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USEPA Guidance for Designing a Source Water Monitoring System
Citation:
Allgeier, S., K. Thompson, Joel Allen, C. Macintosh, M. Umberg, J. Liggett, AND Alan Lindquist. USEPA Guidance for Designing a Source Water Monitoring System. Presented at Water Quality Technology Conference, Indianapolis, IN, November 13 - 17, 2016.
Impact/Purpose:
The purpose of this is to introduce the concepts of a guidance document on source water monitoring for drinking water utilities to technical personnel in the drinking water sector.
Description:
Treatment plants are commonly designed and operated to handle typical variability in source water quality, treat contaminants known to occur in source water, comply with drinking water standards, and meet customer expectations. However, unanticipated changes in source water quality or the presence of unusual contaminants can adversely impact the ability of a utility to meet these objectives. Source water threats such as spills, harmful algal blooms, and illegal discharges can be unpredictable, difficult to detect, and have potentially serious consequences for utility operations and public health.A source water monitoring system can provide a utility with timely information that can be used to detect and then respond to unanticipated changes in source water quality. A source water monitoring system involves the measurement of selected water quality parameters at strategic locations in the source water body or surrounding watershed. Measurement results are transmitted to a central location where they are analyzed in real time. If a water quality anomaly is detected, procedures are implemented to investigate the cause of the anomaly and guide a response that is commensurate with the risk presented by the likely cause of the anomaly. Other benefits of source water monitoring include treatment optimization and long-term characterization of source water quality, which can be used to gage the effectiveness of source water management programs.To support drinking water utilities in designing effective source water monitoring systems, U.S. EPA has developed Source Water Monitoring Guidance. This document guides water sector professionals through a systematic process of designing a source water monitoring system to meet a utility’s specific goals, such as treatment process optimization, detection of water quality incidents (e.g., spills and harmful algal blooms), and long-term source water characterization. In addition to the detailed design guidance, the document provides a fully developed example of a source water monitoring system design, as well as several case studies of deployed systems.This presentation will provide an overview of the new EPA Source Water Monitoring Guidance. The product will be presented in the context of a design problem to illustrate the key decision points and steps of designing a source water monitoring system. Specific topics covered in the presentation include: (1) identification of source water threats and risk assessment; (2) selection of water quality parameters and monitoring locations; (3) design of water quality monitoring stations; (4) design of information management systems to support analysis of source water quality data; and (5) development of procedures to respond to unusual source water quality conditions. The presentation will conclude with practical suggestions for implementing a source water monitoring system.
URLs/Downloads:
http://www.awwa.org/conferences-education/conferences/water-quality-technology/water-quality-program.aspx#