and, in some cases,

even causing death.

The largest outbreak reported in the U.S. since health

officials began tracking waterborne disease in 1920

occurred in Milwaukee, Wisconsin in 1993. After

drinking water contaminated with the single-celled

parasite Cryptosporidium parvum, over 400,000

people suffered from gastrointestinal illness and it

is estimated that at least 50 people died from the

disease cryptosporidiosis.23

Table 2 contains examples of other significant waterborne disease outbreaks that have occurred in U.S.

community water systems.24-30

In the last ten years, EPA has taken several regulatory steps to minimize the number of outbreaks and

incidence of waterborne disease. The Total Coliform

Rule (1989) strengthened microbial monitoring

requirements. The Surface Water Treatment Rule

(1989) and Interim Enhanced Surface Water Treatment Rule (1998) place stringent treatment requirements on systems using surface water as a source. In

the near future, EPA plans to propose regulations

requiring public water systems that draw their water

from underground sources and are vulnerable to fecal

contamination, to remove the sources of contamination, switch to an alternative water supply, or treat

the water.

The Cost of Safe Drinking

Water

Operational costs for drinking water suppliers are

rising to meet the needs of an aging infrastructure,

comply with public health standards, and expand

service areas. In most cases, these increasing costs

over the years have caused water suppliers to raise

their water rates to generate more revenue. In fact,

the majority of water industry revenues come directly

from water sales, and water rates are the primary

mechanism by which customers are charged for

service. As shown in figure 26, the revenue earned

from residential customers has generally increased

since 1975 for all system sizes and is rising at a faster

pace than inflation (see Figure 27). Systems serving

10,000 or fewer people have consistently charged

higher residential rates than larger systems because

they have a smaller customer base among which to

spread costs.

The remainder of water system revenues are generated

from fees (e.g., connection or inspection fees), fines

and penalties, and other non-consumption-based

charges.18

Due to historic underpricing, the rates most water

systems have charged their customers have not

reflected the true cost of treating drinking water and

making necessary infrastructure improvements.

Table 2

Year State/ Cause of No. of

Territory Disease People Affected

1985 MA Giardia lamblia 703 illnesses

(protozoan)

1987 GA Cryptosporidium 13,000 illnesses

parvum (protozoan)

1987 PR Shigella sonnei 1,800 illnesses

(bacterium)

1989 MO E. coli O157 243 illnesses

(bacterium) 4 deaths

1991 PR Unknown 9,847 illnesses

1993 MO Salmonella 650 illnesses

typhimurium 7 deaths

(bacterium)

1993 WI Cryptosporidium 400,000 illnesses

parvum (protozoan) 50+ deaths

PR = Puerto Rico
31

25 YEARS OF THE SAFE DRINKING WATER ACT: HISTORY AND TRENDS

Despite rate increases, water is generally still a bargain

when compared to other utility services. Even when

drinking water, wastewater and other public services

(e.g. garbage collection) are combined, the annual bill

for those services is less than what households pay, on

average, for natural gas, electricity or telephone

services annually (see Figure 28).

31

The demand for water (aggregate, per capita and

household) has generally declined during the latter

part of this century, while demand for other utilities

like electricity and telephone service has risen.

Enhanced public awareness of water resource issues,

active conservation programs in many states, and the

required installation of more water-efficient appliFigure 27. Consumer Price Index (1982 to 1984 = 100)

0.0

50.0

100.0

150.0

200.0

250.0

1970

1972

1974

1976

1978

1980

1982

1984

1986

1988

1990

1992

1994

1996

1998

Garbage collection

Cable television

Water/sewer maintenance

Local telephone service

All items

Electricity

Natural gas

Interstate telephone service

0

50

100

150

200

350

250

300

1975 1985 1980 1990 1995

Figure 26. Revenues Earned by CWSs from Residential

Customers (In ‘95 dollars), by Population Served

Cents per thousand gallons

25-500

501-3,300

3,301-10,000

10,000-100,000

100,000+

* Data not available for 1990.
32

U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

ances and practices are partially

responsible for the decline in

demand.31

While the decline in

demand is a good sign for

the future of drinking

water, the decrease in water

supply is not. Because water

is a constrained resource, the

marginal cost of new sources of

supply is expected to rise. The water industry is

looking for cost effective alternatives and is evaluating water conservation and reuse practices, as well as

the use of desalinization processes.31

In 1995, EPA conducted a nationwide survey of

community water system infrastructure needs through

the year 2014. The survey showed infrastructure need

as approximately $138 billion over the 20-year period,

which is more than what the entire estimated assets of

the water industry were in 1995 ($131.9 billion).14, 16

More than half of the identified need was for transmission and distribution system installation and replacement. Treatment improvements constituted the second

largest category of need, followed by storage and

source water improvements (see Figure 29). In 1995,

it was estimated that an investment of $34.4 billion

would be needed for SDWA compliance and SDWArelated improvements.32

Efforts have been made in recent years to meet the

water industry’s infrastructure needs through government assistance. With the establishment of the

DWSRF in 1996, Congress appropriated $1.3 billion

in 1997. The annual Congressional appropriations in

1998 and 1999 were $725 million and $775 million,

respectively. Although states and water systems are

taking advantage of this funding source to make

infrastructure improvements, government funding will

cover only a portion of the total investment needed.

Issues Facing Small Systems

Since the crafting of SDWA in the early 1970s,

Congress has recognized the unique challenges that

face small drinking water systems (those serving

3,300 or fewer people). The original Act in 1974, and

the major amendments in 1986, focused on developing and implementing a strong regulatory program

based on monitoring and treatment. The general

sentiment was that water systems would make the

changes necessary to comply with new regulations.

