Regulation Updates For Utility Managers
-
Putting Out The Fire: 50 Years Of Science To Protect America’s Water
2/21/2020
2020 marks the 50th Anniversary of the establishment of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), giving us an opportunity to highlight how our science has played a critical role in helping the Agency meet its mission to safeguard public health and the environment.
-
LCR Revisions: Speak Now, Or Forever Hold Your Peace
1/29/2020
Are you completely ready to implement the scores of changes in the U.S. EPA’s Lead and Copper Rule Revisions (LCRR), exactly as proposed? If not, act quickly, because time to register constructive feedback before the February 12th deadline is running out. Less than three weeks before the end of the comment period, the EPA’s webpage for feedback displayed only 131 public submissions regarding the proposed regulations.
-
LCR Revisions Push Systems Into Uncharted Waters: Schools & Childcare Facilities
1/27/2020
Here are some thought-provoking considerations for water testing at K-12 schools and the utilities, government officials, and engineering firms who serve them.
-
Preparing For Lead-Service-Line Inventory And Replacement Requirements
1/27/2020
With all the new facets of the revised Lead and Copper Rule revisions (LCRR) — increased sampling requirements, lead service line (LSL) inventory and replacement, new communications requirements, and school/childcare-facility monitoring — any water utility that has not yet started making preparations is at risk of non-compliance now that the new rule has become law. Here are some factors to consider when reviewing LCRR requirements and conducting LSL inventories and replacements.
-
Preparing For Increased Sampling Frequency Mandated By LCR Revisions
1/27/2020
The proposed Lead and Copper Rule Revisions (LCRR) announced by the U.S. EPA offer new hope for identifying and reducing sources of lead contamination in drinking water, albeit with new levels of testing required to pinpoint problem areas. Preparing for the new rules means taking active steps toward identifying both the technicalities and logistics of meeting them, as outlined in the links and bullet points below.
-
Avoiding Crisis: Meeting LCR Revision Communication Requirements
1/27/2020
Complying with communication requirements is as much a part of the proposed Lead and Copper Rule Revisions (LCRR) as the actual water testing and identification of lead service line (LSL) inventories. Given the magnitude of the proposed changes, it is critical for water distribution utilities to start preparing for its implementation well in advance. Here are some key factors to consider.
-
Top 5 Drinking Water Issues To Be Resolved
1/15/2020
These comments address five major current topics that U.S. EPA has on its agenda: the Lead and Copper Rule (LCR) proposal, perchlorate, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), Legionella, and distribution systems. The latter two, Legionella and distribution systems, provide the greatest public health risks associated with drinking water and warrant the highest priorities for management, investments, and health and safety improvements.
-
Water Utility OT vs. IT — It’s Not A Battle, It’s A Balance
1/14/2020
The chemistry of optimizing water/wastewater treatment extends far beyond chlorine and oxygen. It also involves synthesizing productive insights from the flood of IT data generated by operational technology (OT) sensors, instruments, and control systems. Here’s how better operational intelligence strategies are helping IT and OT personnel collaborate to make processes more cost-efficient.
-
Understanding PFAS’ Impact On Remediation Strategies
1/8/2020
For more than 16.5 million water-utility customers in 33 different states, contamination caused by per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) is a source-water issue that will not go away for a long time. What are the practical options for community water systems currently confronting this challenge? Here is an overview of several treatments and their relative successes against a wide variety of PFAS compounds.
-
Preparing To Tackle The Hydra Of LCR Revisions
12/30/2019
As a journalist serving the water industry — but not yet a seasoned technical veteran — I attended a recent Lead In Drinking Water Forum sponsored by AWWA NJ to learn about the challenges of complying with the proposed Lead and Copper Rule Revisions (LCRR). What I heard impressed upon me the technical, administrative, and logistical challenges of delivering safe, lead-free drinking water all the way to user taps. Here are my takeaways.