Current through all regulations passed and filed through December 16, 2024
(A) Definitions for this rule.
For the purpose of this rule, the following terms
are
defined as follows:
(1) "Affected
area" means the portion of a distribution system where the pressure of the
system has dropped below twenty pounds per square inch (psig) at ground
level.
(2) "Contamination
intrusion" includes, but is not limited to sewage, unintended chemical waste or
other waste in the pit or pipe, or muddy water or other unintended material
entering the pipe.
(3)
"Disruption of service" means an event during which
minimum pressure at any point in the distribution system of a public water
system falls below twenty psig at ground level.
(4)
"Impacted service
area" means any service line that has been moved, replaced, or reconnected to
the main during a main replacement.
(5)
"Major disruption
event" means any disruption of service that is not a "Type 1" or "Type 2"
event.
(6) "Positive pressure"
means the water pressure is
above zero psig at ground level in the distribution system and positive flow
is maintained.
(7) "Special purpose
total coliform samples" or "special purpose samples," means those samples taken
to determine whether disinfection practices are sufficient following a
disruption of service event.
(8) "Type 1" event
means a disruption of service where positive pressure is
continuously maintained in the affected area, and there are no signs of contamination
intrusion.
(9) "Type 2" event
means a disruption of service where
positive pressure is maintained in the affected
area until
the affected area has been isolated from the rest of the distribution
system, and there are no signs of contamination intrusion.
(10)
"Water use advisory" means a notification issued to alert
affected persons of potential water quality issues within the potable
water.
(B)
Nontransient
noncommunity systems with a population less than one thousand people and
all transient noncommunity systems that
experience a disruption of service shall comply with the following:
(1)
Close, provide
bottled water, or implement a remedy acceptable to the director or authorized
representative within twenty-four hours of the beginning of the disruption of
service.
(2)
Collect special purpose total coliform samples at
locations representative of the affected area in accordance with table 1 of
this rule after repairs are made and pressure has been restored to twenty psig
or above.
(a)
If
any special purpose sample is total coliform positive, consult with the Ohio
environmental protection agency (Ohio EPA) and continue to monitor with an
additional set of special purpose total coliform samples in accordance with
table 1 of this rule until total coliforms are not detected in one complete set
of samples.
(b)
If all special purpose samples in the current set are
negative for E. coli, the public water system may cease the activity required
in paragraph (B)(1) of this rule.
(c)
If any special
purpose sample in the current set is positive for E. coli, there is an acute
risk to human health. The public water system shall issue a water use advisory
that will remain in effect until the public water system meets the requirements
for removing the water use advisory established in paragraph (B)(2)(b) of rule
3745-81-32 of the Administrative
Code. Consult with Ohio EPA to withdraw the water use advisory.
(3)
Nontransient noncommunity systems serving less than one
thousand people shall comply with the applicable requirements in paragraph
(C)(6) of this rule if the system experiences a disruption of service event
which results in an emergency main replacement in an area known or likely to
contain lead service lines.
(C)
Nontransient
noncommunity systems serving a population of at least one thousand people and
all community water systems shall comply with the following:
(1) Monitoring.
During a water line repair or other incident,
monitor and record pressure upstream and
downstream of the area to determine if a disruption of service has occurred and the
extent of the affected area. Methods of monitoring can be in-line pressure
monitors, hydrant pressure recorders, storage tank or tower water level, or any
other method approved by the director. Public water systems which maintain
functioning and accurate hydraulic models may utilize these models to identify
the affected area from a line break in lieu of
using pressure gauges, storage tank water levels, or pump station records.
Public water systems that use a hydraulic model for a particular event shall
ensure personnel knowledgeable in running the model are available during all
times of the particular event to ensure timely use of the models. In the event
a water system chooses not to monitor pressure in accordance with this rule,
the system shall treat the event as a major disruption event and follow the
response requirements in paragraph (C)(4) of this
rule.
(2)
" Type 1" event
response. During this type of event, a water use
advisory, sampling for total coliform, and
notification to the Ohio EPA are not required if the public water system completes the following
actions:
(a)
Excavate
the pit to below the
area to be repaired.
