Current through September 24, 2024
(1) Microbiological
Contaminant Sampling
(a) Effective April 1,
2016, violations for total coliform and fecal coliform shall no longer be
considered MCL violations and violations regarding total coliform shall be
treatment technique triggers as described in Rule 0400-45-01-.41. Paragraph (5)
of this rule further delineates the transition to Rule
0400-45-01-.41.
(b)
Reserved
(c) The supplier of water
for a community water system shall take coliform samples at regular time
intervals and in number proportional to the population served by the system
during the reporting period as set forth below:
TOTAL COLIFORM MONITORING
FREQUENCY FOR COMMUNITY WATER SYSTEMS
|
Population Served
|
Minimum Number of Samples Per Month
|
|
25 to 1,0001
..................................................................................................
|
1
|
|
1,001 to 2,500
...............................................................................................
|
2
|
|
2,501 to 3,300
...............................................................................................
|
3
|
|
3,301 to 4,100
...............................................................................................
|
4
|
|
4,101 to 4,900
...............................................................................................
|
5
|
|
4,901 to 5,800
...............................................................................................
|
6
|
|
5,801 to 6,700
...............................................................................................
|
7
|
|
6,701 to 7,600
...............................................................................................
|
8
|
|
7,601 to 8,500
...............................................................................................
|
9
|
|
8,501 to 12,900
...........................................................................................
|
10
|
|
12,901 to 17,200
.........................................................................................
|
15
|
|
17,201 to 21,500
.........................................................................................
|
20
|
|
21,501 to 25,000
.........................................................................................
|
25
|
|
25,001 to 33,000
.........................................................................................
|
30
|
|
33,001 to 41,000
.........................................................................................
|
40
|
|
41,001 to 50,000
.........................................................................................
|
50
|
|
50,001 to 59,000
.........................................................................................
|
60
|
|
59,001 to 70,000
.........................................................................................
|
70
|
|
70,001 to 83,000
.........................................................................................
|
80
|
|
83,001 to 96,000
.........................................................................................
|
90
|
|
96,001 to 130,000
................................................................................................
|
100
|
|
130,001 to 220,000
..............................................................................................
|
120
|
|
220,001 to 320,000
..............................................................................................
|
150
|
|
320,001 to 450,000
..............................................................................................
|
180
|
|
450,001 to 600,000
..............................................................................................
|
210
|
|
600,001 to 780,000
..............................................................................................
|
240
|
|
780,001 to 970,000
.......................................................................................
|
....... 270
|
|
970,001 to
1,230,000
....................................................................................
|
....... 300
|
|
1,230,001 to
1,520,000
.................................................................................
|
....... 330
|
|
1,520,001 to
1,850,000
.................................................................................
|
....... 360
|
|
1,850,001 to
2,270,000
.................................................................................
|
....... 390
|
|
2,270,001 to
3,020,000
.................................................................................
|
....... 420
|
|
3,020,001 to
3,960,000
.................................................................................
|
....... 450
|
|
3,960,001 or
more
.........................................................................................
|
....... 480
|
1Includes public water systems which have at
least 15 service connections, but serve fewer than 25 persons.
1. Coliform samples shall be collected at
sites which are representative of water throughout the distribution system
according to a written sample siting plan.
2. Sample siting plans shall be made
available to the Department on request. Plans determined to be deficient by the
Department shall be revised by the system on the basis of the Department's
findings.
3. Microbiological
sampling shall be conducted in accordance with the approved sampling
plan.
(d) The monitoring
frequency for total coliforms for non-community water systems is as follows:
1. A non-community water system using only
ground water (except ground water under the direct influence of surface water)
and serving 1,000 persons or fewer must monitor each calendar quarter that the
system provides water to the public.
2. A non-community water system using only
ground water (except ground water under the direct influence of surface water)
and serving more than 1,000 persons during any month must monitor at the same
frequency as a like-sized community water system, as specified in subparagraph
(c) of this paragraph. For systems using ground water under the direct
influence of surface water, part 4 of this subparagraph applies.
3. A non-community water system using surface
water, in total or in part, must monitor at the same frequency as a like-sized
community water system, as specified in subparagraph (c) of this paragraph,
regardless of the number of persons it serves.
4. A non-community water system using ground
water under the direct influence of surface water must monitor at the same
frequency as a like-sized community water system, as specified in subparagraph
(c) of this paragraph. The system must begin monitoring at this frequency
beginning six months after the determination that the ground water is under the
direct influence of surface water.
5. A non-community water system must collect
total coliform samples at sites which are representative of water throughout
the distribution system according to a written sample site plan. These plans
are subject to Department review and revision.
