Staff report
The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) has announced the recipients of the annual Public Water Systems Award, which recognizes exceptional performance among many public water supply systems. Among those honored are Veolia North America, which operates and maintains the Gardner and Ashburnham-Winchendon (contracted for 20 years) water facilities where they treat and distribute public drinking water.
Each year, MassDEP honors the state’s many dedicated drinking water professionals, while acknowledging noteworthy accomplishments that involve excellent water service to the public.
“The Baker-Polito administration is proud to recognize drinking water providers across the commonwealth who share the administration’s commitment to ensuring that residents have access to safe, clean and healthy drinking water,” said Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Kathleen Theoharides.
First step to begin the process of developing national primary drinking water standards
Process takes years under the SDWA prescribed process
EPA must propose the drinking water standard within 24 months
EPA must then promulgate the standard within 18 months after the proposal
Standards include the Maximum Contaminant Level Goal (MCLG), the non-enforceable level at which no known or anticipated adverse health effects occur, with an adequate margin of safety
Standards also include the Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL), the enforceable standard applicable to public water suppliers, as close to MCLG as is “feasible” using best available technology or other means available, taking costs into consideration
After being under a citywide boil-water notice for several days, Harker Heights residents may soon be relieved of their expectations to take the precautionary measure before consumption.
Assistant City Manager Jerry Bark said via email Friday that the city anticipates the notice to be lifted Saturday.
âResults are not back but the lab water testing site is overwhelmed with other Texas City samples,â Bark said.
Part of the reason it has taken the city of Harker Heights so long to lift its notice is because the city has disinfected its four water storage tanks.
Bark said Thursday that it is his understanding that disinfection of the water tanks is required by the Texas Commission on Economic Quality when water tanks go empty and/or if water pressure is lost in the water mains, citing Texas Administrative Code Chapter 290.
perfluorobutanesulfonic acid (PFBS)
The newly proposed UCMR 5 will expand the list of monitored PFAS compounds to 29.[8] Most PWSs will be affected by this proposed rule and will be required to monitor these compounds, subject to the availability of adequate Congressional appropriations and appropriate laboratory capacity.[9] The monitoring information required under UCMR 5 will provide USEPA with data on the national occurrence of the identified contaminants in drinking water systems, which will be used, along with other available information, to inform USEPA’s future regulatory efforts including the potential establishment of federally enforceable drinking water MCLs for any of the 29 PFAS compounds identified in the rule, where the data supports the establishment of a regulatory standard.
Millions of people in the U.S. are drinking water that fails to meet federal health standards, including by violating limits for dangerous contaminants. Latinos are disproportionately exposed, ac.