Safe Drinking Water Act — Highlights

The Safe Drinking Water Act was enacted on December 16, 1974 to protect public drinking water systems in the U.S. from harmful contaminants. The Act directs EPA to develop:

1) National primary drinking water regulations,

2) Underground injection control regulations to protect underground sources of drinking water, and

3) Protection programs for sole-source aquifers.


Unfortunately, implementation of the Act was slow. So in 1986, Congress passed amendments in an effort to quicken EPA's pace in issuing standards and implementing the various protection programs. Notably, the 1986 amendments included provisions requiring EPA to:

1) Set drinking water regulations for 83 specified contaminants by 1989,

2) Establish requirements for disinfection and filtration of public water supplies and provide related technical assistance to small communities,

3) Ban the use of lead pipes and lead solder in new drinking water distribution systems,

4) Establish an elective wellhead protection program around public water supply wells,

5) Establish an elective demonstration grant program for States and local authorities having designated sole-source aquifers to develop ground water protection programs, and

6) Issue rules for monitoring wells that inject wastes below a drinking water source.


To date, EPA has established close to 80 National Primary Drinking Water Standards. The agency has also issued secondary drinking water regulations that protect the public from drinking water with an unpleasant odor or appearance. These secondary standards are merely guidelines for public water utilities to follow; they are not enforceable.

On August 6, 1996, President Clinton signed into law another amendment to the Safe Drinking Water Act. These amendments significantly bolster the ability of communities to upgrade antiquated drinking water filtration and purification systems. Under the new law, cash-strapped communities can apply for state-administered loans and grants to construct new water treatment facilities or upgrade old ones.

Features of the 1996 amendments include the establishment of programs to train and certify competent water treatment plant operators, as well as the establishment of key drinking water standards for Cryptosporidium, certain carcinogens, and other contaminants that threaten drinking water in the U.S. In addition, the amendments will require community water systems serving more than 10,000 customers to notify them annually of the levels of federally regulated contaminants in their drinking water. These notifications must also include information on the presence of suspicious but still unregulated substances. If there is a violation, the notifications must contain information about the health effects of the contaminants in question.

Of importance, EPA now has the authority to require public water utilities to notify their customers of the sources of contaminants in their tap water. This could eventually lead to pollution reduction in watersheds. These new requirements should lead to further improvements in drinking water quality in the U.S.

For more information on the Safe Drinking Water Act, call EPA's Drinking Water Hotline at 800-426-4791. Or visit EPA's Office of Ground Water and Drinking Water web site