Abstract |
The U.S. EPA is responsible for implementing and enforcing the Safe Drinking Water Act, as amended in 1986. In carrying out its responsibility, the EPA promulgates regulations which are designed to control the quality of public drinking water. U.S. drinking water regulations are of two types. One type established maximum contaminant levels (MCLs) along with the required compliance monitoring and the best available technology to meet the MCLs. The other type of regulation specifies treatment technology in lieu of MCLs when it is infeasible to determine the level of a contaminant in drinking water. Various drinking water regulations have been promulgated or are in various stages of development which will involve the application of treatment technology. These regulations are for control of: (1) synthetic organic contaminants, both volatile and nonvolatile, (2) inorganic contaminants, including corrosion products, (3) microbiological contaminants, (4) radionuclides, and (5) disinfection byproducts. This paper discusses those regulations and describes treatment technology available for achieving compliance with the regulations, along with the estimated cost of compliance. |