EPA Finalizes New Rules to Improve, Protect Drinking Water
January 6, 2006
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The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) finalized two drinking water protection rules. The Long Term 2 Enhanced Surface Water Treatment Rule (LT2) reduces the risk of disease-causing microorganisms entering water supplies by increasing monitoring and treatment requirements for water systems that are prone to Cryptosporidium outbreaks.
The Stage 2 Disinfection Byproducts Rule (Stage 2 DBP) requires water systems to limit the amount of potentially harmful disinfection byproducts (DBPs) that end up in drinking water.
Stage 2 DPB requires monitoring systems to find monitoring sites where higher levels of DBPs are likely to occur and use those locations for compliance monitoring. If DBPs are found to exceed drinking water standards at any of those locations, water systems must take corrective action.
The rules were proposed in August 2003, and were developed from consensus recommendations from a federal advisory committee composed of state and local governments, tribes, and environmental, public health and water industry groups.
The rules will decrease the incidence of gastrointestinal illnesses caused by microbial contaminants and reduce potential cancer risks associated with disinfectant byproducts in drinking water.
Source: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).