The Act authorized training and technical assistance

to help systems, and provided exemptions for systems

that faced compelling economic circumstances. These

exemptions could be extended for very small systems

93.6% Other

Househould

Expenditures

Figure 28. Annual Household

Expenditures for Utilities:

Family of Four (1995)

0.8% Water & Other

Public Services ($334)

1.0% Natural Gas & Fuel Oil ($432)

2.0% Telephone ($839)

2.6% Electricity ($1,120)

Figure 29. Total 20 Year Need of

All Community Water Systems

(in Billions of Jan. '95 Dollars)

56% Transmission / Distribution ($77.2)

1% Other ($1.9)

8% Source ($11.0)

9% Storage ($12.1)

26% Treatment ($36.2)
33

25 YEARS OF THE SAFE DRINKING WATER ACT: HISTORY AND TRENDS

(those serving 25–500 people). However, by the late

1980s and early 1990s, it was clear that small systems

were having great difficulty keeping up with the

rapidly expanding SDWA-mandated regulations.

Consolidation had not occurred to the extent that was

hoped for in the 1970s. There was also a growing

recognition that, separate from any regulatory

mandates, there was a significant need for basic

infrastructure repair and replacement for small

systems.

In addition to being part of a rising cost industry,

another challenge faced by small systems is a lack of

sufficient customer base among which to spread

costs, or what is also referred to as economies of

scale. Depending on how a small system designs its

rates, fewer customers can mean less revenue for

infrastructure improvements, repayment of loans,

and hiring operators and other staff with technical

expertise.

Compared with larger systems, small systems are the

least able to gain access to outside capital to finance

needed infrastructure improvements.32 Large systems

tend to have a higher percentage of industrial, commercial and agricultural customers, whereas small

systems serve primarily residential customers, who, as

a group, generally are less able to pay substantial

amounts for their water. Small, rural communities

typically have residents with lower incomes, higher

unemployment rates, and larger populations of aging

residents. These communities also have more difficulty obtaining loans than larger, metropolitan

communities.

Many small systems find it difficult to strike a balance

between charging customers enough to cover their

costs and ensuring that services are affordable. It has

been a widely held view in the drinking water industry

that water in many areas has historically been underpriced. In theory, water prices are primarily a function

of the cost of providing water service to customers.

However, when systems do not establish rates that

allow them to collect sufficient revenue to cover

service costs, they inevitably lack resources to make

needed infrastructure improvements and protect

public health.

During the late 1980s and early 1990s, a few states

were implementing initiatives which sought to

promote small system compliance and address small

system problems by ensuring that systems had the

necessary underlying technical, managerial, and

financial capacity. Eventually the concept of capacity

development emerged.

The capacity development concept includes components of the prevention, compliance and public

participation elements of SDWA that were emphasized in the 1996 Amendments. It weaves together

all existing state drinking water program activities.

The 1996 SDWA Amendments require states to

ensure that no new systems are created that lack

capacity to meet drinking water standards now and in

the future. States are also required to develop a

strategy to address capacity issues affecting systems

within the state.

In 1995, the projected 20-year costs (through 2014)

small systems faced to make infrastructure improvements to their facilities was estimated at $37.2 billion,

about 27 percent of the total national need.32 Although small systems have less total need than

medium or large systems, their customers face the

largest per-household costs, at $3,300 per household

through 2014 (see Figure 30). While the provisions of

the 1996 SDWA Amendments will help small

systems improve the quality of their drinking water,

they may also increase operational costs.

The loan fund created by the 1996 Amendments

emphasizes providing assistance to small and disadvantaged communities and to programs that encourage

pollution prevention as a tool for ensuring safe

drinking water. A portion of the state’s grant can also

be used by states to administer specific aspects of the

drinking water program, such as assessing source

water quality, certifying treatment plant operators, and

implementing capacity development programs.

The 1996 SDWA Amendments assisted small systems

in another way. When setting new drinking water

standards, EPA must identify technologies that

achieve compliance and are affordable for systems

serving fewer than 10,000 people. When such

technologies cannot be identified, EPA must identify
34

U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

affordable technologies that maximize contaminant

reduction and protect public health.

Successes and Challenges

Ahead

Obtaining safe drinking water is a problem civilizations have faced for thousands of years. While

tremendous progress has been made in improving the

testing, treatment, protection, and provision of

drinking water to the public, numerous challenges

remain.

As the U.S. population has grown and American

lifestyles have become more sophisticated, so have the

number of drinking water problems grown and their

required solutions become more technically complex.

Despite these challenges, the quality of drinking water

in the U.S. has improved over the last 25 years, largely

due to the efforts of drinking water and health professionals in the public and private sectors and the

foundation that the Safe Drinking Water Act has

provided them.

Public health protection has been, and remains, the

national drinking water program’s most important

focus. As a result, we have seen a steady increase over

the years in the percentage of people served by water

systems that meet all health-based standards. This

increased public health protection came about from the

implementation of a multiple barrier approach which

recognizes that contaminants reach drinking water via

many pathways. Implementation activities include:

• improved detection and treatment technologies;

• new and ongoing research about drinking water

contaminants;

• a variety of source water protection programs;

• other statutes, such as the Clean Water Act, that

complement SDWA;

• increased cooperation among local, state and

federal drinking water professionals;

• consumers who are more informed about drinking

water issues, such as contaminant health risks and

the need for water conservation; and

• voluntary programs like the Partnership for Safe

Water (see Appendix A)

However, even greater effort will be needed to deal

with new and ongoing challenges.

