Public Water System Compliance and Enforcement Support

Under the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA), the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) oversees the national drinking water program, also known as the Public Water System Supervision (PWSS) program. The PWSS program works with the almost 150,000 public drinking water systems (PWSs) in the United States to protect human health by providing safe and clean drinking water. EPA authorized most states, territories, and the Navajo Nation to implement the PWSS program on EPA’s behalf, referred to as “primacy programs.” EPA contracted with ERG to provide support for EPA enforcement oversight of the primacy programs and PWSs. 

Since 2019, ERG has inspected over 150 PWSs for compliance with SDWA and state regulations. To prepare for each inspection, ERG inspectors review water system documentation to target the inspection and highlight potential compliance issues. During each inspection, our inspectors review additional documents; walk through the facility; hold discussions with system staff to understand system operation and identify potential noncompliance areas; and often provide on-the-job training to EPA Regional employees. Post inspection, our inspectors record their process and findings in a detailed report. In recent years, ERG inspectors have also evaluated PWS compliance with EPA’s Section 1433 requirements for risk and resilience assessments and emergency response plans. In addition, ERG has been supporting EPA Regions in conducting inspections focused on individual drinking water rules, including the Disinfection By-Product Rule and the Lead and Copper Rule. For these inspections, ERG’s project team has developed inspection protocols; training exercises to teach inspectors how to use the protocols; and spreadsheet tools (e.g., calculators to evaluate turbidity data and confirm disinfection) to help inspectors evaluate compliance.