Issues in Potable Reuse: The Viability of Augmenting Drinking Water Supplies with Reclaimed Water

279 Pages·1998·5.38 MB·English

by  National Research Council, Committee to Evaluate the Viability of Augmenting Potable Water Supplies with Reclaimed Water

http://books.nap.edu/catalog/6022.html
PREFACE i
Issues in
Potable Reuse
The Viability of Augmenting Drinking
Water Supplies With Reclaimed Water
Committee to Evaluate the Viability of Augmenting
Potable Water Supplies With Reclaimed Water
Water Science and Technology Board
Commission on Geosciences, Environment, and Resources
National Research Council
NATIONAL ACADEMY PRESS
Washington, D.C. 1998
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National Academy Press • 2101 Constitution Avenue, NW • Washington, DC 20418
NOTICE: The project that is the subject of this report was approved by the Governing
Board of the National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of
the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute
of Medicine. The members of the committee responsible for the report were chosen for
their special competencies and with regard for appropriate balance.
Support for this project was provided by the American Water Works Association Re-
search Foundation, County Sanitation Districts of Los Angeles County, National Water
Research Institute, Phoenix Water Services Department, San Diego County Water Author-
ity, U.S. Bureau of Reclamation under grant nos. 1425-6-FG-81-07010 and 1425-6-FG-30-
00740, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency under cooperative agreement no. CX 824340-
01-0, and Water Environment Research Foundation.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Issues in potable reuse : the viability of augmenting drinking
water supplies with reclaimed water / Committee to Evaluate the
Viability of Augmenting Potable Water Supplies With Reclaimed
Water, Water Science and Technology Board, Commission on
Geosciences, Environment, and Resources, National Research Council.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 0-309-06416-3
1. Water reuse. 2. Drinking water. I. National Research Council
(U.S.). Committee to Evaluate the Viability of Augmenting Potable
Water Supplies with Reclaimed Water.
TD429 .I84 199 98-19686
363.6’1—ddc21
Issues in Potable Reuse: The Viability of Augmenting Drinking Water Supplies With Reclaimed
Water is available from the National Academy Press, 2101 Constitution Ave., N.W., Box 285,
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Cover art by Y. David Chung. Chung is a graduate of the Corcoran School of Art in
Washington, D.C. He has exhibited his work throughout the country, including at the
Whitney Museum in New York, the Washington Project for the Arts in Washington, D.C.,
and the Williams College Museum of Art in Williamstown, Massachusetts.
Copyright 1998 by the National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
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COMMITTEE TO EVALUATE THE VIABILITY OF
AUGMENTING POTABLE WATER SUPPLIES WITH
RECLAIMED WATER
JAMES CROOK, Chair, Black and Veatch, Boston, Massachusetts (from
August 1996)
RICHARD S. ENGELBRECHT, Chair, University of Illinois, Urbana-
Champaign (through August 1996)
MARK M. BENJAMIN, University of Washington, Seattle
RICHARD J. BULL, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland,
Washington
BRUCE A. FOWLER, University of Maryland, Baltimore
HERSCHEL E. GRIFFIN, San Diego State University, California
CHARLES N. HAAS, Drexel University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
CHRISTINE L. MOE, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
JOAN B. ROSE, University of South Florida, St. Petersburg
R. RHODES TRUSSELL, Montgomery Watson, Inc., Pasadena,
California
Editor
DAVID A. DOBBS, Montpelier, Vermont
Staff
JACQUELINE A. MACDONALD, Study Director (from July 1997)
GARY D. KRAUSS, Study Director (until July 1997)
ELLEN A. DE GUZMAN, Senior Project Assistant
iii
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WATER SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY BOARD
HENRY J. VAUX, Jr., Chair, University of California, Division of
Agriculture and Natural Resources, Oakland
CAROL A. JOHNSTON, Vice-Chair, University of Minnesota, Duluth
JOHN S. BOYER, University of Delaware, Lewes
JOHN BRISCOE, The World Bank, Washington, D.C.
DENISE FORT, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque
EVILLE GORHAM, University of Minnesota, St. Paul
THOMAS M. HELLMAN, Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, New York,
New York
CHARLES D. D. HOWARD, Charles Howard and Associates, Ltd.,
Victoria, British Columbia
WILLIAM A. JURY, University of California, Riverside
WILLIAM M. LEWIS, JR., University of Colorado, Boulder
RICHARD G. LUTHY, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh,
Pennsylvania
JOHN W. MORRIS, J. W. Morris, Ltd., Arlington, Virginia
CHARLES R. O’MELIA, The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore,
Maryland
REBECCA T. PARKIN, American Public Health Association,
Washington, D.C.
