Regulatory Update

CA-NV Conference

Adam Carpenter

Regulatory Analyst

AWWA - Washington

Presentation Outline

• Summary of regulatory history

• Current regulatory update

– Already released in 2014

– To be released in the balance of 2014

– Coming out in 2015 (might slip to 2016)

• What the future might hold

Regulatory History

• 19 regulations for 91 contaminants

between 1975-2013

• Nine prior to 1996 SDWA Amendments

– Primarily numerical MCLs based on annual

average of quarterly samples

• Ten after 1996 SDWA Amendments

– Harder to treat contaminants and/or more

complex regulations

Where We Are Today

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

NIPDWR

Phase II, LCR

TTHMR

1980

Phase I

SWTR,TCR

Phase II

19902000

2010

CCRR,Stage 1 DBPR,

IESWTR

Radionuclides, PNR

Arsenic, SFBR

GWR, LT2ESWTR,

Stage 2 DBPR

ST-LCRRTCR

ICR

Number of Regulated Contaminants

Drinking Water Regulations

The First Main Regulatory Process

In the 1996 SDWA

1. New contaminants that might be of concern-Contaminant Candidate List (CCL)

– CCL1 in 1998 - 5 year cycle thereafter

– Regulatory Determinations (RDs) for at least 5• First in 2003 and then every 5 years

• Determinations: regulate, not regulate, issue health advisory, needs more research

– If a determination is made to regulate, then proposal 24 months after and final 36 months after determination

The Second Main Regulatory Process

In the 1996 SDWA

2. Six-Year Review of all existing drinking

water regulations

– Takes into account new health effects,

occurrence, treatment, and/or analytical

methods data

• Is it worthwhile to revise the regulation?

• No SDWA deadlines for proposal/final after the

decision is made to revise

Six Year Review of Existing

NPDWRs

Proposed CCL

Final CCL Preliminary Regulatory

Determinations

Final Regulatory

Determinations

Final Rule (NPDWR)

No Regulatory

Action

Proposed Rule (NPDWR)

Draft UCMR

UCMR Observations

Final UCMR

Source: Adapted from EPA presentation (April, 2010)

SDWA Standard Setting Process

History of CCLs, RDs, and Six-Year ReviewsDate Regulatory Action

1998 CCL1 60 Contaminants

2003 RD1 Do Not Regulate 9

2003 Six-Year 1 Revise Total Coliform Rule

2005 CCL2 51 Contaminants

2008 RD2 Do Not Regulate 11

2009 CCL3 116 Contaminants

2010 Six-Year 2 Revise Four Standards

2014 RD3 (proposal) Regulate 1, do not regulate 4

Off-Cycle Positive Regulatory Determination for perchlorate in 2011

Six Regulatory Actions in 2014

1. Final cybersecurity framework and EPA evaluation

2. Proposed definition of waters of the US

3. Proposed ambient water quality criteria for human health protection

4. Advanced notice of rulemaking for fracking chemicals and mixtures

5. Chemical safety report

6. Proposed Clean Power Plan

Cybersecurity Framework

• Executive Order 13636 – Improving

Critical Infrastructure Cybersecurity

– Draft framework – October 2013

– Final framework – February 2014

– National Institute of Standards and Technology

(NIST) led framework development

– Agencies will seek to support adoption of final

framework

AWWA Guidance and Tool

• AWWA WITAF Project #503

– Developed water sector guidance and tool

that provides a course of action for systems to

adopt NIST framework

– Released Feb. 2014

– Webinars and training ongoing

– For the moment, EPA has accepts voluntary

approach using AWWA guidance and tool

• Need strong response from water sector to

demonstrate use/adoption

Waters of the US

• April 21st – Corps/EPA published new

definition for Waters of the US (WOTUS)

– Lots of concerns with the proposal

• Several exemptions but lack of clarity for others

• AWWA is evaluating the proposal to

determine what our comments might (or

might not) say, and has made a visual

guide available on www.awwa.org

Ambient Water Quality Criteria

• May 13th – EPA proposal for Ambient

Water Quality Criteria for the protection of

human health under Clean Water Act

– Some revised assumptions

• 80 kg body weight (from 70 kg)

• 3 L/day drinking water (from 2 L/day)

• AWWA submitted comments

Fracking Chemicals & Mixtures

• May 19th – EPA released Advance Notice

of Primary Rulemaking (ANPR) for

fracking chemicals and mixtures

– Asked over 50 questions of potential data

elements and data collection approaches

• AWWA submitted comments

Chemical Safety Report

• Executive Order 13650 – Improving Chemical Facility Safety and Handling– Result of Texas fertilizer plant explosion

– Improved local coordination

– Enhanced federal coordination and information collection and sharing

– Policy, regulation, and standards modernization

– Identification of best practices

• EPA is evaluating existing programs– Request for Information for Risk Mgmt. Program

