Frequent Questions
1. What is EPA announcing regarding airline water quality?
2. What have the airlines agreed to with regard to aircraft water testing?
3. What have the airlines agreed to with regard to aircraft water disinfection?
4. Which airlines signed agreements with EPA?
5.What about smaller airlines?
6. What did EPA find in its initial study of airline water
quality?
7. What are coliforms?
8. What is E. coli?
9. Is the water on planes unsafe?
10. What should the traveling public do?
11. How will the public be notified if there is a problem with water on an airplane?
12. Where does the water on passenger airplanes come from?
13. What about international flights?
14. Who regulates water on passenger airplanes in the United
States?
15. What is the airlines’ role in ensuring safe water
on aircraft?
16. How is water currently regulated on passenger airplanes?
17. What is EPA doing about this problem?
1. What is EPA announcing regarding airline water
quality?
EPA updated the American public on progress following an initial
study of airline water quality during the summer of 2004.
Specifically, EPA announced:
- Commitments from 12 major U.S. airlines to implement new aircraft
water testing and disinfection protocols. Two additional airlines are
currently negotiating separate agreements with EPA.
- The initiation of additional water quality inspections by EPA enforcement
officials, beginning November 9, 2004, on 169 randomly selected domestic
and international passenger aircraft at 14 airports throughout the U.S.
EPA will make those results available to the public by early January.
- An accelerated rule-making process by EPA to develop regulations
for water aboard aircraft.
Top of page 2. What have the airlines agreed to with regard to aircraft water testing?
Under the terms of the agreements, airlines will be obligated to provide total coliform and disinfectant residual samples from at least one galley and lavatory on every aircraft in a twelve month time period.
Furthermore, each airline must perform an analysis of possible sources of contamination that exist outside of the aircraft. This could include an evaluation of the water trucks, carts, or hoses or of the stationary water cabinets at the airports themselves.
Finally, each airline is obligated to provide the information related to practices of boarding water from foreign public water supplies. EPA will evaluate those practices and the Agency will work with each airline to incorporate those practices that are protective of public health, meet the regulations, or require notification to passengers.
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3. What have the airlines agreed to with regard to aircraft water disinfection?
The airlines will be obligated to perform routine disinfection and flushing of each aircraft’s potable water system once every quarter, and the water trucks, carts, and hoses owned and/or operated by the airline once every month.
EPA will meet with the airlines at a frequency of no less than quarterly in the first twelve months of monitoring to evaluate the need for modifications to monitoring or disinfection frequencies necessary to be protective of public health.
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4. Which airlines signed agreements with EPA?
Agreements have been signed with Alaska Airlines, Aloha Airlines, American
Airlines, America West, ATA Airlines, Continental Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines,
JetBlue, Midwest Airlines, Northwest Airlines, United Airlines and US
Airways. Two additional airlines, Delta Airlines and Southwest Airlines,
are currently negotiating separate agreements with EPA. Collectively,
these 14 carriers represent the majority of U.S. flag carrying aircraft
transporting the flying public.
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5. What about smaller airlines?
EPA will work with smaller, regional and charter aircraft carriers to address drinking water quality with agreements similar to those reached with ATA members.
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6. What did EPA find in its initial study of
airline water quality?
On September 20, 2004, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) informed
the American public of results from initial testing of drinking water
onboard 158 randomly selected passenger airplanes. Preliminary data released
by EPA shows that in the recent tests, most of the aircraft tested (87.4%)
met EPA drinking water quality standards. However, 12.6 percent of domestic
and international passenger aircraft tested at U.S. airports carried water
that did not meet EPA standards.
Top of page 7. What are coliforms?
Coliforms are a group of closely related bacteria most of which
are natural and common inhabitants of the soil and ambient waters (such
as lakes and rivers) and in the digestive tracts of humans and other warm-blooded
animals.
The presence of total coliform, in and of itself, is not indicative of
a health risk. Coliform bacteria will not likely cause illness. However,
the presence of coliform bacteria in drinking water indicates that other
disease-causing organisms (pathogens) may be present in the water system.
Top of page 8.
What is E. coli?
E. coli is a subgroup of the fecal coliform group. It
is found in great quantities in the intestines of people and warm-blooded
animals. If total coliform is present in a drinking water sample, EPA requires
that it also be tested for E. coli or fecal coliform.