FRANK W. SCHWARTZ, Ohio State University, Columbus
ERIC F. WOOD, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey
Staff
STEPHEN D. PARKER, Director
JACQUELINE A. MACDONALD, Associate Director
CHRIS ELFRING, Senior Staff Officer
LAURA J. EHLERS, Staff Officer
JEFFREY W. JACOBS, Staff Officer
M. JEANNE AQUILINO, Administrative Associate
MARK GIBSON, Research Assistant
ANITA A. HALL, Administrative Assistant
ELLEN A. DE GUZMAN, Senior Project Assistant
KIMBERLY A. SWARTZ, Project Assistant
iv
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COMMISSION ON GEOSCIENCES,
ENVIRONMENT, AND RESOURCES
GEORGE M. HORNBERGER, Chair, University of Virginia,
Charlottesville
PATRICK R. ATKINS, Aluminum Company of America, Pittsburgh,
Pennsylvania
JERRY F. FRANKLIN, University of Washington, Seattle
B. JOHN GARRICK, PLG, Inc., Newport Beach, California
THOMAS E. GRAEDEL, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut
DEBRA KNOPMAN, Progressive Foundation, Washington, D.C.
KAI N. LEE, Williams College, Williamstown, Massachusetts
JUDITH E. MCDOWELL, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution,
Massachusetts
RICHARD A. MESERVE, Covington & Burling, Washington, D.C.
HUGH C. MORRIS, Canadian Global Change Program, Delta, British
Columbia
RAYMOND A. PRICE, Queen’s University at Kingston, Ontario
H. RONALD PULLIAM, University of Georgia, Athens
THOMAS C. SCHELLING, University of Maryland, College Park
VICTORIA J. TSCHINKEL, Landers and Parsons, Tallahassee, Florida
E-AN ZEN, University of Maryland, College Park
MARY LOU ZOBACK, United States Geological Survey, Menlo Park,
California
Staff
ROBERT M. HAMILTON, Executive Director
GREGORY H. SYMMES, Assistant Executive Director
JEANETTE SPOON, Administrative and Financial Officer
SANDI S. FITZPATRICK, Administrative Associate
MARQUITA S. SMITH, Administrative Assistant/Technology Analyst
v
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The National Academy of Sciences is a private, nonprofit, self-perpetuat-
ing society of distinguished scholars engaged in scientific and engineer-
ing research, dedicated to the furtherance of science and technology and
to their use for the general welfare. Upon the authority of the charter
granted to it by the Congress in 1863, the Academy has a mandate that
requires it to advise the federal government on scientific and technical
matters. Dr. Bruce M. Alberts is president of the National Academy of
Sciences.
The National Academy of Engineering was established in 1964, un-
der the charter of the National Academy of Sciences, as a parallel organi-
zation of outstanding engineers. It is autonomous in its administration
and in the selection of its members, sharing with the National Academy
of Sciences the responsibility for advising the federal government. The
National Academy of Engineering also sponsors engineering programs
aimed at meeting national needs, encourages education and research,
and recognizes the superior achievements of engineers. Dr. William A.
Wulf is president of the National Academy of Engineering.
The Institute of Medicine was established in 1970 by the National
Academy of Sciences to secure the services of eminent members of ap-
propriate professions in the examination of policy matters pertaining to
the health of the public. The Institute acts under the responsibility given
to the National Academy of Sciences by its congressional charter to be an
adviser to the federal government and, upon its own initiative, to iden-
tify issues of medical care, research, and education. Dr. Kenneth I. Shine
is president of the Institute of Medicine.
The National Research Council was organized by the National Acad-
emy of Sciences in 1916 to associate the broad community of science and
technology with the Academy’s purposes of furthering knowledge and
advising the federal government. Functioning in accordance with gen-
eral policies determined by the Academy, the Council has become the
principal operating agency of both the National Academy of Sciences
and the National Academy of Engineering in providing services to the
government, the public, and the scientific and engineering communities.
The Council is administered jointly by both Academies and the Institute
of Medicine. Dr. Bruce M. Alberts and Dr. William A. Wulf are chairman
and vice chairman, respectively, of the National Research Council.
vi
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Dedication
This book is dedicated to Dr. Richard Engelbrecht, who
chaired the Committee to Evaluate the Viability of Augmenting Potable
Water Supplies With Reclaimed Water from its inception until September
1, 1996, when he passed away.
Dr. Engelbrecht was a pioneer in environmental pollution control,
particularly in issues related to water quality management and microbio-
logical contamination of drinking water. A dedicated educator, he had
been a professor of environmental engineering at the University of Illi-
nois since 1954. He was also extremely active in the professional commu-
nity, both nationally and internationally. Dr. Engelbrecht was elected to
the National Academy of Engineering in 1976.
