Ozone and the Safe Drinking Water Act

Presented at:

Water Quality Association
1998 Annual Conference
Ft. Lauderdale, Florida
March 20, 1998

Rip G. Rice, Ph.D.
Rice International Consulting Enterprises
Ashton, Massachusettes USA

Paul Overbeck
GDT Corporation
Phoenix, Arizona USA

ABSTRACT

Since the initial passage of the Safe Drinking Water Act in 1973, the use of ozone to treat drinking water in the United States has been encouraged increasingly by EPA's evolving drinking water regulations. The evolution of these regulations is traced and their impact on the uses of ozone in potable water treatment in the United States. is discussed Some statistics are included, in particular a current listing of over 250 U.S. municipal drinking water utilities currently using ozone. A second listing of 140 "small" water plants using ozone - defined by the EPA as serving less than 10,000 persons (producing less than 1 mgd) also is included. A surprising number of additional installations (> 400) are in single family homes and small businesses.