Water: Drinking Water |
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| What is It? |
DEQ's Drinking Water Program protects public health by requiring drinking water from public water systems in Idaho to meet all health-based water quality standards. Almost 2,000 regulated public drinking water systems operate in Idaho. Public drinking water systems (publicly or privately owned) serve at least 25 people 60 days out of the year, or have at least 15 service connections. Many other Idaho citizens get their drinking water from private wells. These wells are not regulated under the Safe Drinking Water Act; well owners are personally responsible for ensuring their water is safe. |
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| Why Should Our Community Care? |
If a city, district, or other entity owns and operates a public drinking water system, it is responsible for producing safe drinking water, thereby protecting the health of its citizens and fulfilling the requirements set forth by state and federal rules and requirements.
Drinking water supplies are often vulnerable to contamination from land use practices (such as farming and urban development) and potential contaminant sources (such as gas stations) within the vicinity of drinking water wells and intakes, particularly surface water sources. |
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| What Can We Do? |
The information below covers four categories:
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All Projects |
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Prior to project approval, the applicant proposing to construct a new public drinking water system or expand an existing system must demonstrate an adequate water source for both quantity and quality.
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Prior to project approval, request that project information specify which requirements apply. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has delegated to DEQ primary enforcement authority for the federal Safe Drinking Water Act and the Idaho Rules for Public Drinking Water Systems (IDAPA 58.01.08). |
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Plan ahead by developing and using a comprehensive land use management plan that includes the impacts of present and future water management (for example, well construction, current and future water availability for an area, and fire protection water) and addresses present and future needs of an area for adequate, safe, and sustainable drinking water. A meeting can be scheduled with DEQ for further discussion and recommendations for plan development and implementation. |
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DEQ recommends that all projects first connect to an existing approved public drinking water system whenever possible. If this is not possible, DEQ recommends developing a new public drinking water system. |
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Local governments have the authority to help protect drinking water beyond state and federal laws and regulations. Determine what is best for the health and welfare of your community. |
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A county or city may want to understand the type of drinking water system needed for a project prior to project approval. The project will generally fall into one of these categories: |
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If you are an owner (city, district, or other entity) of an existing drinking water system, the following information applies: |
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Understand your responsibilities. A city, district, or other entity that owns or operates a public water system (PWS) is responsible for protecting the health of its citizens by monitoring the quality of drinking water and fulfilling the requirements set forth by Idaho rules.
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Different rules apply to different types of PWSs in Idaho. Determine which type of PWS you operate. Under Idaho's Rules for Public Drinking Water Systems, a PWS has four basic categories of requirements:
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Construction and engineering |
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Ongoing monitoring |
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Reporting |
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Operation and maintenance |
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Understand your system by taking these steps: |
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Talk to the operator of the PWS to determine the status of the system as soon as possible. |
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Understand the certification requirements needed by your operator. |
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Consider having a city and county elected official attend on-site inspections. While not required, it is a good idea for them to participate to understand the requirements and be aware of deficiencies. |
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If you receive correspondence from state or federal agencies such as DEQ or EPA, contact the agency directly for questions. |
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Meet with regulating agencies, such as your DEQ regional office, to determine operating responsibilities, accountable parties, and the issues affecting your PWS. |
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Consider developing a facility plan for all drinking water systems, regardless of plans for growth. Doing so can help identify deficiencies in a system in advance of new projects so ample time is available to address problems or issues. Cities are responsible for continually ensuring adequate capacity. |
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Identify and implement
pollution prevention measures. |
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Local governments have the authority to implement ordinances that help protect drinking water beyond state and federal laws and regulations. Determine what is best for the health and welfare of your community. |
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Projects that Use an Existing Public Drinking Water System |
