NSF International Publishes First American National Standard To Evaluate Performance Of Municipal Water Filtration Technologies In Removing Cryptosporidium

New national standard helps protect public water supplies

Global public health organization NSF International has published the first consensus-based American National Standard to evaluate the performance of municipal water filtration technologies in removing Cryptosporidium from public drinking water supplies. The new standard - NSF/ANSI 419: Public Drinking Water Equipment Performance – Filtration incorporates state and federal regulatory requirements, assisting state regulators in verifying compliance while reducing time and costs for manufacturers by streamlining the testing process.

Products from Dow Chemical Company, Hydranautics, Hyflux Limited, Inge GmbH, and Qua Group LLC are the first to earn certification to NSF/ANSI 419. Several other water filtration technologies are currently undergoing the testing and certification process.

Municipal water treatment plants that use surface waters such as lakes, rivers and streams as a source of public drinking water are required to filter out microorganisms and bacteria such as Cryptosporidium unless exempted by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). To ensure Cryptosporidium is effectively removed from public drinking water, the EPA created the Long Term 2 Enhanced Surface Water Treatment Rule (LT2), which applies to all public water systems that use surface water or ground water that is under the direct influence of surface water.

The NSF/ANSI 419 standard incorporates the EPA LT2 Rule as well as other federal and state requirements such as certification to NSF/ANSI 61: Drinking Water System Components – Health Effects, which sets contaminant limits for components that come into contact with drinking water such as plumbing components and pipes. By incorporating all regulatory requirements into one standard, NSF International is able to streamline the testing and certification process for these technologies while simplifying the purchasing process for municipal water treatment facilities.

“Water treatment technologies certified to the NSF/ANSI 419 standard have been tested to verify they effectively remove Cryptosporidium in drinking water, which is known to cause gastrointestinal illness. Instead of every state drinking water agency having to review each validation report for each product, state regulators can now verify compliance through the official listings found on NSF’s website,” said Clif McLellan, Vice President of NSF International’s Global Water Division.

NSF International developed the NSF/ANSI 419 standard utilizing nearly two decades of experience managing the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Environmental Technology Verification Drinking Water Systems Center (ETV DWSC) with balanced input from industry, regulatory and end-user groups. The standard covers microfiltration, ultrafiltration and nanofiltration systems as well as bag and cartridge filtration systems used in the treatment or production of public drinking water.

About NSF International:
NSF International is a global independent organization that writes standards, and tests and certifies products for the water, food, health sciences and consumer goods industries to minimize adverse health effects and protect the environment (nsf.org). Founded in 1944, NSF is committed to protecting human health and safety worldwide. Operating in more than 155 countries, NSF International is a Pan American Health Organization/World Health Organization Collaborating Center on Food Safety, Water Quality and Indoor Environment.

NSF led the development of the American National Standards for all materials and products that treat or come in contact with drinking water. Today, all major plumbing codes require certification to NSF standards for pipes and plumbing components in commercial and residential buildings. NSF International is accredited by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI).

Additional NSF services include management systems registration through NSF-ISR; sustainability standards development, claims and product verification through NSF Sustainability; food safety and quality programs through the NSF Global Food Safety Division; and testing and certification programs for bottled water and beverages, dietary supplements and consumer products.