NOTICE OF REPORT SUMMARY AND FULL REPORT
AVAILABILITY PUBLIC WATER SYSTEMS VIOLATIONS REPORT
CALENDAR YEAR 2000
CONNECTICUT DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC HEALTH WATER SUPPLIES SECTION
The Department of Public Health
(DPH) is Connecticut's lead State agency in all matters related to the purity
and adequacy of drinking water. The Water Supplies Section (WSS) in the
Department's Bureau of Regulatory Services administers the Federal Safe Drinking
Water Act (SDWA) at the State level. The Section's responsibilities for the
SDWA include regulating over 3,900 public water systems (PWS) throughout
Connecticut.
In 1996, the United States
Congress amended the SDWA. One of the most important provisions in the
amendments was a public information component that requires State drinking water
programs to provide the public with a summary of PWS violations on an annual
basis.
During calendar year 2000:
* Fifty-four community PWS and
159 non-community PWS were issued maximum contaminant level (MCL) violations.
Forty-seven of the community PWS and 143 of the non-community PWS that incurred
MCL violations have now returned to compliance.
* Three hundred forty-five of
the total 367 MCL violations were for total coliform bacteria of which 20 were
for E. coli bacteria (total coliform (acute)).
* Twenty-two MCL violations
involved the following contaminants: nitrate (6), trichloroethylene (1), gross
alpha (6) and radium 226 & 228 (9).
* Two community PWS incurred
treatment technique violations under the Surface Water Treatment Rule (SWTR) and
both have returned to compliance.
* Four community PWS incurred
treatment technique violations under the Lead and Copper Rule (LCR). Three
systems failed to install corrosion control treatment and one failed to complete
public education. Three of the four systems have since achieved compliance.
* Fifteen non-transient
non-community PWS failed to complete public education under the LCR. All fifteen
of the systems have since returned to compliance.
* Forty-five community public
water systems and 180 non-community public water systems were issued significant
monitoring and reporting violations.
* Fifty-eight community public
water systems incurred a consumer notification violation for failure to provide
a consumer confidence report to its customers for calendar year 1998.
The large increase in the
number of MCL violations from calendar year 1999 to 2000 is in large part due to
the WSS efforts to identify and regulate transient non-community PWS in the past
year.
The complete Calendar Year 2000
Public Water Systems Violations Report is available for review at your public
library, the Department of Public Health website (www.state-ct.us/dph) or at the
Water Supplies Section offices, Department of Public Health, 450 Capitol Avenue,
Hartford, CT. To schedule an appointment to review this document at the Water
Supplies Section call 860-509-7333.