(e) Public water systems must collect samples
at regular time intervals throughout the monitoring period. Those public water
systems that use only ground water (except ground water under the direct
influence of surface water) and serve 4,900 or fewer persons may collect all
required samples on a single day if they are taken from different
sites.
(f) A public water system
that uses surface water or ground water under the direct influence of surface
water, and does not practice filtration in compliance with Rule
0400-45-01-.31 must collect at
least one sample near the first service connection each day the turbidity level
of the source water exceeds 1 NTU. This sample must be analyzed for the
presence of total coliforms. When one or more turbidity measurements in any day
exceed 1 NTU, the system must collect this coliform sample within 24 hours of
the first exceedance, unless the Department determines that the system, for
reasons outside the system's control cannot have the sample analyzed within 30
hours of collection. Sample results from this coliform monitoring must be
included in determining compliance with the MCL for total coliforms in
paragraph (4) of Rule
0400-45-01-.06.
(g) Special purpose samples, such as those
taken to determine whether disinfection practices are sufficient following pipe
placement, replacement, or repair, shall not be used to determine whether the
coliform treatment technique trigger has been exceeded compliance with the MCL
for total coliforms in paragraph (4) of Rule
0400-45-01-.06 provided the
water is not served to customers before negative analytical results are
obtained. Samples representing water served to customers prior to obtaining
analytical results shall not be special purpose samples and shall not count
toward compliance with the MCL for total coliforms in paragraph (4) of Rule
0400-45-01-.06 with the MCL for
total coliforms in paragraph (4) of Rule
0400-45-01-.06. After March 31,
2016, this subparagraph is no longer applicable.
(2) Repeat Monitoring
(a) If a routine sample is total
coliform-positive, the public water system must collect a set of repeat samples
within 24 hours of being notified of the positive result. A system which
collects more than one routine sample per month must collect no fewer than
three repeat samples for each total coliform-positive sample found. A system
which collects one routine sample per month or fewer must collect no fewer than
four repeat samples for each total coliform-positive sample found. The
Department may extend the 24-hour limit on a case-by-case basis if the system
has a problem in collecting the repeat samples within 24 hours that is beyond
its control. In the case of an extension, the Department must specify how much
time the system has to collect the repeat samples.
(b) The system must collect at least one
repeat sample from the sampling tap where the original total coliform-positive
sample was taken, and at least one repeat sample at a tap within five service
connections upstream and at least one repeat sample at a tap within five
service connections downstream of the original sampling site. If a total
coliform-positive sample is at the end of the distribution system, or one away
from the end of the distribution system, the Department may waive the
requirement to collect at least one repeat sample upstream or downstream of the
original sampling site.
(c) The
system must collect all repeat samples on the same day and within 24 hours of
being notified of a positive result, except that the Department may allow a
system with a single service connection to collect the required set of repeat
samples over a four consecutive day period or to collect a larger volume repeat
sample(s) in one or more sample containers of any size, as long as the total
volume collected is at least 400 ml (300 ml for systems which collect more than
one routine sample per month.)
(d)
If one or more repeat samples in the set is total coliform-positive, the public
water system must collect an additional set of repeat samples in the manner
specified in subparagraphs (a), (b), and (c) of this paragraph. The additional
samples must be collected within 24 hours of being notified of the positive
result, unless the Department extends the limit as provided in subparagraph (a)
of this paragraph. The system must repeat this process until either total
coliforms are not detected in one complete set of repeat samples or the system
determines that the MCL for total coliforms in paragraph (4) of Rule
0400-45-01-.06 has been exceeded
and notifies the Department.
(e) If
a system normally collecting fewer than five routine samples per monitoring
period has one or more total coliform-positive samples and the Department does
not invalidate the sample(s) under paragraph (3) of this rule, it must collect
at least five routine samples during the next month the system serves water to
the public.
(f) After a system
collects a routine sample and before it learns the results of the analysis of
that sample, if it collects another routine sample(s) from within five adjacent
service connections of the initial sample, and the initial sample, after
analysis, is found to contain total coliforms, then the system may count the
subsequent sample(s) as a repeat sample instead of as a routine
sample.
(g) Results of all routine
and repeat samples not invalidated by the Department must be included in
determining compliance with the MCL for total coliforms in paragraph (4) of
Rule 0400-45-01-.06.
(3) Invalidation of Total Coliform
Samples. A total coliform-positive sample invalidated under this paragraph does
not count towards meeting the minimum monitoring requirement for
microbiological contaminants.
(a) The
Department may invalidate a total coliform-positive sample only if the
conditions of part 1, 2, or 3 of this subparagraph are met.