Figure 30. Average Cost Per Household to Meet Water System’s

20-Year Infrastructure Need (Total Need in Jan. '95 Dollars)

0

500

1,000

1,500

2,000

Large Medium

System Size

Small

$ 970

$ 1,200

$ 3,300

2,500

3,000

3,500

4,000

Dollars
35

25 YEARS OF THE SAFE DRINKING WATER ACT: HISTORY AND TRENDS

With an increasing survival rate among cancer

patients, a higher percentage of elderly citizens, and a

growing HIV/AIDS population, it will become

increasingly critical that drinking water health

information be provided in a timely fashion to

immuno-compromised populations. To continue

learning about the health effects of known and/or

regulated contaminants, and to begin studying

emerging contaminants (e.g., newly discovered

microbes, perchlorate), it will be imperative that the

public and private sectors work together to more

effectively and efficiently conduct sound scientific

research in the future.

Given the national increase in population, urbanization and development, it will be especially important

for all communities to participate in water conservation measures and source water protection activities

to lessen the negative impacts that these trends can

have on the availability and quality of drinking water.

It is important that consumers recognize that their

actions affect the quality of their source water and the

level of treatment that is required to allow safe

drinking water to flow from their taps. The public

must also recognize that high quality tap water comes

at a price, but one that can be significantly less than

alternatives such as buying bottled water. Drinking

water professionals and community leaders must

continue to work together to educate and update the

public about these issues.

Water professionals will also need to continue to

evaluate the structure of the drinking water provision

system and determine whether restructuring (e.g.,

consolidation) or other activities can help alleviate

small system compliance problems. They will also

need to determine whether funds to cover infrastructure and other costs can be more efficiently

allocated, especially for economically-disadvantaged

communities.

EPA and its partners must work to minimize deficiencies in compliance data to ensure that water

systems are providing drinking water that meets

standards and to have the necessary data to track

progress over time.

Despite the many challenges faced by the national

drinking water program, the U.S. has provided some

of the safest public drinking water in the world. To

maintain this high quality water supply, it will be

critical for the drinking water community to work in

concert with the public to ensure that all Americans

have safe drinking water and that the Safe Drinking

Water Act continues to provide the framework

necessary to achieve that goal.

References 1. Borchart, J.A., and G. Walton. Water Quality and

Treatment. American Water Works Association.

Third Edition. 1971.

2. Pontius, Frederick W. and Stephen W. Clark.

Chapter 1, Drinking Water Quality Standards,

Regulations and Goals. Water Quality and

Treatment. Fifth Edition. American Water

Works Association. Ed. Raymond D. Letterman.

McGraw-Hill, Inc. 1999.

3. U.S. Department of Health, Education, and

Welfare. Public Health Service Drinking Water

Standards – 1962. Public Health Service

Publication No. 956, Reprinted September 1969.

4. Oleckno, W.A. The National Interim Primary

Drinking Water Regulations, Part I — Historical

Development. Journal of Environmental Health.

Vol. 44, No. 5. May 1982.

5. U.S. Department of Health, Education, and

Welfare. Community Water Supply Study:

Analysis of National Survey Findings.

July 1970.

6. Industrial Pollution of the Lower Mississippi

River in Louisiana. EPA Region VI,

Surveillance and Analysis Division. 1972.

7. Taras, Michael J. The Quest for Pure Water.

American Water Works Association. Second

Edition, Vol. 2. Epilogue. 1981.

8. Fiscal Year 1980 Annual Report on the

Compliance Status of Public Water Systems

Under the National Interim Primary Drinking

Water Regulations. EPA Office of Drinking

Water. June 1981.

9. National Interim Primary Drinking Water

Regulations. EPA-570/9-76-003. 1976.

10. National Secondary Drinking Water

Regulations. EPA-570/9-76-000. July 1979.

11. Pontius, Frederick W. History of the Safe

Drinking Water Act (SDWA). American Water

Works Association. http://www.epa.gov/

safewater/sdwa25/sdwa.html#7. 1999.

12. House 1996 Safe Drinking Water Act Report No.

104-632 citing Robert Perciasepe’s testimony

37

25 YEARS OF THE SAFE DRINKING WATER ACT: HISTORY AND TRENDS
before the House Subcommittee on Health and

the Environment. January 31, 1996.

13. The Safe Drinking Water Act — One Year Later:

Success in Advancing Public Health Protection.

EPA 810-F-97-002. September 1997.

14. Baker, M.N. The Quest for Pure Water.

American Water Works Association. Second

Edition, Volume 1. 1981.

15. HDR Engineering, Inc. Safe Drinking Water Act

Update: Looking Back — A Century of Change.

March 1999.

16. Survey of Operating and Financial

Characteristics of Community Water Systems.

EPA Office of Drinking Water. October 1982.

17. 1986 Survey of Community Water Systems. EPA

Office of Drinking Water. October 1987.

18. Community Water System Survey (1995). EPA

815-R-97-001. January 1997.

19. Summary of State Biennial Reports of Wellhead

Protection Progress, October 1995–September

1997. EPA Office of Ground Water and Drinking Water Internal Report. October 1999.

20. National Water Quality Inventory: 1998

Report to Congress. EPA 841-B-99-005.

December 1999.

21. Centers for Disease Control. Morbidity and

Mortality Weekly Report: Surveillance

Summaries. Vol. 47, No. SS-5. December 1998.

22. Craun, G. F. Gunther F. Craun & Associates.

Waterborne Outbreaks in Community Water

Systems, 1971-1996. Based on data from the

Centers for Disease Control, 1999.

23. Davis, Dr. Jeffrey P., et al. CryptosporidiosisAssociated Mortality Following a Massive

Waterborne Outbreak in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Bureau of Public Health, Madison, Wisconsin.

February 1996.

24. Centers for Disease Control. Morbidity and

Mortality Weekly Report: Surveillance

Summaries. Vol. 37, No. SS-2. June 1988.