(b)
Maintain
the water level in the pit below the area to be repaired.
(c)
Disinfect the line
in accordance with American
water works association (AWWA) standard C651-14, section 4.11.3.1.
(d)
Complete the repair under
positive pressure.
(e) After
completion of repair, test or verify disinfectant presence by either conducting
a chlorine residual analysis or comparing a 0.5 milligrams per liter (mg/L)
free chlorine standard to an appropriately sized sample with free chlorine
reagent added.
(f)
Document all activities and events
using a form or method acceptable to the director
to demonstrate the public water system followed the " Type 1" event response
as established in this rule.
(g) If
the public water system does not complete the " Type 1" event response
in accordance with this rule, the incident is elevated to a
" Type 2" event and
the public water system shall comply with the requirements of paragraph
(C)(3)
of this rule.
(3)
" Type 2" event
response. During this type of event, a water use
advisory, sampling for total coliform and notification to the Ohio EPA are not
required if the public water system completes the
following actions:
(a)
In addition to complying with the requirements of
paragraphs (C)(3)(b) to (C)(3)(g) of this rule, public water systems conducting
waterline or appurtenance repairs or replacements shall complete the
following:
(i)
Excavate
the pit to below the
area to be repaired.
(ii)
Maintain
the water level in the pit below the area to be repaired.
(iii)
Disinfect,
repair, and flush the waterline in accordance with AWWA standard C651-14
section 4.11.3.2.
(iv)
For emergency water main replacements in areas known or
likely to contain lead service lines, follow the applicable requirements in
paragraph (C)(6) of this rule.
(b)
Notify
critical users, as established in the contingency plan in accordance with
rule 3745-85-01 of the Administrative
Code, within the affected area as soon
as possible, but within twenty-four hours. Efforts should be made to notify
critical users in advance of beginning the repair.
If the public water system does not have a contingency plan,
the system shall notify customers who have a critical need of water as soon as
possible, but within twenty-four hours.
(c)
Perform a
controlled shutdown of the affected area .
(d)
Complete the repair.
(e) After
completion of the repair, test or verify
disinfectant presence by either conducting a chlorine residual analysis or
comparing a 0.5 mg/L free chlorine standard to an appropriately sized sample
with free chlorine reagent added.
(f)
Document all activities and events
using a
form or
method acceptable to the director to demonstrate that the public water system followed the
" Type 2" event
response as established in this rule.
(g) If the public water
system does not complete the " Type 2" event response in accordance with this rule, the
incident is elevated to a major disruption event and the system shall comply
with the requirements of paragraph (C)(4) of this
rule.
(4)
Major
disruption event response. A public water system that experiences a major disruption event shall comply
with the following, as applicable:
(a)
Notify the appropriate Ohio EPA
district representative or the Ohio EPA's environmental response hotline in
accordance with rule
3745-85-01 of the Administrative
Code as soon as possible, but within twenty-four hours of the beginning of the disruption of service if all of the
following criteria are met:
(i)
Repairs will not be complete within twenty-four hours
of the beginning of the disruption of service.
(ii)
The public water
system anticipates the affected area will be without water provided through the
distribution system for more than twenty-four hours.
(iii)
The affected
area includes more than two hundred fifty service connections, or more than
twenty-five per cent of the public water system's customers, whichever is
least.
(b)
Ensure that the public water system speaks with a
person when notifying as required in paragraph (C)(4)(a) of this rule. The use
of email or voicemail does not satisfy this notification
requirement.
(c)
Activate the notification procedures in the public
water system's contingency plan as required in paragraph (D)(12) of rule
3745-85-01 of the Administrative
Code.
(d) Document
any
potential contamination.
(e) Issue a
precautionary water use
advisory to all potentially affected consumers as soon as possible but no later
than twenty-four hours after the beginning of the
event.
(f)
For
emergency water main replacements in areas known or likely to contain lead service lines,
follow the
applicable requirements
in
paragraph (C)(6) of this rule.
