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