Last week, EPA’s Office of Ground Water and Drinking Water released the agency’s final Drinking Water Action Plan. Organized around six “priority areas,” the plan is intended to serve as a “national call to action, urging all levels of government, utilities, community organizations, and other stakeholders to work together to increase the safety and reliability of drinking water.”
Based on EPA’s known priorities, as further informed by a significant stakeholder outreach process over the past year, the six priority areas are:
- Promote equity and build capacity for drinking water infrastructure financing and management 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; and
- Reduce lead risks through the Lead and Copper Rule.
Indications are that EPA plans an aggressive rollout of the Action Plan, which may result in media inquiries to water systems and other stakeholders in the coming days. Also, in addition to being a “call to action,” it is anticipated that the Action Plan will serve as a transition document, outlining EPA’s policy priorities as the incoming administration takes control at the agency.