(g)
In the
case of water main repairs or replacements, disinfect, repair, and flush
in accordance with AWWA standard C651-14 section 4.11.3.3.
(h)
Test for chlorine residual and comply with the minimum chlorine residual
established in paragraph (C)(1) of rule
3745-83-01 of the Administrative
Code and the maximum residual disinfectant level established in paragraph (C) of rule
3745-81-10 of the Administrative
Code.
(i)
Collect
special purpose total coliform samples at locations representative of the
affected area in accordance with table 1 of this rule after repairs are
made, pressure has been restored to twenty psig or above and the chlorine
residual is within acceptable limits.
(i) If any special purpose
sample is total coliform positive, consult with Ohio EPA and continue
to monitor
with an additional set of special purpose total coliform samples in accordance
with table 1 of this rule until total coliforms are not detected in
one
complete set of samples.
(ii) If any special
purpose sample is E. coli positive
, there is an
acute risk to human health and the water use advisory shall remain in effect until the
public water system meets the requirements for removing the
water use
advisory established in paragraph (B)(2)(b) of
rule 3745-81-32 of the Administrative
Code. The public water system shall consult with Ohio
EPA to withdraw the water use advisory.
(j)
Document activities and events on a form approved by
the director to demonstrate the
major
disruption event response was followed. The form shall be submitted to
Ohio EPA within forty-eight hours
or the next business day, whichever is later, of
the disruption of service being corrected.
(5)
A community water
system that experiences a "Type 2" or a major disruption event shall provide
water from an alternate source to customers in the affected area, as required
in paragraph (D)(8) of rule
3745-85-01 of the Administrative
Code, if the public water system is not capable of providing water through the
distribution system within twenty-four hours of the start of the disruption of
service.
(6)
Public water systems that move, replace, or reconnect
any service line to a main that is being replaced or repaired associated with a
"Type 2" event or a major disruption event in areas that are known or likely to
contain lead service lines shall complete the following:
(a)
Issue a water use
advisory to service connections in the affected area in accordance with
paragraph (B)(1) of rule
3745-81-84 of the Administrative
Code, including the lead language.
(b)
If service lines in the impacted service area are
known or likely to contain lead
:
(i)
Issue a water use
advisory to all service connections in the impacted service area in accordance
with paragraph (B)(1) of rule
3745-81-84 of the Administrative
Code, including the lead language and the filter language.
(ii)
Offer to provide
drinking water treatment unit filters to all service connections in the
impacted service area in accordance with paragraph (D) of rule
3745-81-84 of the Administrative
Code.
(c)
Follow the requirements in rule
3745-81-84 of the Administrative
Code if any lead service lines will be replaced in the impacted service
area.
Table 1
|
Service Connections Affected |
Minimum Number of Total Coliform Samples
Required |
|
0 - 15 |
1 |
|
16 - 1,000 |
2 |
|
1,001 - 2,000 |
4 |
|
2,001 - 3,000 |
6 |
|
3,001 - 4,000 |
8 |
|
4,001 - 5,000 |
10 |
|
5,001 - 6,000 |
12 |
|
6,001 - 7,000 |
14 |
|
7,001 - 8,000 |
16 |
|
8,001 - 9,000 |
18 |
|
9,001 - 10,000 * |
20 |
*After ten thousand service connections, an additional two
samples shall be added for every one thousand service connections up to the
maximum one hundred samples. Public water systems that have multiple treatment
plants may use a proportional sampling method if established in the contingency
plan or in the initial distribution system evaluation.
[Comment: "AWWA Standard C651-14, Disinfecting Water Mains,"
effective date Feb. 1, 2015. This rule incorporates this standard or
specification by reference. A copy may be obtained from "AWWA Bookstore 6666 W.
Quincy Avenue, Denver, CO 80235," (303) 794-7711,
www.awwa.org. This standard is
available for review at "Ohio EPA, Lazarus Government Center, 50 West Town
Street, Suite 700, Columbus, OH 43215."]