Clean Power Plan

• Climate Policy is the highest stated priority for

the Administration

• Potential for water and wastewater systems to

receive energy efficiency money while GHG

controls roll out

– Needs to be part of the national rule as well as

state-level compliance plans

– Significant work at the state level – need your help

Current Regulatory Schedule

The balance of 2014 (?) Coming out in 2015 (or later)

Preliminary Third Regulatory Determination (in prepublication)

Proposed Lead and Copper Rule Long-Term Revisions (LCR-LTR) (probably 2016)

Draft Fourth Contaminant Candidate List (CCL4)

Proposed Perchlorate Rule

Final recommended fluoride level for drinking water (from HHS)

Proposed Carcinogenic Volatile Organic Compound (cVOC) Rule

Proposed Fourth Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule (UCMR4)

EPA also working on Third Six-Year Review, review of fluoride MCL, and review of Stage 2 DBPR/LT2ESWTR

CCL3 – 116 Contaminants

• Final CCL3 in October 2009

• CCL3 contains 104 chemicals and 12

microbial contaminants

• Research needs table shows that more

occurrence data is needed than health

effects

– Opposite of commonly held belief

RD3/CCL3 Stakeholder Meeting

• EPA presented occurrence data for 32 chemicals at June, 2011 stakeholder meeting

• Final RD3 in 2015 (?) (> 5 yrs. after RD2 in 2008)

– Preliminary RD3 just pre-published on 10/17

• Five nitrosamines

• Chlorate and three metals

• TCP, MTBE, PFOS, PFOA

• Potential negative determinations for 9 chemicals

– Another 8 acetanilides & degradates could be added to the negative determinations

Third Regulatory Determination• EPA is required to make decisions (reg.

determinations) on at least 5 contaminants every 5 years– Decided not to regulate 20 contaminants in first two

• National drinking water regulation did not provide “meaningful opportunity for risk reduction” as required by SDWA

– “Off-cycle” positive determination for perchlorate in 2011

• EPA is under pressure to regulate “something”

• Positive regulatory determination for strontium

• Negative determination for 1,3-dinitrobenzene, Dimethoate, Terbufos, and Terbufos sulfonone

• Delayed action for now on Nitrosamines and chlorate• Nitrosamines is potentially the most problematic

Chlorate and Strontium

• Chlorate – HRL of 210 µg/L (non-cancer)– ICR data from 1997-1998

• Finished water: Hypo – 22/59 (37%) plants >HRL– Chlorine dioxide – 15/29 (52%) plants >HRL

– Initial UCMR3 data – 37% PWSs >HRL• Averages: OSG-100 µg/L, hypolchlorite-175 µg/L

– Likely would be an issue for systems using chlorine dioxide and hypochlorite

• AWWA’s hypochlorite tool helps manage

• Strontium – HRL of 4,200 µg/L (non-cancer)– NIRS: 23/989 (2.33%) systems >HRL

– Initial UCMR3 data – 1.1% PWSs > HRL

Nitrosamines• Nitrosamines meet the first two of the three

SDWA criteria for regulating a new contaminant– NDMA and other nitrosamines are carcinogens

– NDMA and other nitrosamines occur (UCMR 2 data)

• Meeting the third criteria is debatable– Drinking water contribution is small

• Larger contribution from food and from what is produced inside the body (endogenous)

• Drinking water contribution is less than 0.1%

• EPA is under pressure to regulate “something”

• The preliminary third regulatory determination has been substantially delayed

Draft CCL4

• EPA doesn’t have the resources for an

effort comparable to CCL3 development

– Solicited CCL4 nominations in 2012

• How big should CCL4 be?

– Too many – too big of a research agenda

– Too few – not scanning the universe

• Not a simple question to answer

• Draft CCL4 in late 2014

Optimal Fluoride Level

• Jan. 2011-HHS proposed recommended level

of fluoride at low end (0.7 mg/L) of existing

range (0.7-1.2 mg/L)

– Variability of pumps, etc., need to be taken into

account

• Final level to be released in late 2014 (?)– Lots of delays

• EPA has initiated a review of MCL/SMCL

– Review is going slowly

LCR Long-Term Revisions

• This rule impacts all systems

• 1991 - Lead and Copper Rule (LCR)– Water systems learned a lot about site selection, sampling,

and optimized corrosion control

• 2007 – Short Term Revisions– Addressed some (but not all) sampling issues and

compliance determinations

• 2012 – CDC lowers recommended blood lead level for children– Based on a relative percentile as opposed to a fixed

health-based number

LCR-LTR Issues

• LCR Long-Term Revisions will likely address– Partial Lead Service Line Replacement (LSLR)

