Drinking Water

Issue Summary
U.S. EPA
States
Organizations/Non-Government Programs
Publications
Databases and Tools
Financial Assistance

Issue Summary

Only one percent of the earth's water is drinkable and local governments are often stewards of public drinking water supplies. Given their responsibility for protecting public health and the environment, local governments are required under the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) to meet the federal drinking water standards and to develop the plans and programs to protect sources of drinking water. An essential step in a community's source water protection program is a source water assessment, which includes the delineation of the area to be protected and an inventory of the potential contaminants within that area. Developing a drinking or source water protection program allows local governments to act positively to protect public health rather than simply react after a costly problem occurs, i.e., contaminated drinking water supplies.

U.S. EPA

Drinking Water Training System. Series of online trainings on the federal requirements of the National Primary Drinking Water Regulations (NPDWR). EPA will issue a certificate upon completion of the entire series.

Building the Capacity of Drinking Water Systems. Compendium of publications, webinars and online tools focused on technical training and operator certification, water system partnership development, asset management and funding opportunities.

EPA PFAS Drinking Water Laboratory Methods. Guidance on EPA's existing analytical methods to test for PFAS in drinking water.

EPA's Office of Ground Water and Drinking Water (OGWDW). OGWDW together with states, tribes, and its many partners, protects public health by ensuring safe drinking water and protecting ground water. OGWDW, along with EPA's ten regional drinking water programs, oversees implementation of the Safe Drinking Water Act, which is the national law safeguarding tap water in America.

Drinking Water Standards. Under the authority of the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA), EPA sets standards for approximately 90 contaminants in drinking water. For each of these contaminants, EPA sets a legal limit, called a maximum contaminant level, or requires a certain treatment. Water suppliers may not provide water that doesn't meet these standards.

Public Drinking Water Systems Programs. Through the Public Water System Supervision (PWSS) program, EPA implements and enforces drinking water standards to protect public health.

Basic Information about Water Security. This web site provides information to help drinking water and wastewater utilities (1) assess and reduce vulnerabilities to potential terrorist attacks, (2) plan for and practice response to emergencies and incidents, and (3) develop new security technologies to detect and monitor contaminants and prevent security breaches. The “Don’t Get Soaked” video featured on this page is targeted for drinking water and wastewater utility managers, board members, and elected and appointed officials and includes testimonials from drinking water and wastewater utilities.

National Environmental Training Center for Small Communities (NETCSC). Through U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) funding, NETCSC assisted small communities with training materials, information, and referral services in the areas of wastewater and drinking water. Through the efforts of technical assistance providers and trainers the program benefits local decision-makers, operations personnel, regulatory officials, environmental consultants, and others by aiding their efforts to improve the public health and water utilities management of their communities. NETCSC's training materials and products are currently available.

States

State/Local Drinking Water Information. Click on a state to locate state program information and access drinking water supply reports.

Organizations/Non-Government Programs

United States Geological Survey (USGS) National Water Dashboard. Interactive mapping tool that utilizes the USGS database of water data. Users can see the full range of water quality data and other information available on their local lakes, wells, and streams in real time.

American Water Works Association. Founded in 1881, AWWA is the authoritative resource on safe water, providing knowledge, information and advocacy to improve the quality and supply of water in North America and beyond.

Association of Metropolitan Water Agencies. The Association of Metropolitan Water Agencies (AMWA) is an organization of the largest publicly owned drinking water systems in the United States. AMWA's membership serves more than 130 million Americans with drinking water from Alaska to Puerto Rico.

Association of State Drinking Water Administrators. The Association of State Drinking Water Administrators (ASDWA) is the professional Association serving state drinking water programs. Formed in 1984 to address a growing need for state administrators to have national representation, ASDWA has become a respected voice for state primacy agents with Congress, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and other professional organizations.

Water Utility Climate Alliance. National organization providing resources including reports, trainings, technical assistance and conferences to help water utilities become climate resilient and decrease greenhouse gas emissions.

Publications

Citizen Science Programs at Environmental Agencies Series. Compilation of 15 case studies of agency programs that actively involve the public to complement official action and to establish a collaborative role in protecting the environment. Highlights successful methods of data collection and how they have been used by various agencies in air and water programs. (Environmental Law Institute)

Making Water a Career of Choice: Water Workforce Case Studies. Includes nine case studies of communities in the U.S. and their unique initiatives to improve recruitment and retention of water and wastewater professionals. Strategies explained include increased outreach to youths and minority communities and development of leadership training programs.

It's Hot and Getting Hotter: A Report for Utilities on Heat Impacts. Projects heat impacts on utility personnel and assets through the year 2070 and provides adaptation procedures to reduce heat-related harm to outside utility workers and infrastructure including HVAC systems, water treatment plants, pumps and motors.

Association of State Drinking Water Administrators. ASDWA has developed a number of publications, which are listed on this page. Some publications are available online for download, while others must be purchased from ASDWA Headquarters.

Occurrence of Releases with the Potential to Impact Sources of Drinking Water. EPA report on releases of harmful chemicals through accidents or unpermitted discharges into sources of drinking water that could cause significant problems for public water systems and the communities they serve. Intended to inform Risk and Resilience Assessments as required under the American Water Infrastructure Act (AWIA), Section 2013.

Databases and Tools

Drinking Water Treatability Database (TDB). EPA's online compendium of information on treatment processes for chemical, microbial and radiological drinking water contaminants that are regulated and listed on the Contaminant Candidate List (CCL).

Sanitary Survey. EPA app is a go-to- resource for up-to-date water quality data, pollution source data and land use data for marine and fresh waterbody management. Data from this app can be exported for use in predictive models and can help jurisdictions gather information on the existence of algal bloom or bacterial pollution in local waters.

Financing

For more information on available funding and financing strategies, please visit the "Drinking Water" section of our financing page.