Anne Arundel County Says Thank You to Water Operations Employees on the 40th Anniversary of the Safe Drinking Water Act
Annapolis, Maryland (December 17, 2014) – Anne Arundel County will celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Federal Safe Drinking Water Act by recognizing the 90 employees of the Water Operations Division of the Department of Public Works (DPW) Bureau of Utility Operations (BUO) for their commitment to producing, treating, and delivering drinking water that is safe, clean, and reliable for use. The SDWA went into effect on December 17, 1974 to protect public health by regulating the nation's public drinking water supply.
“Anne Arundel County has a history of producing high quality drinking water,” said County Executive Steve Schuh. “The Safe Drinking Water Act, along with our dedicated water operations employees, ensures that the drinking water delivered to our homes and businesses each day is safe, clean, and reliable for use.”
Anne Arundel County, as required by the SDWA, regularly monitors water for contaminants and analyzes samples using EPA-approved testing methods in laboratories certified by EPA or a state agency. BUO personnel have maintained a 99.9% overall regulatory compliance record since the law went into effect forty years ago.
In 1996, Congress amended the SDWA giving the US EPA the authority to require an annual water quality report from each community water system. These water quality reports, also known as “Consumer Confidence Reports”, summarize information that is already collected to comply with regulations including any detected contaminants, possible health effects, and the water's source. The Anne Arundel County Consumer Confidence report is mailed to all public water customers in July and posted for review on the DPW Water Quality Report webpage.
The DPW Bureau of Utility Operations maintains and operates the County’s 12 Water Treatment Plants and 1,300 miles of distribution and transmission mains. The County produces nearly 32 million gallons of safe drinking water each day and approximately 12 billion gallons each year.
Learn more about the Safe Drinking Water Act by visiting the US EPA’s Safe Drinking Water Act webpage.