• Control versus ownership

• Potential supply of filters to households with partial LSLR

– Optimized corrosion control and water quality parameters

– Changes in sample site selection criteria

– Changes in sampling protocol• Systems with LSLs may have to collect LSL water sample

– Flushing interval would depend on LSL length

– Tap sampling & sampling protocol issues

LCR-LTR Dialogue

• With all of the issues, EPA has organized a

stakeholder approach to discuss potential

recommendations

– Broad range of issues being addressed

• Workgroup under the National Drinking

Water Advisory Council (NDWAC)

– Develop recommendations for EPA

• Dialogue started in March 2014

– Dialogue will last through early to mid-2015

Perchlorate• Perchlorate has been on CCL1, CCL2, CCL3

• 1999 – UCMR1 included perchlorate– Detected in 4% (160) of 3,865 systems

• 2005 – NAS Report– Established Reference Dose (RfD)

• 2008 – Proposed regulatory determination – not regulate

• 2009 – Supplemental request for comments– Asked for comments on “life-stages” & data extrapolation

– Also established interim health advisory for cleanups at 15 ppb

• 2011 – Final regulatory determination reversed proposed– Proposed regulation supposed to be released in Feb., 2013

– Unable to meet this deadline due to review by SAB Perchlorate Advisory Panel

Perchlorate (cont).• SAB Perchlorate Advisory Panel provided advice

for setting MCLG– “Life-stages” approach

– PBPK model shows 2% variation in iodine uptake

– Report was completed in May 2013

• Additional EPA analyses to incorporate SAB advice

• Potential precedents with perchlorate– The above issues plus the use of an “effect” versus an

“adverse effect”

– Cost-benefit debatable based on occurrence & cost

• Proposal has slipped until 2015– Final will likely be 12-18 months afterwards

Carcinogenic VOCs (cVOCs)

• Feb. 2, 2011 – EPA Administrator Jackson announced Carcinogenic VOCs (cVOCs) as the first group to be regulated

– Proposal has slipped until 2015(?)• Final rule in 2017 or beyond

– Eight currently regulated VOCs were identified, as well as eight VOCs from the Third Contaminant Candidate List (CCL3)

• The list on potentially included cVOCs is in flux

Potential cVOC Rule

• Second six-year review (2010)

– MCLs for TCE and PCE should be revised

– Zero MCLG and improved analytical method drove EPA analysis of MCLs of 1 ppb or 0.5 ppb

• EPA’s analysis of potential MCLs of 0.5 ppb concluded that approximately 400 (?) systems would be impacted

• Lower TCE/PCE MCLs would likely remove some of the eight unregulated CCL3 VOCs

– TCP is the biggest concern amongst the eight unregulated CCL3 VOCs

Potential cVOC Rule Issues

• TCP will likely be the driver for this rule due to its highest cancer slope factor (i.e., the biggest cancer risk)– Occurrence is LOT less than originally anticipated

• What would be the benefits?

• EPA is considering a “risk cup” or “total risk” regulatory framework– EPA would set a risk “target”

– Compliance would likely be based on the mix of VOCs in your source/finished water

• A new regulatory framework

– Treatment technologies would be air stripping and/or GAC

– Challenging framework

Proposed UCMR4

• June 25th stakeholder meeting

– EPA working on methods for several CCL3

chemicals & microbes

– Other potential UCMR4 issues

• Sampling during “vulnerable time period”

• Monitoring timeframe reduced from 2 to 3 years

• Appropriate sampling locations

• Collecting laboratory QA/QC data

• Inclusion and framing of UCMR4 data in CCRs

UCMR4 Schedule

• Proposal – mid 2015

• Final – late 2016

• Implementation starts in 2017

• Monitoring starts in January, 2018

2015 and Beyond

Cyclical

• Second round of

LT2 monitoring

(2015)

• Third Six-Year

Review (2016)

• Final UCMR4

(late 2016)

Contaminant-specific

• Fluoride

• Hexavalent

chromium (Cr-6)

• Acrylamide and

epichlorohydrin (?)

• Stage 3 DBPR (?)

Emerging Issues

• Naegleria fowleri

• Cyanotoxins

• Premise (interior) plumbing

– Legionella pneumophila

• Other chemicals

– Pharmaceuticals and personal care products

– Endocrine disruptors• Who knows what might be next?

Climate Change

• Third National Climate Assessment

released on May 6th

• Renewed focus within the Administration

– Greenhouse gases regulation proposal

• Carbon capture and storage (CCS) and

hydraulic fracturing

• Some connection with sustainability

Adam CarpenterRegulatory AnalystEmail: acarpenter@awwa.orgDirect: (202) 326-6126

American Water Works AssociationGovernment Affairs Office 1300 Eye Street, NW, Suite 701WWashington DC 20005Gen. Office: (202) 628-8303

Questions?