Latest news, insights, and discussion on US and global drinking water regulations.

WATER INDUSTRY FEATURES, INSIGHTS, AND ANALYSIS

Tackling Lake Erie's Algal Blooms Requires Targeted Conservation Strategies
Algal blooms in Lake Erie remind us how closely food production and clean water are connected. Many of these nutrients come from nearby farms, and the challenge is keeping them out of waterways.
After The Fire: What The 2026 Wildfires And El Niño Could Mean For U.S. Lakes And Reservoirs In 2027
In July, smoke from Canadian wildfires spread across the upper Midwest and Northeast. Now a strengthening El Niño is set to influence the coming winter. Both events matter to lake and reservoir managers because their effects on water quality will continue to emerge long after the skies clear or the El Niño passes.
Minneapolis Flexes Its Mussels For Source Water Monitoring Solution
Protecting municipal drinking water requires rapid visibility into changing surface source conditions. Discover how combining biological indicators with continuous inline spectrometry delivers real-time contamination alerts, preventing costly treatment plant shutdowns and safeguarding consumer health.
DEXSORB® Treatment At Groundwater Pump Station
Discover how upgrading existing filter infrastructure with advanced adsorbent media provided over 600 days of continuous PFAS removal, treating millions of gallons of contaminated groundwater to achieve strict drinking water compliance.
DEXSORB® Treatment Of Surface Water For Gravity System
Discover how a dual-vessel lead-lag media system achieved continuous non-detect levels for target legacy contaminants, treating over 250,000 gallons of surface water to support regulatory compliance and municipal drinking water goals.
Pretreatment Systems Enable Complete And More Economical PFAS Solutions For operators looking to optimize their PFAS removal systems, controlling the presence of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) offers an approach to minimizing operational costs due to granular activated carbon (GAC) reactivation and ion exchange media change-out.
What Utilities Don't Know About GAC Reuse For PFAS For utilities building PFAS treatment systems, thermal reactivation of spent granular activated carbon (GAC) may sound like the obvious answer. However, service provider availability and location, specific media acceptance criteria including quantity thresholds, restrictions on GAC type and condition, and regulatory uncertainty can all determine whether reuse is a viable option.
The Cost Of Waiting: Utilities Face A Narrowing PFAS Compliance Window For years, the water industry's PFAS conversation centered on monitoring, testing, and regulatory anticipation. Today, that phase is largely over.
PFAS Funding Is Flowing — But Does The Water Sector Have Enough People To Deliver It? For several years, the PFAS conversation has centered on treatment options, testing, and funding. Those factors still matter, but they are no longer the primary constraint. Most utilities already understand the treatment routes available to them; the real challenge now is moving from technical possibility to operational performance, and that depends entirely on people.
D.C. Circuit Upholds EPA's Hazardous Substance Designation For PFOA, PFOS
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit recently rejected industry challenges to the EPA's designation of PFOA and PFOS as hazardous substances under CERCLA, leaving the agency's April 2024 rule fully intact. While the case centered on the EPA's authority to make the designation, its practical significance for water utilities is simpler: the liability concerns that have accompanied the rule since its adoption remain unresolved.

DRINKING WATER PRODUCTS

Reverse Osmosis: RO Meter

This compact instrument has been designed specifically to demonstrate and test POU reverse osmosis or distillation systems. By measuring electrical conductivity, it will quickly determine the parts per million/Total Dissolved Solids (ppm/TDS) of any drinking water

Municipal Real-Time Water Quality Monitoring

We arm municipalities with actionable data necessary to make informed decisions about water quality in their communities

TrojanUVFlex

TrojanUV systems are installed for water providers who are adopting wastewater reuse to conserve natural drinking water supplies.

SALINO® Pressure Center

In small to medium-sized desalination systems the SALINO® Pressure Center proves that greatness has nothing to do with size. The 4-in-1 technology combines all relevant components needed for pressure boosting and energy recovery in one RO system.

Toray RO Seawater RO Elements

Following 4”, 8” and 16” membranes can be used in multiple membrane systems to treat sea water or high salinity water > 10’000 ppm. The 4” membrane types can be used for small private or shipboard sea water desalination.

Modular Onsite Storage Systems

With the high cost of infrastructure replacement and demands for more stringent environmental standards, newterra modular treatment systems are driving the adoption of decentralized solutions.

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What Utilities Should Know About School Lead Data

The Cost Of Waiting: Utilities Face A Narrowing PFAS Compliance Window

For years, the water industry's PFAS conversation centered on monitoring, testing, and regulatory anticipation. Today, that phase is largely over.
EPA Seeks Court‑Ordered Removal Of 4 PFAS Limits

The U.S. EPA is testing a new procedural strategy to remove four PFAS drinking‑water limits from ongoing litigation, asking the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals to invalidate those limits on the grounds that the EPA itself committed a procedural misstep when issuing the 2024 PFAS rule.
Putting The National Toxicology Program's Fluoride Review In Context

Despite renewed public concern over fluoride and cognition, the National Toxicology Program’s findings focus on high‑fluoride groundwater conditions — not the controlled levels used in U.S. drinking water systems. Understanding that distinction is critical for utilities navigating policy questions and community expectations.
HAAs In The EU: Monitoring For Haloacetic Acids Under The Drinking Water Directive

