Water systems could be required to replace lead service lines under the EPA’s proposed National Primary Drinking Water Regulation (NPDWR) for Lead and Copper: Improvements. If adopted, the impacts would be significant.

Under the authority of the Safe Drinking Water Act, the new rule aims to improve public health and simplify the rule relative to the 2021 Lead and Copper Rule Revisions. It aims to address potential disproportionate impacts of lead in drinking water in communities. Changes under the proposal would include:

• Removing the lead trigger level
• Reducing the lead action level to 0.010 mg/L
• Strengthening tap sampling procedures

Other areas that would be impacted:

• Corrosion control treatment
• Public education and consumer awareness
• Requirements for small systems
• Sampling in schools and childcare facilities

Comments are due by Feb. 5, 2024.

Brown and Caldwell’s Drinking Water and Compliance and Permitting teams are actively watching this proposed rule. Our experts can help you prepare comments for submittal to the docket.

In other environmental updates, we highlight the following in our Compliance News:

Proposed TCE ban under TSCA

Under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), the EPA’s proposed regulation would prohibit the manufacture, processing, and distribution of trichloroethylene (TCE) for all uses and establishes recordkeeping and notification requirements.

$3B in grants to promote clean ports

The EPA has launched a new Clean Ports Program to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution from port operations. The program will provide $3 billion in grants and loans to help ports upgrade their equipment, vehicles, and infrastructure to cleaner and more efficient technologies with the goal of creating a zero-emission shipping future.

Consequences of improper stormwater management

Failure to adequately control stormwater runoff from its scrap metal recycling and processing facility led to $68,000 in civil penalties for a Missouri recycling operation. According to the agency, the company “failed to comply with certain terms of its Clean Water Act permit, including failure to update and implement practices to prevent runoff of pollution, failure to perform inspections, and failure to train employees on stormwater management practices.”