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Lead and Copper
Rule Minor Revisions:
Fact Sheet
EPA 815-F-99-010
December 1999
EPA has made minor changes to the Lead and Copper Rule. These minor
revisions (also known as the Lead and Copper Rule Minor Revisions or LCRMR)
streamline requirements, promote consistent national implementation, and
in many cases, reduce burden for water systems. The LCRMR do not change
the action levels of 0.015 mg/L for lead and 1.3 mg/L for copper, or Maximum
Contaminant Level Goals established by the 1991 Lead and Copper Rule ("the
rule"), which are 0 mg/L for lead and 1.3 mg/L for copper. They also do
not affect the rule's basic requirements to optimize corrosion control and,
if appropriate, treat source water, deliver public education, and replace
lead service lines.
As part of the LCRMR rulemaking process, the Agency collected additional
data pertaining to the exclusion of transient non-community water systems
from the requirements of the rule. EPA concluded that it is still appropriate
to continue this exclusion because the Agency believes there are de
minimus (minimal) non-carcinogenic adverse health effects resulting
from exposure to lead in drinking water at such systems. This fact sheet
provides a discussion of the major changes to the rule resulting from
the LCRMR.
Who Is Affected by the LCRMR?
All water system operators and managers of community water systems (CWSs)
and non-transient non-community water systems (NTNCWSs) are potentially
affected, as well as the state staff who are responsible for implementing
the Lead and Copper Rule in their state.
What Are the Changes to the Lead and Copper Rule?
The changes fall into seven broad categories as follows.
Demonstration of Optimal Corrosion Control
- Clarify that systems must optimize corrosion control and continue
to maintain and operate any corrosion control that is already in place.
- Add the requirement for systems that are deemed to be optimized because
there is little or no corrosion occurring in their distribution system
to:
- monitor for lead and copper tap samples once every 3 years, and
- meet the copper action level.
- Change the way in which compliance with state-designated optimal
water quality parameters (WQP) is determined.
Lead Service Line Replacement Requirements
- Require systems subject to lead service line replacement requirements
to replace the portion of the lead service line that they own.
- Require systems that replace only part of a lead service line that
they own to notify residents of the potential for temporary increases
in lead levels and measures they can take to reduce lead levels.
Public Education Requirements
- Allow NTNCWSs and special-case CWSs to use alternative language which
is more appropriate for their systems.
- Provide more flexibility in the mode of delivery for public education,
especially for NTNCWSs and those CWSs serving 3,300 or fewer people.
Monitoring Requirements
- Allow systems with low lead and copper tap levels to conduct tap
water monitoring and WQP tap monitoring once every 3 years without first
conducting interim rounds of more frequent monitoring.
- Allow NTNCWSs and certain CWSs that do not have enough taps where
the water has stood motionless for at least 6 hours to collect samples
from taps with the longest standing times.
- Permit more flexibility in the time of year when systems can conduct
reduced monitoring.
- Permit some ground water systems to limit biweekly entry point monitoring
to representative locations.
- Allow states to grant monitoring waivers to small systems with plumbing
free of lead- and copper-containing materials.
- Allow systems to reduce the frequency of source water monitoring
if they have low levels of source water lead and copper.
- Clarify and provide more flexibility in sampling site requirements.
- Revise the resampling triggers for composite lead and copper source
water samples.
- Permit states to invalidate tap samples under certain circumstances.
- Require systems, on reduced lead and copper tap monitoring, to report
to the State changes in treatment or an addition of a new water source.
Analytical Methods
- Update the analytical methods for lead and copper to conform with
changes in the standard methods for other inorganic chemicals.
Reporting and Record Keeping Requirements
- Revise and streamline state reporting requirements.
- Remove system reporting requirements that are redundant or no longer
necessary, and add other reporting requirements that reflect the LCRMR.
- Revise record keeping requirements for States to reflect the LCRMR.
Special Primacy Considerations
- Add special state primacy considerations for determining optimal
WQP compliance when multiple samples are collected per day, to verify
the completion of partial lead service line replacement activities,
and designating alternative reduced lead and copper monitoring periods
for CWSs.
When Do These Changes Take Effect?
The Federal effective date for these revisions is April 11, 2000. However,
systems should check with their state primacy agencies because not all provisions
may apply in their state.
Who Can I Contact If I Need More Information?
Call EPA's Safe Drinking Water Hotline, 1-800-426-4791, or see the
Office of Ground Water and Drinking Water web page at http://www.epa.gov/safewater/standards.html.
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