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DEQ recommends verifying that adequate water is available to serve projects. Prior to project approval, the city and county may want to contact the water provider for three items:
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A capacity statement |
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A declining balance report |
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Willingness to serve the project |
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If a project proposes modifications to an existing public drinking water system, per Idaho Code §39-118 and the associated Idaho Rules for Public Drinking Water Systems, all components of public drinking water system construction, including wells, must be designed by an Idaho registered professional engineer and may need to be approved by DEQ prior to construction. Refer to Idaho Code §39-118 to determine design review authority. |
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DEQ does not review plans for individual service lines; these should be reviewed by the State Plumbing Bureau and/or the local building department as per the Memorandum of Understanding (pdf 266 kb, 18 pages) with DEQ. Contact DEQ to discuss requirements on other service lines that include mechanical components. |
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All projects require preconstruction approval by DEQ unless they meet the provisions of Idaho Code §39-118.2.d. For existing water systems with adequate capacity and pressure, the plans for simple drinking water main extensions may qualify to be reviewed and approved prior to initiation of construction by a qualified licensed professional engineer. Refer to Idaho Code §39-118 for applicability. These simple water main extensions are the only drinking water projects that require no plan review coordination with DEQ. Additionally, at the discretion of any city, county, quasi-municipal corporation, or regulated public utility, projects that fall under Idaho Code §39-118 may be referred to DEQ for approval. |
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Projects that Propose a New Public Drinking Water System |
| If a project will serve 25 or more people for 60 days per year or more, or if it will have 15 or more service connections, it will meet the definition for a public drinking water system and will be regulated under the Safe Drinking Water Act and IDAPA 58.01.08. |
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Plan ahead by understanding a water system's plans and your community's needs for growth. Doing so can help identify potential future deficiencies in a system in advance of adding more users that could, for instance, cause a system to qualify as a public water system and/or suffer pressure, flow, and supply limitations.
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Prior to project approval, request that project information specify which requirements under Idaho Code §39-118 and 39-103(12) and the associated Idaho Rules for Public Drinking Water Systems apply. Generally, the following considerations apply: |
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Projects that propose a new PWS are required to have a specific engineering report approved by DEQ before plans and specifications are submitted to DEQ for review and approval. |
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DEQ recommends that the developer and their engineer schedule a pre-design meeting with DEQ. |
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A project proposing a new PWS is required to demonstrate technical, financial, and managerial capacity. The capacity demonstration must by submitted to and approved by DEQ prior to or concurrent with proceeding or causing to proceed with construction of a new community or nontransient, noncommunity drinking water system. |
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If a PWS project involves a new well, then the facility plan/preliminary engineering report must include documentation that the appropriate water right approval has been granted by the Idaho Department of Water Resources. |
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If the PWS will be used to provide water for fire suppression, contact local authorities for fire flow requirements. Any fire flow requirements are in addition to domestic requirements. (See Fire Protection section.) |
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Projects that Use Individual Wells |
| Determine if the project will use a new or existing well. |
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If the project is using an existing individual well, prior to approval of a project, verify that the change in population size and type (such as employees, children in daycare, or students) does not change the status of the drinking water system. Contact the local Public Health District with the population type information for verification. |
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If a project proposes the use of individual wells for each residential domestic water supply, the local Public Health District has oversight of the systems. |
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Individual wells are private wells. Private well owners that serve less than 15 connections or serve less than 25 people more than 60 days out of the year are not regulated by the state for water quality. Owners of individual wells are responsible for monitoring the quality of their own drinking water. In addition, individual well construction in most cases is not equivalent to public drinking water system well construction. Therefore, DEQ recommends that private wells be tested for total coliform bacteria, nitrate, and nitrite prior to use and be retested annually thereafter. Nitrate and arsenic (pdf 2.0 mb, 39 pages) are particularly important because they are the most widespread ground water contaminants in Idaho. |
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If a project will use individual wells, it is advisable to evaluate the potential to meet fire flow requirements. |
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| Resources |
Have a question? |
Drinking Water and Wastewater in Idaho: Guidance for Engineers and Developers |
Pollution Prevention for Public Water Systems
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For more information on drinking water, visit DEQ's Drinking Water Web page. |