Nebraska Administrative Code › Topic - HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES SYSTEM › Title 179 - PUBLIC WATER SYSTEMS › Chapter 2 - PUBLIC WATER SUPPLY SYSTEMS › Section 179-2-001 - GENERAL

Current through June 17, 2024
2-001.01
SCOPE AND
				AUTHORITY
: These regulations establish general requirements for
				public water systems and define terms used in Title 179. The statutory
				authority is found in
Neb. Rev. Stat.
§§
									71-5301
				to
				71-5313.
2-001.02 DEFINITIONS: As used in
				these regulations, unless the context to be intelligible or prevent absurdity
				otherwise requires:
Air gap
means the unobstructed
				  vertical distance through the free atmosphere between the lowest opening from
				  any pipe or faucet supplying water to a tank, plumbing fixture or other device
				  and the flood rim of the receptor.
Backflow
means the undesirable
				  reversal of flow in a potable water distribution system as a result of a cross
				  connection.
Backflow preventer
means an
				  assembly or means that prohibits the backflow of water into the potable water
				  supply.
Backpressure
means a pressure,
				  higher than the supply pressure, caused by a pump, elevated tank, boiler,
				  air/steam pressure, or any other means, which may cause backflow.
Backsiphonage
means backflow caused
				  by negative or reduced pressure in the supply piping.
Coagulation
means a process using
				  coagulant chemicals and mixing by which colloidal and suspended materials are
				  destabilized and agglomerated into flocs.
Community water system
means a
				  public water system that (a) serves at least 15 service connections used by
				  year-round residents of the area served by the system or (b) regularly serves
				  at least 25 year-round residents.
Compliance cycle
means the
				  nine-year calendar year cycle during which public water systems must monitor.
				  Each compliance cycle consists of three three-year compliance periods. The
				  first calendar year cycle began January 1, 1993 and ended December 31, 2001;
				  the second began January 1, 2002 and ends December 31, 2010; the third begins
				  January 1, 2011 and ends December 31, 2019.
Compliance period
means a
				  three-year calendar year period within a compliance cycle. Each compliance
				  cycle has three three-year compliance periods. Within the first compliance
				  cycle, the first compliance period ran from January 1, 1993 to December 31,
				  1995; the second from January 1, 1996 to December 31, 1998; the third from
				  January 1, 1999 to December 31, 2001.
Comprehensive performance evaluation
				  (CPE)
means a thorough review and analysis of a treatment plant's
				  performance-based capabilities and associated administrative, operation and
				  maintenance practices. It is conducted to identify factors that may be
				  adversely impacting a plant's capability to achieve compliance and emphasizes
				  approaches that can be implemented without significant capital improvements.
				  For purposes of compliance with 179 NAC 17 and 179 NAC 19, the comprehensive
				  performance evaluation must consist of at least the following components:
				  assessment of plant performance; evaluation of major unit processes;
				  identification and prioritization of performance limiting factors; assessment
				  of the applicability of comprehensive technical assistance; and preparation of
				  a CPE report.
Confluent growth
means a continuous
				  bacterial growth covering the entire filtration area of a membrane filter, or a
				  portion thereof, in which bacterial colonies are not discrete.
Contamination
means an impairment
				  of a potable water supply by the introduction or admission of any foreign
				  substance that degrades the quality and creates a health hazard.
Conventional filtration treatment
means a series of processes including coagulation, flocculation, sedimentation,
				  and filtration resulting in substantial particulate removal.
Cross connection
means any physical
				  arrangement whereby a potable water supply is connected, directly or
				  indirectly, with any other water supply system, sewer, drain, conduit, tank,
				  pump, plumbing fixture, heat exchanger, or other mechanical equipment or device
				  which contains, or may contain, contaminated water, sewage or other waste,
				  liquid or gas of unknown or unsafe quality which may be capable of imparting
				  contamination or pollution to the potable water supply as a result of backflow
				  (due to either backpressure or backsiphonage). Bypass arrangements, jumper
				  connections, hose connections, removable spools, swivel or changeover devices,
				  four-way valve connections and other temporary or permanent devices through
				  which, or because of which, backflow (or backsiphonage) could occur are
				  considered to be cross-connections. Protecting a public water system against
				  potential contamination from cross-connections is possible by containment
				  and/or isolation.
Cross connection control
means the
				  enforcement of an ordinance or other instrument regarding cross
				  connections.
CT or CTcalc
is the product of
				  "residual disinfectant concentration" (C) in mg per liter determined before or
				  at the first customer, and the corresponding "disinfectant contact time" (T) in
				  minutes, i.e., "C" x "T".
CT( 99.9)
means the CT value required for 99.9% (3-log) inactivation of
Giardia
				  lamblia
cysts. CT( 99.9) for a variety of
				  disinfectants and conditions appear in Tables 13.1 - to 13.8 of 179 NAC
				  13-007.02C.
