You've heard it said before "a watched pot never boils."
However, anyone working in the drinking water industry can tell you that even the most closely monitored water treatment system will eventually experience the need to issue a boil water order.
According to a recent study, the nation’s 880,000 miles of active water mains experience roughly 240,000 breaks each year. If you consider that there are roughly 160,000 water systems operating in the U.S., that means each system will have to deal with at least 1.5 breaks each year.
In able to uphold your most important responsibility—ensuring that the citizens your system serves have an adequate, uninterrupted, and safe supply of water—it is important that all water officials from operators clear up to the chairman of the system’s board understand the principals and procedures involved in issuing a Boil Water Order.
In this issue of the eBulletin we’ll take a broad look at the situations that could lead a water system to issue a boil order and what steps should be taken to ensure that your customer’s drinking water is always safe.
Additional Resources
http://missourifamilies.org/features/nutritionarticles/nut68.htm [1]
What causes Water to Boil?
Boil orders are public announcements advising the public (your customers) that they should boil their tap water for drinking and other uses.
It’s a preventative measure designed to protect your customers from waterborne infectious agents that could be, or are known to have inadvertently made their way into your system’s drinking water.
It is critical that if the need to issue a boil water order arises that your system understands the importance of issuing a clearly worded message that is able to reach your customers in a timely fashion.
It all boils down to putting safety first.
State and federal regulations are clear; a boil water order should be issued anytime:
There is a loss of pressure in the system.
The system has experienced a persistent violation of the Maximum Contaminant Level for bacteria.
There has been a violation of established treatment techniques.
The system has failed to comply with the schedule of a variance or exemption.
The system has experienced an outbreak of a known waterborne disease.
Testing reveals the presence of fecal coliform or E. coli bacteria.
While this is by no means an exhaustive list of events that could lead to the issuance of a boil order, it is important to remember that boil orders should be issued to protect your customers even in the event that the results of water sample testing could be in error.
Remember, these are events that all water systems must face, so it is always best to error on the side of caution than to take a chance with your customer’s health
Additional Resources
www.epa.gov/safewater/pws/pn/fact.html [2]
Avoid ending up in Hot Water
Community leaders in one northeastern town, learned an expensive lesson recently after the state’s attorney general ordered them to pay $13,000 in civil penalties for failing to issue a boil order after a single water sample tested positive for E. coli bacteria.
According to press reports, officials for the municipal water system testified that they believed that the initial test showing the presence of the bacteria were false and chose to remain silent while conducting a follow up test.
Despite the fact that local water officials were correct, (additional tests failed to show the presence of the bacteria) the state’s Department of Environmental Services ruled that the water system had shown negligence by not immediately issuing a boil order.
While most consumers are cautious and will follow the recommended procedures outlined in your boil order notice, it is important that you take every possible step to alert your customers anytime that there is even a remote possibility that your water supply has been compromised.
Every step you take to protect your customers could potentially save a life.
Additional Resources
www.mass.gov/dep/brp/dws/files/guides/8706.pdf [3]
Who Decides When to Issue a Boil Order?
Boil water alerts can be issued by the state’s drinking water primacy agency (the agency, often the state health department, that has the primary responsibility for administering and enforcing regulations) or federal regulators. However, in most cases, the alerts are issued by the officials of the water system (self-imposed).
According to the Environmental Protection Agency’s public notification requirements, water suppliers must let people know within 24 hours of any Tier 1 violations, or those that pose an immediate risk to consumers. (Check out the Management At a Glance section of this month’s SDWT eBulletin for further clarification of the EPA’s three tier notification requirements.)
If a boil order is issued by a drinking water system, it is imperative that the system’s managers report the incident to all necessary state officials within in the state’s required reporting time frame.
Additional Resources
www.kcmo.org/health/fact%20sheets/BoilOrder.pdf [4]
Spreading the Word that a Boil Order is in Effect
Once a boil order has been issued, it’s important that water system officials take every necessary step to assure that their customers are notified of the situation.
Depending on the severity of the situation, water systems can use several methods to sound the alert.
If only a few customers along one street were out of water because of a main break, then it is generally acceptable to notify them by personal contact, door-hangers, or notes taped to their doors.
If a large portion (or all) of a water system is affected, then you will have to get the word out through the local media. Contact local radio and television stations, as well as, newspapers that serve your area.
Offer to fax a copy of the alert to them if necessary.
It is a good idea to have a list of contact numbers for your local media prepared well in advance of an emergency to help get the word out in an efficient manner.
Taking the Kettle off the Stove
Boil water orders are generally lifted only after sampling indicates that the contaminant is no longer present.
This is, typically, only after two consecutive days of samples test negative for the suspect contaminant.
Letting your customers know that the boil order has been lifted is generally done through the local media.
Turning Back the Clock
Life is unpredictable. Therefore, as with any other best-management practice, it is important to have a clearly defined set of internal guidelines in place before a crisis happens.
Having a clearly defined and easily accessible plan of action in place is by far better than having to figure out what to do once a problem has occurred.
Consider placing a boil water order plan in your system’s Emergency Response Plan.
Plus, don’t forget to plan for life’s little uncertainties, like how to spread the word in the case of a boil water order if your community is experiencing a power failure.
When customer's health could potentially be at risk--it pays to be prepared!