25. Hayes, Dr. Edward B., et al. Large Community

Outbreak of Cryptosporidiosis due to

Contamination of a Filtered Public Water

Supply. The New England Journal of Medicine.

May 1989.

26. Centers for Disease Control. Morbidity and

Mortality Weekly Report: Surveillance

Summaries. Vol. 39, No. SS-1. March 1990.

27. Swerdlow, Dr. David L., et al. A Waterborne

Outbreak in Missouri of Escherichia coli

O157:H7 Associated with Bloody Diarrhea

and Death. Annals of Internal Medicine.

November 1992.

28. Centers for Disease Control. Morbidity and

Mortality Weekly Report: Surveillance

Summaries. Vol. 42, No. SS-5. November 1993.

29. Centers for Disease Control. Morbidity and

Mortality Weekly Report: Surveillance

Summaries. Vol. 45, No. SS-1. April 1996.

30. Angulo, Dr. Frederick J., et al. A Community

Waterborne Outbreak of Salmonellosis and the

Effectiveness of a Boil Water Order. American

Journal of Public Health. May 1996.

31. Beecher, Dr. Janice A. Beecher Policy Research,

Inc. The Water Industry Compared: Structural,

Regulatory, and Strategic Issues for Utilities in a

Changing Context. National Association of

Water Companies. 1998.

32. Drinking Water Infrastructure Needs Survey.

EPA 812-R-97-001. January 1997.

38

U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
Appendix A

Glossary

Acute Health Effect

An immediate (i.e., within hours or days) adverse

health effect that may result from exposure to certain

drinking water contaminants (e.g., pathogens).

Chronic Health Effect

The possible result of exposure over many years to a

drinking water contaminant at levels above its

maximum contaminant level.

Coliform

A group of related bacteria whose presence in drinking

water may indicate contamination by disease-causing

microorganisms (see pathogens).

Cryptosporidium

A microbe commonly found in lakes and rivers which

is highly resistant to disinfection. Cryptosporidium

has caused several large outbreaks of gastrointestinal

illness, with symptoms that include diarrhea, nausea,

and/or stomach cramps. People with severely

weakened immune systems are likely to have more

severe and more persistant symptoms than healthy

individuals.

Disinfection Byproducts

Chemicals that may form when disinfectants (such as

chlorine) react with plant matter and other naturallyoccurring materials in the water. These byproducts

may pose health risks in drinking water.

Distribution System

A network of pipes leading from a treatment plant to

customers’ plumbing systems.

Gastroenteritis

A general category of gastrointestinal illness which

may result from drinking water contaminated with

pathogenic viruses, bacteria or protozoa. Symptoms

include diarrhea, cramps, fatigue, nausea and

vomiting.

39

25 YEARS OF THE SAFE DRINKING WATER ACT: HISTORY AND TRENDS
40

U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

Giardia lamblia

A microorganism frequently found in rivers and lakes,

which, if not treated for properly, may cause diarrhea,

fatigue, and cramps after ingested.

Hepatitis A

One of numerous diseases (e.g., meningitis, ulcers,

myocarditis, typhoid fever, cholera) that may result

from ingestion of fecally contaminated drinking water

containing pathogens. This disease is caused by the

Hepatitis A virus. Symptoms of Hepatitis A include

diarrhea, jaundice, fatigue, abdominal pain, intermittent nausea, and loss of appetite.

Inorganic Chemicals

Mineral-based compounds such as metals, nitrates

and asbestos. These contaminants are naturallyoccurring in some water, but can also get into water

through farming, chemical manufacturing, and other

human activities. EPA has set legal limits on 15

inorganic chemicals.

Legionnaire’s Disease

A type of pneumonia that results when aerosols

containing some types of the bacteria Legionella are

inhaled by susceptible persons, not when people drink

water containing Legionella. (Aerosols may come

from showers, hot water taps, whirlpools and heat

rejection equipment such as cooling towers and air

conditioners.) Other types of Legionella, if inhaled,

can cause a much less severe disease called Pontiac

Fever. The symptoms of Pontiac Fever may include

muscle pain, headache, coughing, nausea, dizziness

and other symptoms.

Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL)

The highest level of a contaminant that is allowed in

drinking water. MCLs are set as close to MCLGs as

feasible using the best available treatment technology

and taking cost into consideration. MCLs are enforceable standards.

Maximum Contaminant Level Goal

(MCLG)

The level of a contaminant in drinking water below

which there is no known or expected risk to health.

MCLGs allow for a margin of safety and are nonenforceable public health goals.

Membrane

A thin, porous structure produced from a variety of

materials which is used in some treatment processes

to filter contaminants out of drinking water. Water is

forced through the membrane and contaminants are left

behind.

Microbes (microorganisms)

Tiny living organisms that can only be seen with the

aid of a microscope. Some microbes can causee acute

health problems when consumed (see pathogens).

National Primary Drinking Water

Regulations

Legally enforceable standards that apply to public

water systems. These standards protect drinking

water quality by limiting the levels of specific

contaminants that can adversely affect public health

and are known or anticipated to occur in public water

supplies.

National Secondary Drinking Water

Regulations

Non-enforceable federal guidelines regarding cosmetic effects (such as tooth or skin discoloration) or

aesthetic effects (such as taste, odor, or color) of

drinking water.

Organic Chemicals

Carbon-based chemicals, such as solvents and

pesticides, which can get into water through runoff

from cropland or discharge from factories. EPA has

set legal limits on 56 organic chemicals.
41

25 YEARS OF THE SAFE DRINKING WATER ACT: HISTORY AND TRENDS

Partnership for Safe Water

A unique cooperative effort between EPA, American

Water Works Association, Association of Metropolitan Water Agencies, National Association of Water

Companies, and Association of State Drinking Water

Administrators. The Partnership encourages and

assists U.S. public water suppliers to voluntarily

enhance their water systems’ performance, for greater

control of Cryptosporidium, Giardia and other

microbial contaminants.