In this Q&A, Dr. Elke Süss of Metrohm addresses the urgent need for haloacetic acid testing in response to “one of the most significant updates to EU drinking water monitoring in recent years.”
PFAS Unpacked: Experts Answer Questions On EPA Rules, Funding, Treatment, And More

With the U.S. EPA's PFAS rules now in place, utilities are finding themselves with a growing number of questions regarding how to treat these chemicals, the potential costs, and much more. For answers, Water Online's chief editor, Kevin Westerling, hosted an Ask Me Anything session featuring Ken Sansone, Senior Partner at SL Environmental Law Group; Kyle Thompson, National PFAS Lead at Carollo Engineers; and Lauren Weinrich, Principal Scientist at American Water.

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Ozone-Compatible Materials: Why Material Selection Matters For Piping, Valves, Seals, And Long-Term System Reliability

Ozone compatibility is not a yes-or-no material property. It depends on the full service environment and duty cycle, and overlooked seals and tubing can undermine otherwise sound designs.
Analytics: A Referee For The Tug-Of-War Between MSC-EVs' Nature And Nurture

Like a referee in a contest, advanced analytical methods are essential to mediate the push and pull of different factors influencing therapeutic efficacy.
The Site's Guide To Recovering Clinical Technology Costs From Sponsors

Gain sponsor approval by positioning technology as key to streamlined workflows, compliance, and patient safety — reducing risk and improving collaboration. Explore strategies now.
Accelerating The Seed Train: Enabling N-1 Intensification

Discover how N-1 intensification shortens production timelines and improves cell viability by replacing traditional filtration with automated, low-shear separation techniques to achieve higher seeding densities.
What Experience Taught Medford About AMI

See how Medford, Massachusetts, used years of AMI experience to prioritize reliability, improve leak detection, enhance billing accuracy, and guide future infrastructure decisions.
How Advanced Oxidation Is Tackling 1,4 Dioxane At Orlando Drum & Container

Orlando Drum & Container eliminates hazardous 1,4 Dioxane from groundwater using Pinnacle Ozone Solutions’ Advanced Oxidation Process, restoring water quality sustainably and ensuring regulatory compliance.
AMI Under The Microscope: Beaverton Water Division Answers Questions About Its AMI Transition

Beaverton Water Division’s transition to Kamstrup AMI and acoustic leak detection is modernizing meter reading, reducing infrastructure costs, improving leak identification, and streamlining operations as deployment progresses.
The Future Of Surface Water Treatment In Critical Infrastructure: Why Digital Planning Is No Longer Optional

Surface water supplies most urban drinking water, but rising variability and contamination are straining ageing infrastructure—making digital planning tools essential for resilient, future-ready treatment systems.
Scope 3 Emissions: A Shared Challenge, A Collective Responsibility

Despite growing sustainability efforts, our industry lags in climate goals, especially Scope 3 emissions. Discover why bold action and deep collaboration across the value chain are essential for real progress.
NMR Spectroscopy Data—Beyond Single Structure Verification

NMR reveals far more than structure, offering insights into purity and molecular behavior. Advanced analysis unlocks deeper value from data to better understand mixtures and 3D structures.
Peace River Manasota Regional Water Supply Authority Uses Powdered Activated Carbon To Ensure High Quality Drinking Water

Founded in 1982, Peace River Manasota Regional Water Supply Authority supplies drinking water to a region of approximately one million people. Its surface water treatment plant draws water from the Peace River to a reservoir and treats it to drinking water standards at the rate of about 31 million gallons a day.
Cracking The Reproducibility Code: Sera Is A Key Component

Struggling with reproducible cell culture results? Sera variability is a major culprit. Learn how to choose the right sera, test lots, and stock up to ensure consistency and boost reproducibility.
Why Reagent Quality Defines Research Success

Water grade, buffer preparation, and packaging each shape whether sensitive assays hold up. Reagent selection hinges on matching purity to application sensitivity, regulatory standards, and tolerance for contamination risk.
Track Microbial Contamination In Environmental Water

Microbial testing of environmental water demands efficient, contamination‑resistant workflows. Discover a membrane filtration technique that offers rapid, reliable colony isolation.

Hot Springs Combats Aging Infrastructure Challenges With Xylem Digital Solutions

The City of Hot Springs, Arkansas knows the challenges of dealing with aging infrastructure well. The city’s 143-year-old system covers 923 miles of water mains in rocky terrain, making it difficult to detect leaks. That is why the utility’s water department decided to act.
How Regulatory Pressure Is Driving Innovation In Surface Water Facilities

What does it take to stay ahead of tightening drinking water standards? See how utilities are turning regulatory pressure into smarter infrastructure investment.
Keeping Customers Informed: New Jersey American Water Streamlines Required Notices

How one utility streamlined required notices instead of letting them pile up.
Identifying Contaminants Of Concern

In this article, we outline the sources, occurrence, known health issues, and mitigation options for specific contaminants.

WATER INDUSTRY FEATURES, INSIGHTS, AND ANALYSIS

DRINKING WATER PRODUCTS

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