1. The laboratory establishes that improper
sample analysis caused the total coliform-positive result;
2. The Department, on the basis of the
results of repeat samples collected as required by subparagraphs (2)(a), (b),
(c), and (d) of this rule, determines that the total coliform-positive sample
resulted from a domestic or other non-distribution system plumbing problem. The
Department cannot invalidate a sample on the basis of repeat sample results
unless all repeat sample(s) collected at the same tap as the original total
coliform-positive are also total coliform-positive, and all repeat samples
collected within five service connections of the original tap are total
coliform-negative (e.g., the Department cannot invalidate a total
coliform-positive sample on the basis of repeat samples if all the repeat
samples are total coliform-negative, or if the public water system has only one
service connection).
3. The
Department has substantial grounds to believe that a total coliform-positive
result is due to a circumstance or condition which does not reflect water
quality in the distribution system. In this case, the system must still collect
all repeat samples required under subparagraphs (2)(a), (b), (c), and (d) of
this rule and use them to determine compliance with the MCL for total coliforms
in paragraph (4) of Rule
0400-45-01-.06. To invalidate a
total coliform-positive sample under this paragraph, the decision with the
rationale for the decision must be documented in writing, and approved and
signed by the supervisor of the Departmental official who recommended the
decision. The Department must make this document available to EPA and the
public. The written documentation must state the specific cause of the total
coliform-positive sample, and what action the system has taken, or will take,
to correct this problem. The Department may not invalidate a total
coliform-positive sample solely on the grounds that all repeat samples are
total coliform-negative.
(b) A laboratory must invalidate a total
coliform sample (unless total coliforms are detected) if the sample produces a
turbid culture in the absence of gas production using an analytical method
where gas formation is examined (e.g., the Multiple-Tube Fermentation
Technique), produces a turbid culture in the absence of an acid reaction in the
Presence-Absence (P-A) Coliform Test, or exhibits confluent growth or produces
colonies too numerous to count with an analytical method using a membrane
filter (e.g., Membrane Filter Technique). If a laboratory invalidates a sample
because of such interference, the system must collect another sample from the
same location as the original sample within 24 hours of being notified of the
interference problem, and have it analyzed for the presence of total coliforms.
The system must continue to re-sample within 24 hours and have the samples
analyzed until it obtains a valid result. The Department may waive the 24-hour
time limit on a case-by-case basis.
(4) Sanitary Surveys
(a) Public water systems which do not collect
five or more routine samples per month must undergo an initial sanitary survey
by June 29, 1994 for community public water systems and June 29, 1999 for
non-community water systems. Thereafter, systems must undergo another sanitary
survey every five years, except that non-community water systems using only
protected and disinfected ground water, as defined by the Department, must
undergo subsequent sanitary surveys at least every ten years after the initial
sanitary survey. The Department must review the results of each sanitary survey
to determine whether the existing monitoring frequency is adequate and what
additional measures, if any, the system needs to undertake to improve drinking
water quality.
(b) In conducting a
sanitary survey of a system using ground water having an EPA-approved wellhead
protection program under section 1428 of the Federal Safe Drinking Water Act,
information on sources of contamination within the delineated wellhead
protection area that was collected in the course of developing and implementing
the program should be considered instead of collecting new information, if the
information was collected since the last time the system was subject to a
sanitary survey.
(c) Public water
systems which do not collect five or more routine samples per month must
undergo a sanitary survey performed by the Department at least once every five
years. The system is responsible for ensuring the survey takes place by
informing the Department within 30 days of the expiration of the 5-year
period.
(d) Sanitary surveys
conducted by the Department pursuant to Rule
1200-05-01-.40 may be used to
meet the sanitary survey requirements of this paragraph.
(e) A public water system may request a
sanitary survey re-inspection of its water system provided the public water
system requests the re-inspection within sixty (60) days of the receipt of the
results of the initial sanitary survey. The public water system requesting the
sanitary survey re-inspection shall pay the costs of the re-inspection incurred
by the Department.
(5)
Subparagraphs (1)(c) and (4)(c) of this rule are applicable until March 31,
2016. The provisions of paragraphs (2) and (3) of this rule and Rules
0400-45-01-.06(4)(c),
0400-45-01-.14(10)(a),
and 0400-45-01-.06(4)(a)
3 are applicable until all required repeat monitoring under paragraph (2) of
this rule and fecal coliform or E. coli testing under Rule
0400-45-01-.06(4)(c)
that was initiated by a total coliform-positive sample taken before April 1,
2016, is completed, as well as analytical method, reporting, recordkeeping,
public notification, and consumer confidence report requirements associated
with that monitoring and testing. Beginning April 1, 2016, the provisions of
Rule 0400-45-01-.41 are applicable, with systems required to begin regular
monitoring at the same frequency as the system specific frequency required on
March 31, 2016.
Authority: T.C.A.
§§
68-221-701 et seq. and 4-5-201 et
seq.