Most E. coli are harmless. Some strains, however, may cause
illness – diarrhea, cramps, nausea, headaches, or other symptoms.
The presence of E. coli or fecal coliform in a drinking water
sample may indicate human or animal fecal contamination - meaning that
pathogens may be present.
Top of page 9.
Is the water on planes unsafe?
At this time, EPA does not have sufficient data to make broadly
applicable, reliable conclusions about water quality on passenger aircraft.
In order to address this situation, EPA is committed to keeping the American
public well informed of further testing and actions taken, reviewing existing
guidance to determine areas where it might be strengthened, concluding agreements
with the airlines and taking enforcement actions where warranted.
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10. What should the traveling public do?
The traveling public may benefit from the information released
by EPA when deciding how they use the water that comes from aircraft tanks.
Passengers with suppressed immune systems or others concerned should request
bottled or canned beverages while on the aircraft and refrain from drinking
tea or coffee that does not use bottled water. While boiling water for
one minute will remove pathogens from drinking water, the water used to
prepare coffee and tea aboard a plane is not generally brought to a sufficiently
high temperature to guarantee that pathogens are killed.
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11. How will the public be notified if there is a problem with water on an airplane?
Airlines will be required to provide public notification on the aircraft or discontinue the water service on the aircraft when there is a total coliform positive sample result. The notification or the discontinuance of water service will continue until there is a set of negative total coliform sample results that confirm the aircraft potable water system is free of coliform contamination.
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12. Where does the water on passenger airplanes
come from?
In the United States, water loaded aboard aircraft comes from
public water systems. The water provided by public water systems is regulated
by state and federal authorities. That water may be delivered to the aircraft
holding tank via piping from the airport itself or a hose from a water
tanker.
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13. What about international flights?
A significant part of aircraft travel includes international
flights. According to the Air Transport Association (ATA), about 90 percent
of ATA member aircraft have the potential to travel internationally. These
aircraft may board water from foreign sources which are not subject to
EPA drinking water standards.
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14. Who regulates water on passenger airplanes
in the United States?
In the United States, drinking water safety on airlines is jointly
regulated by the EPA, Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and Federal
Aviation Administration (FAA). EPA regulates the parent systems that supply
water to the airports and the drinking water once it is on board the aircraft.
FDA has jurisdiction over culinary water (e.g., ice) and the points where
aircraft obtain water (e.g., pipes or tankers) at the airport. FAA requires
airline companies submit operation and maintenance plans for all parts
of the aircraft, including the potable water system.
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15. What is the airlines’ role in ensuring
safe water on aircraft?
The regulatory structure for all public water systems, including
aircraft, relies upon self-monitoring and reporting of results to the
primacy agency. The primacy agency for aircraft public water systems is
EPA.
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16. How is water currently regulated on passenger
airplanes?
The Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) regulates water quality in
public water systems. Water Supply Guidance 29 was issued in 1986 in an
effort to tailor SDWA requirements to address the unique characteristics
of Interstate Commerce Carriers, such as aircraft. Under the guidance,
ICC operators could substitute an EPA approved operations and maintenance
plan for regular monitoring of the vehicle's water system. EPA is considering
modifications of the requirements controlling drinking water for ICCs
to ensure that regular monitoring is carried out in addition to sound
operating and maintenance practices.
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17. What is EPA doing about this problem?
EPA will update its information and advice to the traveling public
as soon as new information is available.
EPA began a review of existing guidance in 2002. In response to the
aircraft test results in August and September, EPA has initiated an accelerated
rule-making process to develop regulations for water aboard aircraft.
The Agency will work collaboratively with other federal agencies overseeing
the airline industry, industry representatives, and the interested public
to identify appropriate requirements ensuring safe drinking water aboard
aircraft. The agreements reached with the airlines and resulting administrative
orders signed by the airlines will govern airline drinking water safety
until final regulations are released.
EPA initiated additional water quality inspections beginning November
9, 2004 on 169 randomly selected domestic and international passenger
aircraft at 14 airports throughout the U.S and will make those results
available to the public by early January.
In addition, the Agency will continue to work with smaller, regional
and charter aircraft carriers to address drinking water quality with agreements
similar to those reached with ATA members.
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