Florida’s rules for public drinking water systems allow for reduced monitoring for certain contaminants, operator staffing, and delivery of consumer confidence reports for systems that qualify. Please contact your local department office and refer to the cited rules for details.
Total Coliform Monitoring
Monitoring and reporting for total coliforms may be reduced from quarterly to annually for transient non-community water systems that qualify. Upon request by the owner or operator of a transient noncommunity water system using groundwater as a source of supply and serving religious institutions or businesses other than restaurants or other public food service establishments or religious institutions with school or day care services, the department shall perform a sanitary survey of the facility. Upon receipt of satisfactory survey results, the department shall reduce the requirements of such owner or operator from monitoring and reporting on a quarterly basis to performing these functions on an annual basis. Refer to 403.853(6), Florida Statutes (F.S.) for details including criteria for eligibility to continue the reduced monitoring and reporting.
Primary Chemical Contaminants Monitoring
The monitoring frequency and/or number of samples taken by community or non-transient non- community systems for certain primary chemical contaminants (including asbestos, total trihalomethanes, haloacetic acids, volatile organics (VOCs), synthetic organics (SOCs), naturally-occurring radionuclides, and tap water lead and copper) may be reduced below the routine frequency and/or number of samples depending on past results and/or other factors.
Refer to Rule 62-550, Florida Administrative Code (F.A.C.).
Monitoring Waivers for VOCs and SOCs
Community or non-transient non-community water systems may apply for a temporary waiver from monitoring for VOCs and/or SOCs. Eligibility is based on past results and vulnerability to contamination. The VOC waiver shall be effective for no more than six years, and the system must sample once during the first three years the waiver is in effect. The SOC waiver shall be effective for no more than three years. At this time the department only grants waivers from monitoring for SOCs. Please refer to the monitoring reduction program webpage and Rule 62-560.545, F.A.C.
Water Treatment Plant Operator Staffing
Reduced water treatment plant operator staffing is available for plants that meet one or more of the following descriptions (refer to Rule 62-699, F.A.C. for all eligibility criteria):
- Plant under an electronic surveillance system, automatic control system, or electronic control system
- Multiple Category V plants connected to the same water distribution system
- Plant producing less than the permitted capacity of the plant
- Plants that are operational fewer hours per day or fewer days per week than the plant must be staffed
Additionally, plants may interchange the weekend visits with the same number of required weekdays of staffing for plants that have greater water production on weekends than on weekdays.
Consumer Confidence Reports
Community water systems are required to produce Consumer Confidence Reports (CCRs) annually by July 1st but may be eligible for reduced delivery. The state waives the requirements for mail or direct delivery by community water systems serving fewer than 10,000 persons that did not have any violations (see Rule 62-550.824(3)(d), F.A.C. for details). Such systems must provide the report to their customers using alternate means as required by the above rule. Additionally, as provided in Form 62- 555.900(19)-alternate, the list of electronic delivery options for mailing or directly delivering the CCRs to customers has been expanded. Options now include mailing a notice (e.g. water bill) with direct URL to the CCR, emailing CCR as an embedded image or as an attachment, and emailing notice with a direct URL to the CCR. See Safe Drinking Water Act: Consumer Confidence Reports (CCR) from the USEPA for additional details.
