Last week, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
released a plan to improve drinking water standards in America. Called the Drinking Water Action Plan, it directly appeals to the nation’s government,
utilities, organisations and stakeholders, urging them to jointly work towards
safer and more reliable drinking water.
Divided into six priority areas in need of attention, the
plan outlines proposed actions for each area:
- Promote Equity and Build Capacity for Drinking Water Infrastructure Financing andManagement in Disadvantaged, Small, and Environmental Justice Communities
- Advance Next Generation Oversight for the Safe Drinking Water Act
- Strengthen Source Water Protection and Resilience of Drinking Water Supplies
- Take Action to Address Unregulated Contaminants
- Improve Transparency, Public Education, and Risk Communication on Drinking Water Safety
- Reduce Lead Risks through the Lead and Copper Rule
EPA sourced information from state, local, and tribal government officials, drinking water utilities, community groups and environmental organisations to compile an appropriately all-encompassing plan that can be universally applied to the entire country. Combining these varied inputs to create a unifying vision had to be tricky.
To further back EPA’s “national call to action,” the
President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST) launched a study on science and technology for drinking water safety. Acting as the
perfect accompaniment, PCAST’s findings are in line with and support the plan. From
the looks of it, EPA has secured the right kind of backing.
Some fronts have already been moved upon by the EPA and
partners while other aspects will require a bit more diplomacy. Stakeholders
must be considered, for example, and additional resources (monetary or
otherwise) will need to be discussed. Pushing together singular pillars of
operation – governing forces, utilities, and the private and public sectors –
to create firm foundation is paramount to the success of the plan.
EPA administrator Gina McCarthy speaks to the goal of the
Drinking Water Action Plan: “Ensuring that all Americans have access to safe
drinking water is an absolute top priority for EPA. We must work collectively
to seize opportunities for progress, partnership, and innovation in order to
continue to provide our citizens with the safest drinking water in the world.”
According to Food Safety Magazine, 150,000 public water
systems are used in America for everything from daily bathing to drinking
water. More than one billion glasses of tap water are consumed each day from
those same systems. It’s encouraging to hear that the “EPA has established
drinking water standards for more than 90 contaminants, and compliance data
show that more than 90 percent of the nation’s water systems consistently meet
those standards.” This means that the majority of Americans are consuming
relatively safe water; however, outside of America, the rest of the world must
address an aging infrastructure, limited funding and management capacity,
emerging contaminants, pollution of source water, and the impacts from drought
and other climate events. Rather than applying a Band-Aid solution, EPA’s plan
endeavours to solve these issues with a strategic plan of action.
Jacqui Litvan
Jacqui
Litvan, wielding a bachelor's degree in English, strives to create a world of
fantasy amidst the ever-changing landscape of military life. Attempting to
become a writer, she fuels herself with coffee (working as a barista) and music
(spending free time as a raver).
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