Pathogens

Disease-causing organisms such as some bacteria,

viruses, and protozoa.

Perchlorate

A contaminant that exists in the environment as a

part of other chemical compounds such as ammonium, potassium, or sodium perchlorate. The

concerns surrounding perchlorate contamination

involve its ability to affect the thyroid gland, which

can affect metabolism, growth, and development.

EPA is co-chairing an Interagency Perchlorate

Steering Committee (IPSC) to disseminate scientific

information and frame policy issues regarding

potential perchlorate contamination of drinking

water.

Primacy

Primary enforcement authority for the drinking water

program. Under the Safe Drinking Water Act, states,

U.S. territories, and Indian tribes that meet certain

requirements (including setting regulations that are at

least as stringent as EPA’s) may apply for, and receive,

primary enforcement authority.

Radionuclides

An unstable form of a chemical element that radioactively decays, resulting in the emission of nuclear

radiation. Prolonged exposure to radionuclides

increases the risk of cancer. All of the radionuclides

known to occur in drinking water are currently

regulated, except for radon and naturally-occurring

uranium, both of which were proposed for regulation

in October, 1999.

Safe Drinking Water Information

System (SDWIS)

EPA’s national drinking water database which stores

information on all of the public water systems in the

United States.

Total Trihalomethanes (TTHMs)

A group of four organic chemicals which form when

the disinfectant chlorine reacts with natural organic

matter in water. These chemicals (chloroform,

bromodichloromethane, dibromochloromethane, and

bromoform) are regulated under one standard.

Treatment Technique

A required process intended to reduce the level of a

contaminant in drinking water.

Turbidity

The cloudy appearance of water caused by the

presence of tiny particles. High levels of turbidity

may interfere with proper water treatment and

monitoring.

Appendix B

Contaminants Regulated

Under the 1962 Public

Health Service Standards3

Alkyl Benzene Sulfonate (ABS)

Arsenic

Barium

Beta and photon emitters

Cadmium

Carbon Chloroform Extract (CCE)

Chloride

Chromium

Color

Copper

Cyanide

Fluoride

Gross alpha emitters

Iron

Lead

Manganese

Nitrate

Phenols

Radium-226

Selenium

Silver

Strontium-90

Sulfate

Threshold Odor Number

Total Coliform

Total Dissolved Solids

Turbidity

Zinc

43

25 YEARS OF THE SAFE DRINKING WATER ACT: HISTORY AND TRENDS

Appendix C

Commonly Used Drinking

Water Treatment

Technologies

(many technologies can be

used to treat for multiple

contaminant types)

Primarily for Removal/Inactivation of

Microbial Contaminants:

Disinfection — A process used to reduce the number

of pathogenic microbes in water. Examples of

disinfection include:

Chlorination — A disinfection process using

chlorine. Treats microbes, tastes, odors, and color.

Chloramination — A disinfection process using

chloramine (not chlorine) as the treatment agent.

Mainly used as a disinfectant residual (to maintain

disinfection throughout distribution systems).

Ozonation — A disinfection process using ozone

as the treatment agent. Helps reduce the formation

of TTHMs by virtue of being an alternative to

chlorine. Also serves to treat tastes, odors, and

color.

Ultra Violet (UV) Irradiation

— A disinfection process in

which ultraviolet wavelengths

are used to kill pathogenic

microorganisms in water.

For Removal of Microbes

and Particulate Matter:

Coagulation/Filtration — A

process that removes particulate

matter from water through the

following steps: coagulation,

flocculation, sedimentation, and

filtration. Treats microbes, iron,

manganese, color, turbidity,

disinfection byproducts, synthetic

organic chemicals, inorganic

chemicals, and radionuclides.

Coagulation — A process that

involves adding certain

chemicals (coagulants) to water

to cause smaller particles to

clump together and form larger

particles (called “floc”), which

can then be removed by

sedimentation or filtration.

Flocculation — A process that

partly overlaps the coagulation

A Typical Water Treatment Plant A Typical Water Treatment Plant Typical Water Treatment Plant

45

25 YEARS OF THE SAFE DRINKING WATER ACT: HISTORY AND TRENDS

Figure courtesy of American W ater Works Association
46

U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

process, whereby water is gently mixed to promote

the formation and sedimentation of floc.

Sedimentation — A process that follows coagulation/flocculation whereby floc settles out of the

water.

Filtration — the passage of water through a

porous medium, such as sand, anthracite, or other

granular material, to remove floc and other

particulates.

Direct Filtration — A treatment process similar to

coagulation/filtration except there is no sedimentation

step. Treats microbes, turbidity, synthetic organic

chemicals, inorganic chemicals, and radionuclides.

Industrial Cartridge Filters — Disposable cartridges are used to filter drinking water, removing

microbes and turbidity.

In-Line Filtration — The simplest form of direct

filtration, wherein filtration is preceded by the

addition of chemicals and rapid mixing. Treats

microbes, turbidity, synthetic organic chemicals,

inorganic chemicals, and radionuclides.

Microfiltration, Ultrafiltration, Nanofiltration —

Types of membrane filtration which remove particulates and microorganisms above a specific size as

delineated by the filter used. Micro and Ultra remove

microbes and turbidity. Nano removes microbes,

color, turbidity, hardness, disinfection byproducts and

inorganic chemicals.