Dr. Engelbrecht found significant time between his teaching and re-
search responsibilities and his professional involvements to volunteer his
knowledge and expertise to further the work of the Water Science and
Technology Board. A founding member of the board in 1982, Dr.
Engelbrecht served on several of its study committees, including the
Panel on Water Quality Criteria for Reuse, which in 1982 published the
first independent review of potable reuse of reclaimed water. From 1988
until 1990, he chaired a committee that reviewed the U.S. Geological
Survey’s National Water Quality Assessment Program. He was a mem-
ber of the Committee on Mexico City’s Aquifer from 1992 until 1995 and
the Panel on Sustainable Water and Sanitation Services for Megacities in
the Developing World from 1995 until 1996.
Dr. Engelbrecht will long be remembered as one of the most influen-
tial figures in water quality and public health.
vii
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Preface
The National Research Council (NRC) first provided
guidance on potable reuse of reclaimed wastewater in the report Quality
Criteria for Water Reuse, developed in 1982 to provide input to an experi-
mental program commissioned by Congress to study the wastewater-
contaminated Potomac Estuary as a potential new water source for the
District of Columbia. That report focused on the scientific questions con-
cerning what quality criteria should be applied if a degraded water sup-
ply is to be used as a source of drinking water. At the time, only a few
communities in the United States—notably Denver, Colorado; Los Ange-
les and Orange Counties, California; and Washington, D.C.—were con-
sidering water reuse to augment drinking water supplies.
The 1982 report produced a number of findings regarding the appli-
cation of existing drinking regulations as applied to a reuse situation, the
importance of treatment reliability and confirmatory data, and limita-
tions concerning the identification, measurement, and long-term health
risks from trace organic chemicals. The panel that wrote the report rec-
ommended that in the absence of an absolute, ideal water standard, the
ability of a water reclamation facility to produce potable water should be
judged—chemically, microbiologically, and toxicologically—in compari-
son with conventional drinking waters that are presumed to be safe. The
panel suggested that all new projects develop an experimental pilot plant
facility and recommended comprehensive toxicological testing to evalu-
ate the potential health risks of unidentified trace organic chemicals. The
report also “strongly endorse[d] the generally accepted concept that
drinking water should be obtained from the best quality source avail-
ix
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x PREFACE
able” and noted that “U.S. drinking water regulations were not estab-
lished to judge the suitability of raw water supplies heavily contami-
nated with municipal and industrial wastewater.” The report suggested
that planners should consider “the much greater probability that ad-
equately safe [reclaimed] water could be provided for short-term emer-
gencies rather than for long-term use.”
Since then, a number of factors have changed the way people think
about drinking water and wastewater. The demand for water in some
parts of the country is now so great that the best available sources have
already been developed to their maximum extent, forcing municipalities
to consider ways to creatively and inexpensively augment drinking wa-
ter supplies. In addition, changes in water and wastewater treatment
technologies have occurred since 1982, with advanced technologies such
as advanced-oxidation (including ozone), membrane, and biofilm pro-
cesses seeing increasing use in the United States and Europe. Finally,
several public health concerns have surfaced over drinking water in gen-
eral, and these concerns may affect the use of reclaimed water for drink-
ing purposes. These include the control of Cryptosporidium and other
potentially dangerous human pathogens, increased awareness of the po-
tential dangers of disinfection by-products and other unidentified trace
organic chemicals, and the problem of biological instability of wastewa-
ters. When degraded water from whatever source is used, such issues
complicate the challenge of meeting acceptable quality standards and
ensuring that the water maintains its quality during distribution.
Since the 1982 NRC report, studies on the health implications of us-
ing reclaimed water for potable purposes have been completed at a num-
ber of projects in the United States. Many of the projects have used a
comparative approach, testing both reclaimed and conventional drinking
water sources. More advanced methods have been developed and tested
for identifying organic chemicals and microbiological agents in reclaimed
water, and some have involved whole-animal toxicological studies. A
series of epidemiological studies was completed in Los Angeles County,
where indirect potable reuse through ground water recharge has been
practiced since 1962. None of the studies detected significant effects from
chemical toxicants or infectious disease agents; all found the quality of
highly treated reclaimed water as good as or better than the current drink-
ing water sources for most or all measures of physical, chemical, and
microbiological parameters.
However, limitations in methodology and testing have prevented
many within the scientific and technical community from issuing abso-
lute statements that planned potable reuse carries no adverse health-ef-
fect implications. Opponents of the use of reclaimed water for potable
use point out that communities involved in the practice are subject only
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