Current through Register Vol. 48, No. 38, September 20, 2024
a)
Elements Included in Public Notice for Violation of an NPDWR or Other
Situations. When a PWS supplier violates an NPDWR or has a situation requiring
public notification, each public notice must include the following elements:
1) A description of the violation or
situation, including the contaminants of concern, and (as applicable) the
contaminant levels;
2) When the
violation or situation occurred;
3)
Any potential adverse health effects from the violation or situation, including
the standard language under subsection (d)(1) or (d)(2), whichever is
applicable;
4) The population at
risk, including subpopulations particularly vulnerable if exposed to the
contaminant in their drinking water;
5) Whether alternative water supplies should
be used;
6) What actions consumers
should take, including when they should seek medical help, if known;
7) What the supplier is doing to correct the
violation or situation;
8) When the
water supplier expects to return to compliance or resolve the
situation;
9) The name, business
address, and phone number of the water system owner, operator, or designee of
the public water system as a source of additional information concerning the
notice; and
10) A statement to
encourage the notice recipient to distribute the public notice to other persons
served, using the standard language under subsection (d)(3), where
applicable.
b) The
Elements That Must Be Included in the Public Notice for Public Water Systems
Operating under Relief Equivalent to a SDWA Section 1415 Variance or a Section
1416 Exemption
1) If a PWS supplier has been
granted a relief equivalent to a SDWA section 1415 variance, under Section
611.111,
or a section 1416 exemption, under Section
611.112,
the public notice must contain the following:
A) An explanation of the reasons for the
relief equivalent to a SDWA section 1415 variance or a section 1416
exemption;
B) The date on which the
relief equivalent to a SDWA section 1415 variance or a section 1416 exemption
was issued;
C) A brief status
report on the steps that the supplier is taking to install treatment, find
alternative sources of water, or otherwise comply with the terms and schedules
of the relief equivalent to a SDWA section 1415 variance or a section 1416
exemption; and
D) A notice of any
opportunity for public input in the review of the relief equivalent to a SDWA
section 1415 variance or a section 1416 exemption.
2) If a PWS supplier violates the conditions
of relief equivalent to a SDWA section 1415 variance or a section 1416
exemption, the public notice must contain the ten elements listed in subsection
(a).
c) How the Public
Notice Is to Be Presented
1) Each public
notice required by this Section must comply with the following:
A) It must be displayed in a conspicuous way
when printed or posted;
B) It must
not contain overly technical language or very small print;
C) It must not be formatted in a way that
defeats the purpose of the notice;
D) It must not contain language that
nullifies the purpose of the notice.
2) Each public notice required by this
Section must comply with multilingual requirements, as follows:
A) For a PWS supplier serving a large
proportion of non-English speaking consumers, the public notice must contain
information in the appropriate languages regarding the importance of the notice
or contain a telephone number or address where persons served may contact the
water supplier to obtain a translated copy of the notice or to request
assistance in the appropriate language.
B) In cases where the Agency has not
determined what constitutes a large proportion of non-English speaking
consumers, the PWS supplier must include in the public notice the same
information as in subsection (c)(2)(A), where appropriate to reach a large
proportion of non-English speaking persons served by the water
supplier.
d)
Standard Language That a PWS Supplier Must Include in Its Public Notice. A PWS
supplier is required to include the following standard language in its public
notice:
1) Standard Health Effects Language
for MCL or MRDL Violations, Treatment Technique Violations, and Violations of
the Condition of Relief Equivalent to a SDWA Section 1415 Variance or a Section
1416 Exemption. A PWS supplier must include in each public notice the health
effects language specified in Appendix H corresponding to each MCL, MRDL, and
treatment technique violation listed in Appendix G, and for each violation of a
condition of relief equivalent to a SDWA section 1415 variance or a section
1416 exemption.
2) Standard
Language for Monitoring and Testing Procedure Violations. A PWS supplier must
include the following language in its notice, including the language necessary
to fill in the blanks, for all monitoring and testing procedure violations
listed in Appendix G:
We are required to monitor your drinking water for specific
contaminants on a regular basis. Results of regular monitoring are an indicator
of whether or not your drinking water meets health standards. During
(compliance period), we "did not monitor or test" or "did not complete all
monitoring or testing" for (contaminants), and therefore cannot be sure of the
quality of your drinking water during that time.
3) Standard Language to Encourage the
Distribution of the Public Notice to All Persons Served. A PWS supplier must
include the following language in its notice (where applicable):
Please share this information with all the other people who
drink this water, especially those who may not have received this notice
directly (for example, people in apartments, nursing homes, schools, and
businesses). You can do this by posting this notice in a public place or
distributing copies by hand or mail.
BOARD NOTE: Derived from
40 CFR
141.205.
