In December, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency marked the 40th anniversary of the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA).
According to the EPA, “SDWA is the main federal law that ensures the quality of Americans’ drinking water. Under SDWA, EPA sets standards for drinking water quality and oversees the states, localities, and water suppliers who implement those standards.”
The act originally was passed by Congress in 1974 to guard public health by regulating the country’s public drinking water supply, including water sources like rivers, lakes, reservoirs, springs, and ground water wells. It sets national standards for drinking water to protect the public against both naturally-occurring and man-made contaminants that may occur. US EPA, states, and water systems then work together to make sure that these standards are met.
The EPA held event at the San Jose Community and Bea Main Learning Center in Coachella Valley, CA to commemorate the SDWA’s 40th anniversary. “Every day more than 38 million Californians rely on clean water for cooking, washing, and bathing,” said Jared Blumenfeld, EPA’s Regional Administrator for the Pacific Southwest. “We have made incredible progress in improving water quality and are tackling the remaining challenges so that every American will have access to clean drinking water.”
Since close to 300 million people depend on 50,000 community water systems across the country for safe, reliable water every day, it’s important that we acknowledge the importance of this Act, which protects a most vital resource to our citizens.
Click here to read more about SDWA’s 40th anniversary.
“Glass Of Water With Ice Cubes” courtesy of taesmileland / www.freedigitalphotos.net