Reverse Osmosis — A pressure-driven treatment

process using a specially prepared membrane that

permits the flow of water through the membrane, but

acts as a selective barrier to contaminants. Water is

forced through the membrane and contaminants are

left behind. Treats for microbes, salts, iron, manganese, color, turbidity, hardness, synthetic organic

chemicals, inorganic chemicals (inorganic ions), and

radionuclides.

Slow Sand Filtration — A treatment process that uses

a deep bed of sand to remove particles and microbes

from water. Treats microbes and turbidity.

Primarily for Removal of Inorganic

Contaminants:

Activated Alumina— A form of ion exchange in

which charged contaminants in the drinking water are

exchanged with elements on the alumina. Treats

inorganic chemicals.

Ion Exchange — A process whereby a positively or

negatively charged ion exchanges itself with a

similarly charged contaminant ion in the drinking

water. Treats hardness, inorganic chemicals, and

radionuclides.

For Removal of Synthetic and Volatile

Organic Chemicals:

Diffused Aeration — Water is run on a bed containing

air jets. The contaminant is transferred from the water

to the air where it then dissipates. Treats iron, manganese, disinfection byproducts, volatile organic chemicals, and radionuclides.

Granular Activated Carbon— A filter allows

activated carbon to bond with specific contaminants

(such as synthetic organic chemicals) and traps them

inside the filter. Also treats tastes and odors, disinfection byproducts, synthetic and volatile organic

chemicals, and radionuclides.

Packed Tower Aeration — A treatment process in

which drinking water is transferred out of a solution

in water to a solution in air. The extent of the removal

of contaminants from water is determined by the

length of the column and the volatility of the contaminant. Treats disinfection byproducts, volatile organic

chemicals, and radionuclides.

Primarily for Control of Aesthetic

Problems:

Greensand Filtration — Similar to slow sand

filtration, except a specially coated material (greensand) is used to remove iron, manganese, taste, and

odors from water.

Lime Softening — A treatment process to reduce

hardness of water caused by the presence of calcium

and magnesium compounds. May also be used to

remove other inorganic contaminants.
47

25 YEARS OF THE SAFE DRINKING WATER ACT: HISTORY AND TRENDS

Appendix D

Legislation Related

to Safe Drinking Water

Act (SDWA)

The following laws work in concert with SDWA by

reducing the release of pollutants that can affect water

and/or instituting policies that positively impact

sources of drinking water:

The Clean Water Act (former Federal

Water Pollution Control Act)

The aim of this law is to restore and maintain the

chemical, physical, and biological integrity of the

Nation’s waters. This is done by reducing the

discharge of pollutants and toxins into navigable

waters, by providing assistance to construct publicly

owned waste treatment facilities, by encouraging

research to develop technology necessary to eliminate

the discharge of pollutants into navigable waters, and

by developing policy for the control of nonpoint

source pollution.

The Coastal Zone Management Act

(CZMA)

The goal of this law is to protect natural resources,

including wetlands, floodplains, estuaries, beaches,

dunes, barrier islands, coral reefs, and fish and

wildlife and their habitat, within coastal zones. The

Act also aims to improve, safeguard, and restore the

quality of coastal waters, and to protect natural

resources and existing uses of those waters.

The Comprehensive Environmental

Response, Compensation, and Liability

Act (CERCLA)

Under this law, EPA regulates hazardous substances

and establishes limits for the quantities released to the

environment. By law, a National Response Center is

available to respond to emergency situations regarding hazardous waste accidents. A National Priority

List of hazardous waste sites is maintained indicating

the order in which sites in the U.S. are to be cleaned

up. Priority is given to those sites that have contributed to the closing of drinking water wells or the

contamination of a public drinking water supply.

The Emergency Planning and Community

Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA)

Enacted in 1986 as part of CERCLA, this law has two

major purposes: 1) to increase public knowledge of,
48

U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

and access to, information on the presence of toxic

chemicals in communities, releases of toxic chemicals

into the environment, and waste management

activities involving toxic chemicals; and 2) to

encourage and support planning for responding to

environmental emergencies.

The Federal Insecticide, Fungicide,

and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA)

As required by this statute, EPA registers pesticides

for general, restricted, or prohibited use. To prevent

unreasonable risk to the natural environment, EPA

can restrict distribution, sale, or use of any pesticide.

This law is helpful to SDWA because it seeks to

prevent any pesticide of unreasonable risk from

seeping into ground water supplies or running off

land into surface water supplies.

The National Environmental Policy

Act (NEPA)

NEPA requires that proposed projects which use

federal land or federal dollars be evaluated to determine their potential impact on the environment.

Environmental impact assessments are conducted to

evaluate the proposed action and alternatives to

ensure that measures are taken to reduce or eliminate

impacts on the natural environment.

The Pollution Prevention Act

Passed in 1990, the Pollution Prevention Act focused

industry, government, and public attention on

reducing the amount of pollution entering the

environment through cost-effective changes in

production, operation, and raw materials use.

Opportunities for preventing pollution at its source

(source reduction) are often not realized because of

existing regulations, and the industrial resources

required for compliance focus mostly on treatment

and disposal. Source reduction is fundamentally

different and more desirable than waste management

or pollution control. Pollution prevention also

includes other practices that increase efficiency in the

use of energy, water, or other natural resources, and

protect our resource base through conservation.

These practices include recycling, source reduction,

and sustainable agriculture.

Resource Conservation and Recovery

Act (RCRA)

In 1976, Congress enacted this comprehensive law

which covers the generation, transportation, storage,

and disposal of hazardous materials and waste.

RCRA requires the cleanup of hazardous releases

(such as chemical spills, or landfills containing

hazardous waste) at facilities permitted under RCRA

and facilities applying for a permit under RCRA’s

corrective action rules. Restoring hazardous sites is

often also covered under CERCLA. Many states have

primacy for RCRA programs.

The Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA)

This statute calls for the development of research and

the accumulation of data on chemical substances and

their effect on public health and the environment.

EPA can regulate chemicals which present an

unreasonable risk of injury to health or the environment if there is no other statute which provides that

authority. This Act helps SDWA by contributing to

source water protection.
49

25 YEARS OF THE SAFE DRINKING WATER ACT: HISTORY AND TRENDS

Appendix E

Types of Underground

Injection Wells

Class I wells are wells that inject large volumes of

hazardous and non-hazardous wastes into deep,

isolated rock formations that are separated from the

lowermost underground source of drinking water by

many layers of impermeable clay and rock.

Class II wells inject fluids associated with oil and

natural gas production. Most of the injected fluid is

brine (very salty water) that is produced when oil and

gas are extracted from the earth (about 10 barrels for

every barrel of oil).

Class III wells inject super-hot steam, water, or other

fluids into mineral formations, which is then pumped

to the surface and extracted. Generally, the fluid is

treated and reinjected into the same formation. More

than 50 percent of the salt and 80 percent of the

uranium extraction in the U.S. is produced this way.

Class IV wells inject hazardous or radioactive wastes

into or above underground sources of drinking water.

These wells are banned under the Underground

Injection Control program because they directly

threaten the quality of underground sources of

drinking water.

Class V wells use injection practices that are not

included in the other classes. Some Class V wells are

technologically advanced wastewater disposal systems

used by industry, but most are low-tech holes in the

ground. Generally, they are shallow and depend upon

gravity to drain or inject liquid waste into the ground

above or into underground sources of drinking water.

Their simple construction provides little or no

protection against possible ground water contamination, so it is important to control what goes into them.

Appendix F

Data from the

Safe Drinking Water

Information System

(SDWIS)

SDWIS data presented in this report was taken from

the following sources:

• Fiscal year 1998 data taken from SDWIS fiscal

year 1998 fourth quarter frozen violations table

(except for chemical monitoring/reporting

violations)

• Fiscal year 1998 chemical monitoring/reporting

violations data taken from SDWIS fiscal year

1999 first quarter frozen violations table

• Fiscal year 1997 and earlier data taken from

SDWIS fiscal year 1998 first quarter frozen

violations table

There are three main types of violations:

(1) MCL violation (MCL) — occurs when tests

indicate that the level of a contaminant in treated

water is above EPA or the state’s legal limit (states

may set standards equal to, or more protective

than, EPA’s). These violations indicate a potential

health risk, which may be immediate or 

long-term.

(2) Treatment technique violation (TT) — occurs

when a water system fails to treat its water in the

way prescribed by EPA (for example, by not

disinfecting). Similar to MCL violations, treatment technique violations indicate a potential

health risk to consumers.

(3) Monitoring and reporting violation (M/R) —

occurs when a system fails to test its water for

certain contaminants, or fails to report test results

in a timely fashion. If a water system does not

monitor its water properly, no one can know

whether or not its water poses a health risk to

consumers.

