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PA EPA LISTS POTENTIAL CONTAMINANT CANDIDATES UNDER SAFE DRINKING WATER ACT

Release Date: 10/03/97
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FOR RELEASE: FRIDAY, OCTOBER 3, 1997
EPA LISTS POTENTIAL CONTAMINANT CANDIDATES
UNDER SAFE DRINKING WATER ACT


EPA will soon publish in the Federal Register and seek public comment on a draft list of 71 contaminants the Agency may consider for possible regulation in the future under the Safe Drinking Water Act. By 2001, EPA must select five or more candidates from the final Contaminant Candidate List and then determine whether or not to regulate them. The l996 amended law requires EPA to select future regulatory candidates with the greatest public health concern while considering vulnerable populations such as infants, the elderly and those with serious illness. The draft candidate list is a list of contaminants known or anticipated to occur in public water systems. The publication of the list begins a selection process which generally will determine the Agency’s research and regulatory priorities. The draft contaminant candidates are not subject to regulation at this time. The draft candidate list was selected by EPA and the National Drinking Water Advisory Committee, a committee composed of representatives of public water utilities, environmental and public interest groups, state regulatory agencies, public health offices and other interested parties. A final Contaminant Candidate List will be published in the Federal Register no later than February l998. The final list will be revised every five years. For additional information and copies of the list, the general public can call the Safe Drinking Water Hotline at 1-800-426-4791.

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