Council
means the Advisory Council
				  on Public Water Supply.
Diatomaceous earth filtration
means
				  a process resulting in substantial particulate removal in which (1) a precoat
				  cake of diatomaceous earth filter media is deposited on a support membrane
				  (septum), and (2) while the water is filtered by passing through the cake on
				  the septum, additional filter media known as body feed is continuously added to
				  the feed water to maintain the permeability of the filter cake.
Direct filtration
means a series of
				  processes including coagulation and filtration but excluding sedimentation
				  resulting in substantial particulate removal.
Director
means the Director of
				  Regulation and Licensure or his/her authorized representative.
Disinfection
means a process which
				  inactivates pathogenic organisms in water by chemical oxidants or equivalent
				  agents.
Disinfection contact time
("T" in
				  CT calculations) means the time in minutes that it takes for water to move from
				  the point of disinfectant application or the previous point of disinfectant
				  residual measurement to a point before or at the point where residual
				  disinfectant concentration ("C") is measured.
Disinfection profile
means a
				  summary of
Giardia lamblia
inactivation through the treatment
				  plant. The procedure for developing a disinfection profile is contained in 179
				  NAC
				  17-005 (Disinfection profiling and
				  benchmarking) and 179 NAC 19-007.01 - 19-007.07 (Disinfection profile) in 179
				  NAC 19.
Domestic or other non-distribution system
				  plumbing problem
means a coliform contamination problem in a
				  public water system with more than one service connection, that is limited to
				  the specific service connection from which the coliform-positive sample was
				  taken.
Dose equivalent
means the product
				  of the absorbed dose from ionizing radiation and such factors as account for
				  differences in biological effectiveness due to the type of radiation and its
				  distribution in the body as specified by the International Commission on
				  Radiological Units and Measurements (ICRU).
Double check-valve assembly
means a
				  backflow prevention device consisting of two independently acting check valves,
				  internally force loaded to a normally closed position between two tightly
				  closing shut-off valves, and with means for testing for tightness.
Drinking water standards
means the
				  rules and regulations adopted and promulgated pursuant to
Neb. Rev.
				  Stat
. §
										71-5302,
				  which (a) establish maximum levels for harmful materials which, in the judgment
				  of the Director of Regulation and Licensure, may have an adverse effect on the
				  health of persons and (b) apply only to public water systems.
Effective opening
means the minimum
				  cross-sectional area at the point of water supply discharge, measured or
				  expressed in terms of the diameter of a circle, or if the opening is not
				  circular, the diameter of a circle of equivalent cross-sectional area.
Filter profile
means a graphical
				  representation of individual filter performance, based on continuous turbidity
				  measurements or total particle counts versus time for an entire filter run,
				  from startup to backwash inclusively, that includes an assessment of filter
				  performance while another filter is being backwashed.
Filtration
means a process for
				  removing particulate matter from water by passage through porous media.
Flocculation
means a process to
				  enhance agglomeration or collection of smaller floc particles into larger, more
				  easily settleable particles through hydraulic or mechanical means.
Gross alpha particle activity
means
				  the total radioactivity due to alpha particle emission as inferred from
				  measurements on a dry sample.
Gross beta particle activity
means
				  the total radioactivity due to beta particle emission as inferred from
				  measurements on a dry sample.
Groundwater system
means a water
				  system utilizing wells as the source of water.
Ground water under the direct influence of
				  surface water
(GWUDI) means any water beneath the surface of the
				  ground with significant occurrence of insects or other macroorganisms, algae,
				  or large-diameter pathogens such as
Giardia lamblia
or
Cryptosporidium,
or significant and relatively rapid shifts
				  in water characteristics such as turbidity, temperature, conductivity, or pH
				  which closely correlate to climatological or surface water conditions. Direct
				  influence must be determined for individual sources in accordance with criteria
				  established by the Director. The Director determination of direct influence may
				  be based on site-specific measurements of water quality and/or documentation of
				  well construction characteristics and geology with field evaluation as
				  described in 179 NAC 13 Attachment 2.
Halogen
means one of the chemical
				  elements chlorine, bromine, or iodine.
Inactivation ratio
means the ratio
				  of CT to CT( 99.9), i.e., CT divided by CT(
				  99.9).
Initial compliance period
means the
				  three-year compliance period which ended December 31, 1995 except as follows.
				  For the contaminants listed in 179 NAC
				  2-002.02A(1), (5), (8), (11),
				  (17); and in
				  2-002.02B 2 (19),
				  (20), (21); and in
				  2-002.02B 3(19) to
				  (33); the initial compliance period means the three-year compliance period
				  which began January 1, 1993 and ended December 31, 1995 for systems with 150 or
				  more service connections, and means the three-year compliance period which
				  began January 1, 1996 and ended December 31, 1998 for systems having fewer than
				  150 service connections.
