Viewpoint -- A State View of Consumer Education (PDF)

Abstract

With implementation of the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) amendments of 1986 now in full swing, state drinking water programs have the responsibility to inform utilities and consumers of many new regulations. Adding to state responsibilities is the fact that more contaminants and more water systems will be regulated in the future. In the past, the US Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) and the states regulated about 22 drinking water contaminants. By 1992 this number will be more than 100, with additional contaminants still to come. The regulation of these additional contaminants will have significant effects on the more than 58,000 community water systems in the United States. In addition, more than 20,000 nontransient, noncommunity water systems will face more stringent regulations, and more than 120,000 noncommunity systems, which have been virtually unregulated in the past, will have to comply with new regulations. For state programs, these additional regulatory responsibilities pose a threefold challenge. First, states will have to explain in layman's terms what the new regulations mean and why systems must now comply with them. Second, the state and the utilities will have to explain to the public why its drinking water was considered "safe" yesterday but may not be "safe" today. Third, both states and utilities will have to explain that requirements for more frequent monitoring or increased treatment may cause a dramatic rise in water rates.