51

25 YEARS OF THE SAFE DRINKING WATER ACT: HISTORY AND TRENDS
52

U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

Fiscal Total Coliform TTHMs Volatile Organic Chemicals

 Year Data MCL M/R MCL M/R MCL M/R

 1980 # systems violating 6,950 19,669 0

 population served 20,155,272 37,557,188 0

 1981 # systems violating 5,895 16,943 1 29

 population served 24,320,435 34,342,722 279,000 3,198,214

 1982 # systems violating 5,853 15,163 6 28

 population served 18,251,933 29,205,396 1,350,221 4,603,726

 1983 # systems violating 6,182 15,020 20 133

 population served 16,601,676 28,364,575 1,206,016 5,993,505

 1984 # systems violating 6,622 16,430 63 114

 population served 19,946,928 25,459,949 2,370,202 3,368,914

 1985 # systems violating 6,654 15,621 66 177

 population served 19,510,616 27,696,135 2,174,846 10,495,059

 1986 # systems violating 6,573 13,074 50 128 5

 population served 18,613,894 25,355,726 3,452,482 7,104,502 3,308

 1987 # systems violating 6,045 11,767 53 87 4 239

 population served 13,998,878 20,748,306 1,274,179 2,061,012 1,015,874 369,187

 1988 # systems violating 5,410 11,709 35 158 13 299

 population served 14,035,668 25,865,485 793,650 4,396,930 1,140,356 2,922,055

 1989 # systems violating 5,781 10,856 45 142 50 367

 population served 13,977,229 21,017,696 1,170,371 4,559,423 1,504,366 2,785,737

 1990 # systems violating 5,718 10,537 38 132 53 406

 population served 12,496,524 18,921,525 843,426 4,648,053 1,453,139 1,176,086

 1991 # systems violating 5,421 11,556 24 93 61 876

 population served 19,140,847 27,219,513 411,810 2,574,039 475,036 1,679,010

 1992 # systems violating 4,428 11,464 33 82 72 891

 population served 19,062,907 25,823,120 595,546 2,293,532 535,679 997,474

 1993 # systems violating 4,843 10,308 31 59 67 1,158

 population served 27,924,828 20,601,721 2,338,625 1,488,610 570,670 2,319,270

 1994 # systems violating 4,106 9,203 28 79 62 2,262

 population served 22,950,752 17,430,321 392,622 2,016,127 581,607 4,896,150

 1995 # systems violating 3,866 8,591 29 64 42 2,031

 population served 19,201,098 15,236,421 274,481 1,631,559 469,980 4,797,581

 1996 # systems violating 3,682 7,734 26 65 43 1,817

 population served 12,052,298 13,919,636 175,479 2,597,489 441,663 4,173,318

 1997 # systems violating 3,156 7,518 13 70 40 835

 population served 10,223,348 14,727,604 113,556 1,946,668 357,138 2,795,476

 1998 # systems violating 3,238 7,026 8 69 25 735

 population served 7,889,248 17,282,627 85,915 2,391,444 59,793 1,486,482
53

25 YEARS OF THE SAFE DRINKING WATER ACT: HISTORY AND TRENDS

Fiscal Synthetic Organic Checmicals Nitrates Inorganic Chemicals

 Year Data MCL M/R MCL M/R MCL M/R

 1980 # systems violating 409 257 4,427 599 4,681

 population served 3,768,307 580,347 9,545,513 1,188,550 12,190,775

 1981 # systems violating 1 391 282 2,815 555 3,011

 population served 40 4,321,113 1,565,805 5,565,641 1,376,771 8,805,446

 1982 # systems violating 1 1,536 317 2,089 491 2,444

 population served 40 3,686,973 727,318 2,762,225 1,131,257 5,335,259

 1983 # systems violating 0 1,491 286 1,881 559 2,108

 population served 0 3,557,337 467,091 6,571,327 806,218 7,844,309

 1984 # systems violating 8 1,455 317 1,808 694 1,873

 population served 141,954 3,644,715 806,153 8,324,716 1,332,122 8,338,724

 1985 # systems violating 3 1,699 338 3,228 615 3,393

 population served 1,212 4,773,311 818,721 10,889,095 1,248,128 10,503,714

 1986 # systems violating 0 477 304 2,816 426 2,892

 population served 0 2,304,553 878,975 7,115,688 1,015,183 6,086,626

 1987 # systems violating 2 509 313 3,002 325 3,036

 population served 52,162 2,768,248 776,725 7,689,063 925,980 7,261,321

 1988 # systems violating 5 694 291 3,857 315 3,951

 population served 45,171 3,322,529 968,883 7,792,320 969,856 7,724,764

 1989 # systems violating 10 548 262 3,633 242 3,640

 population served 139,266 2,488,408 793,017 7,414,642 885,489 7,176,603

 1990 # systems violating 16 570 241 3,138 241 3,278

 population served 150,242 3,515,647 472,890 6,488,679 550,902 6,497,037

 1991 # systems violating 26 810 227 2,325 255 2,899

 population served 153,958 2,661,023 414,575 3,640,853 588,177 4,297,070

 1992 # systems violating 8 490 227 1,066 187 1,719

 population served 15,546 2,125,488 451,731 2,210,998 493,677 2,162,610

 1993 # systems violating 24 551 287 4,104 176 2,443

 population served 220,100 3,060,626 639,684 9,721,547 546,499 11,594,971

 1994 # systems violating 53 708 284 5,088 147 2,620

 population served 253,685 3,970,429 310,403 8,579,539 473,669 11,260,999

 1995 # systems violating 60 1,035 234 3,697 134 2,409

 population served 101,842 9,472,823 469,855 5,550,154 345,147 6,852,317

 1996 # systems violating 36 1,251 238 3,689 129 1,850

 population served 92,274 4,222,342 576,633 6,829,547 291,226 5,807,655

 1997 # systems violating 36 379 191 2,216 95 508

 population served 116,751 909,623 369,327 6,276,149 491,710 2,466,025

 1998 # systems violating 17 292 188 1,735 101 540

 population served 48,535 958,658 747,805 2,245,724 747,040 1,882,462
54

U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

Fiscal Radionuclides Lead and Copper Rule Surface Water Treatment Rule

 Year Data MCL M/R TT M/R TT M/R

 1980 # systems violating 131 8,533

 population served 271,028 33,053,790

 1981 # systems violating 210 6,447

 population served 486,796 18,074,018

 1982 # systems violating 231 4,457

 population served 472,328 7,909,652

 1983 # systems violating 263 1,741

 population served 606,959 7,876,602

 1984 # systems violating 340 2,002

 population served 1,211,445 4,920,593

 1985 # systems violating 358 1,676

 population served 1,329,834 3,453,708

 1986 # systems violating 382 2,163

 population served 1,449,755 3,860,359

 1987 # systems violating 326 2,866

 population served 1,367,158 4,855,510

 1988 # systems violating 365 3,220

 population served 1,388,484 4,628,503

 1989 # systems violating 363 2,795

 population served 1,110,104 3,324,698

 1990 # systems violating 352 2,506

 population served 1,112,573 2,840,013

 1991 # systems violating 370 2,228 1 11

 population served 1,190,791 4,223,450 2,450 138,008

 1992 # systems violating 415 1,603 15 1,573 788 123

 population served 1,968,629 3,901,374 120,558 42,964,777 17,386,790 3,601,988

 1993 # systems violating 360 1,316 178 10,231 1,301 469

 population served 1,842,846 3,369,649 6,903,107 39,459,385 23,112,397 2,911,090

 1994 # systems violating 318 1,297 780 11,194 1,505 608

 population served 1,700,562 3,248,151 4,157,223 10,038,434 25,567,283 5,021,526

 1995 # systems violating 312 1,155 495 2,337 1,338 457

 population served 1,732,199 3,242,322 7,525,675 3,393,119 22,470,881 4,038,597

 1996 # systems violating 293 917 246 2,023 1,098 436

 population served 1,671,283 1,532,561 6,059,150 3,704,254 19,433,638 3,193,011

 1997 # systems violating 215 447 98 1,856 1,017 383

 population served 979,302 447,837 6,039,121 3,646,741 18,718,619 2,099,902

 1998 # systems violating 200 249 145 1,585 971 506

 population served 701,891 235,334 373,038 1,729,673 18,301,744 3,709,231