Lead free
1. When used with respect to solders and
				flux, means solders and flux containing not more than 0.2 % lead and
2. When used with respect to pipe and pipe
				fittings, means pipe and pipe fittings containing not more than 8% lead.
Legionella
means
				  a genus of bacteria, some species of which have caused a type of pneumonia
				  called Legionnaires Disease.
Major construction, extension, or
				  alteration
means those structural changes that affect the source
				  of supply, treatment processes, or transmission of water to service areas, but
				  does not include the extension of service mains within established service
				  areas.
Man-made beta particle and photon
				  emitters
means all radionuclides emitting beta particles and/or
				  photons listed in "Maximum Permissible Body Burdens and Maximum Permissible
				  Concentration of Radionuclides in Air or Water for Occupational Exposure",
NBS Handbook 69
, except the daughter products of
				  Thorium-232, Uraniumi-235, and Uranium-238.
Maximum contaminant level
(MCL)
				  means the maximum permissible level of a contaminant in water which is
				  delivered to any user of a public water system.
Maximum total trihalomethane
				  potential
(MTP) means the maximum concentration of total
				  trihalomethanes produced in a given water containing disinfectant residual
				  after seven days at a temperature of 25°C or above.
Near the first service connection
means at one of the 20% of all service connections in the entire system that
				  are nearest the water supply treatment facility, as measured by water transport
				  time within the distribution system.
Non-community water system
means a
				  public water system that is not a community water system. A non-community water
				  system is either a "transient non-community water system (TWS)" or a
				  "non-transient non-community water system (NTNCWS)."
Non-transient, non-community water
				  system
means a public water system that is not a community water
				  system and that regularly serves at least 25 of the same individuals over six
				  months per year.
Operator
means the individual or
				  individuals responsible for the continued performance of the water supply
				  system or any part of such system, during assigned duty hours.
Owner
means any person owning or
				  operating a public water system.
Person
means any individual, firm,
				  partnership, limited liability company, association, company, corporation,
				  political subdivision, or other entity.
Picocurie
(pCi) means that quantity
				  of radioactive material producing 2.22 nuclear transformations per
				  minute.
Point of disinfectant application
is the point where the disinfectant is applied and water downstream of that
				  point is not subject to recontamination by surface water runoff.
Point-of-entry
treatment device
				  (POE)
is a treatment device applied to the drinking water entering
				  a house or building for the purpose of reducing contaminants in the drinking
				  water distributed throughout the house or building.
Point-of-use
treatment device (POU)
is a treatment device applied to a single tap used for the purpose of reducing
				  contaminants in drinking water at that one tap.
Pollution
means the presence of any
				  foreign substance in water that tends to degrade its quality so as to
				  constitute a nonhealth hazard or impair the usefulness of the water.
Potable water
means water that is
				  safe for human consumption as set forth in 179 NAC 2-002.
Protection by containment
(i.e.,
				  containing the potential contamination source within the water customer's
				  building, factory, facility, property distribution system, or trailer court,
				  etc.) means the installation of an approved backflow prevention device or
				  method on the water service line(s) serving any premises, location, facility or
				  area.
Protection by isolation
means
				  control of cross-connections within a building's plumbing system by the
				  installation of approved backflow prevention devices or methods at or near the
				  potential sources of pollution or contamination.
Public water system
means a system
				  for providing the public with water for human consumption through pipes or,
				  after August 5, 1998, other constructed conveyances, if such system has at
				  least 15 service connections or regularly serves an average of at least 25
				  individuals daily at least 60 days per year. Public water system includes (a)
				  any collection, treatment, storage, and distribution facilities under control
				  of the operator of such system and used primarily in connection with such
				  system and (b) any collection or pretreatment storage facilities not under such
				  control which are used primarily in connection with such system. Public water
				  system does not include a special irrigation district. A public water system is
				  either a community water system or a non-community water system.
Service connection does not include a connection to a system
				  that delivers water by a constructed conveyance other than a pipe if (i) the
				  water is used exclusively for purposes other than residential uses, consisting
				  of drinking, bathing, cooking, and other similar uses, (ii) the Department
				  determines that alternative water to achieve the equivalent level of public
				  health protection provided by the Nebraska Safe Drinking Water Act and rules
				  and regulations under the act is provided for residential or similar uses for
				  drinking and cooking, or (iii) the Department determines that the water
				  provided for residential or similar uses for drinking, cooking, and bathing is
				  centrally treated or treated at the point of entry by the provider, a
				  pass-through entity, or the user to achieve the equivalent level of protection
				  provided by the Nebraska Safe Drinking Water Act and the rules and regulations
				  under the Act.
Special irrigation district
means
				  an irrigation district in existence prior to May 18, 1994, that provides
				  primarily agricultural service through a piped water system with only
				  incidental residential or similar use if the system or the residential or
				  similar users of the system comply with exclusion provisions of 179 NAC
				  2-001.02 items (ii) and (iii) of Public Water System definition.
Reduced pressure principle backflow
				  preventer
means a backflow prevention device consisting of two
				  independently acting check valves, internally force loaded to a normally closed
				  position and separated by an intermediate chamber (or zone) in which there is
				  an automatic relief means of venting to atmosphere internally loaded to a
				  normally open position between two tightly closing shut-off valves and with
				  means for testing for tightness of the checks and opening of relief
				  means.
Rem
means the unit of dose
				  equivalent from ionizing radiation to the total body or any internal organ or
				  organ system. A "millirem" (mrem) is 1/1000 of a rem.
Repeat compliance period
means any
				  subsequent compliance period after the initial compliance period.
Residual disinfectant concentration
("C" in CT calculations) means the concentration of disinfectant measured in
				  milligrams per liter in a representative sample of water.
Sanitary survey
means an on-site
				  review of the water source, facilities, equipment, operation and maintenance of
				  a public water system for the purpose of evaluating the adequacy of such
				  source, facilities, equipment, operation and maintenance for producing and
				  distributing safe drinking water.
Sedimentation
means a process for
				  removal of solids before filtration by gravity or separation.
Service area
means the land area
				  which the owner of a public water system has legal franchise or authority to
				  remain the sole distributor of piped drinking water.
Service connection
, as used in the
				  definition of public water system, does not include a connection to a system
				  that delivers water by a constructed conveyance other than a pipe if:
1. The water is used exclusively for purposes
				other than residential uses (consisting of drinking, bathing, and cooking, or
				other similar uses);
2. The
				Department determines that alternative water to achieve the equivalent level of
				public health protection provided by the applicable state drinking water
				regulation is provided for residential or similar uses for drinking and
				cooking; or
3. The Department
				determines that the water provided for residential or similar uses for
				drinking, cooking, and bathing is centrally treated or treated at the point of
				entry by the provider, a pass-through entity, or the user to achieve the
				equivalent level of protection provided by the applicable state primary
				drinking water regulations.
Slow sand filtration
means a
				  process involving passage of raw water through a bed of sand at a low velocity
				  (generally less than 0.4 m/h) resulting in substantial particulate removal by
				  physical and biological mechanisms.
Surface water
means all water which
				  is open to the atmosphere and subject to surface runoff.
Surface water system
means a water
				  system utilizing surface water as the source of water.
System with a single service
				  connection
means a system which supplies drinking water to
				  consumers via a single service line.
Too numerous to count
means that
				  the total number of bacterial colonies exceeds 200 on a 47-mm diameter membrane
				  filter used for coliform detection.
Transient non-community water system or
				  TWS
means a non-community water system that does not regularly
				  serve at least 25 of the same persons over six months per year.
Treatment technique
means the use
				  of aeration, settling, filtration, or other physical process and/or the
				  addition of any chemical or chemicals for the purpose of removing,
				  deactivation, or adjusting the level of one or more contaminants present in the
				  raw water source.
Trihalomethane (THM)
means one of a
				  family of organic compounds, named as derivatives of methane, wherein three of
				  the four hydrogen atoms in methane are each substituted by a halogen atom in
				  the molecular structure.
Total trihalomethanes (TTHMs)
means
				  the sum of the concentration in milligrams per liter of the trihalomethane
				  compounds [trichloromethane (chloroform), dibromochloromethane,
				  bromodichloromethane, and tribromomethane (bromoform)], rounded to two
				  significant figures.
Uncovered finished water storage
				  facility
means a tank, reservoir, or other facility used to store
				  water that will undergo no further treatment except residual disinfection and
				  is open to the atmosphere.
Vacuum breaker, atmospheric type
means a vacuum breaker which is not designed to be subject to static line
				  pressure.
Vacuum breaker, pressure type
means
				  a vacuum breaker which is designed to be subject to static line
				  pressure.
Virus
means a virus of fecal origin
				  which is infectious to humans by waterborne transmission.
Waterborne disease outbreak
means
				  the significant occurrence of acute infectious illness, epidemiologically
				  associated with the ingestion of water from a public water system which is
				  deficient in treatment as determined by the Director.
Water supply system
means all
				  sources of water and their surroundings under the control of one owner, and
				  includes all structures, conduits, and appurtenances by means of which such
				  water is collected, treated, stored, or delivered, except service pipes between
				  street mains and buildings and the plumbing within or in connection with the
				  buildings served.