10- 144 C.M.R. ch. 231, § 2
ACT: means the Public Health Service Act, as amended by the Safe Drinking Water Act, Public Law 93-523.
ACTION LEVEL: The concentration of lead or copper in water specified in 40 C.F.R. § 141.80(c), which determines, in some cases, the treatment requirements contained in Subpart I of § 141.80(c) that a water system is required to complete.
ADMINISTRATIVE COMPLIANCE ORDER: An administrative order that is issued by the Commissioner against a public water system in violation of State drinking water laws, regulations or rules.
ADMINISTRATIVE CONSENT ORDER: An order issued by the Commissioner pursuant to a bilateral agreement between the Commissioner and a public water system in violation of State drinking water laws, regulations or rules.
ADMINISTRATIVE PENALTY: A fine imposed by the Commissioner against a public water system in violation of state drinking water laws, regulations or rules.
ADMINISTRATIVE REMEDY: An administrative compliance order, an administrative consent order or an administrative penalty.
APA: The State of Maine Administrative Procedure Act.
AVAILABLE:Based on the system size, complexity and source water quality, a licensed operator must be on site or able to be contacted as needed to initiate the appropriate action in timely manner.
AWWA: The American Water Works Association located at 6666 W. Quincy Avenue, Denver, CO 80235 (303) 794-7711.
BEST AVAILABLE TECHNOLOGY or BAT: The best technology, treatment techniques, or other means that the Administrator finds, after examination for efficacy under field conditions and not solely under laboratory conditions, are available (taking cost into consideration). For the purposes of setting MCLs for synthetic organic chemicals, any BAT must be at least as effective as granular activated carbon.
BOTTLED WATER:Water intended for human consumption and placed in sanitary bottles, packages or other containers and offered for sale to the public.
BOTTLER SIZE FACTOR:Category assigned to in-state bottled water companies to determine annual fees assessed by the Department.
CAPACITY: The technical, financial and managerial resources of a water system necessary to enable the system to consistently provide safe drinking water for its users.
1.Technical Capacity: The physical infrastructure of the water system, including but not limited to source water adequacy, infrastructure adequacy (including wells, source water intakes, and collection, treatment, storage and distribution), and the ability of system personnel to implement the requisite technical knowledge necessary to operate the system to consistently provide safe drinking water.
2.Financial Capacity: The financial resources of the water system, including but not limited to revenue sufficiency, credit worthiness and fiscal management and controls.
3.Managerial Capacity: The management structure of the water system, including but not limited to ownership accountability, staffing and organization, and the effectiveness of interactions of system personnel with customers, regulators and other entities, and the awareness of system personnel of available external resources, such as technical and financial assistance.
1.Community Water System: A public water system which serves at least 15 service connections used by year-round residents or regularly serves at least 25 year-round residents.
2.Non-Community Water System: A public water system that is not a community water system. There are two types of Non-Community Water Systems. These are:
a.Non-Transient, Non-Community Water Systems: A Non-Community water system that serves at least 25 of the same persons for 6 months or more per year and may include, but is not limited to, a school, factory, industrial park or office building, and
b.Transient Non-Community Water Systems: A Non-Community water system that serves at least 25 persons, but not necessarily the same persons, for at least 60 days per year and may include, but is not limited to, a highway rest stop, seasonal or year-round restaurant, seasonal or year-round motel, golf course, park or campground. A bottled water company is a transient, non-community water system.
B. Connection:For purposes of subparagraph (A), a connection to a system that delivers water by a constructed conveyance other than a pipe shall not be considered a connection, if -
1. The water is used exclusively for purposes other than residential uses (consisting of drinking, bathing, and cooking, or other similar uses);
2. the Commissioner determines that alternative water to achieve the equivalent level of public health protection provided by the applicable state primary drinking water regulation is provided for residential or similar uses for drinking and cooking; or
3. The Commissioner determines that the water provided for residential or similar uses for drinking, cooking, and bathing is centrally or treated at the point of entry by the provider, a pass-through entity, or the user to achieve the equivalent level of protection provided by the applicable state primary drinking water regulations.
RAW SOURCE WATER: For the purposes of the Groundwater Rule, this term refers to water drawn directly from a spring, drilled well, or dug well prior to disinfection, filtration, storage or other treatment processes.
RESPONSIBLE CHARGE: The Operator(s) in Responsible Charge is defined as the person(s) designated by the owner to be the licensed operator(s) who makes decisions regarding the daily operational activities of a public water system, water treatment facility and/or distribution system, that will directly impact the quality and/or quantity of drinking water.
REVISED TOTAL COLIFORM RULE: This rule establishes a maximum contaminant level for E. coli and uses total coliform and E. coli to intitiate a "find-and-fix" approach to address fecal contamination that could enter a public water system by requiring public water systems to perform Level 1 and Level 2 Assessments, to identify sanitary defects and take action to correct them. This rule is effective April 1, 2016.
SAMPLE; WATER SAMPLE: An amount of untreated (raw) source water or finished (treated) drinking water that is examined for the presence of a contaminant.
SANITARY DEFECT: A particular condition that could provide a pathway of entry for microbial contamination into the distribution system or that is indicative of a failure or imminent failure in a sanitary or treatment barrier that is already in place.
SANITARY SEAL WELL CAP: A well cap sealed with a gasket between the cap and the well casing. The connection between the well cap and the electrical conduit is tight, to prevent insects or other vermin from entering the well.
SANITARY SURVEY: The Department's on-site inspection of the water source, facilities, and treatment equipment, with a focus on the operation and maintenance of a public water system for the purpose of evaluating the protection of the source; and the adequacy of such source, facilities, equipment, operation and maintenance for producing and distributing safe drinking water. The Department performs sanitary surveys for community public water systems every three years, and for non-community public water systems every five years, except for bottled water facilities (which are performed every three years). Bottled water sanitary surveys entail the inspection of any source water, operations and treatment equipment from the source, leading up to the bottling process.
SEASONAL SYSTEM: A non-community public water system that is not operated as a public water system on a year-round basis and starts up and shuts down at the beginning and end of each operating season.
SECONDARY MAXIMUM CONTAMINANT LEVEL(SMCL): The maximum recommended level of a contaminant in water which is delivered to the free flowing outlet of the ultimate user of the public water system. The SMCLs are non-mandatory limits established as guidelines to assist public water systems in managing their drinking water for aesthetic considerations, such as taste, color and odor. The contaminants with established SMCLs are not considered to present a risk to human health at the SMCL.
SIGNIFICANT DEFICIENCY: Any defect in a system's design, operation, maintenance or administration, as well as any failure or malfunction of any system component, that the State determines to cause, or have the potential to cause, an unacceptable risk to health or that could affect the reliable delivery of safe drinking water.
SPRING WATER: Water derived from an underground formation from which water flows naturally to the surface of the earth. Spring water must comply with the U.S. E.P.A. National Primary and Secondary Drinking Water Standards, 40 C.F.R. § 141-143 and U.S. Food and Drug Administration Regulations at 21 C.F.R. § 165.110(a)(vi). Spring water must be collected only at the spring or through a borehole tapping the underground formation feeding the spring. There must be a natural force causing the water to flow to the surface through a natural orifice. The location of the spring must be identified and such identification must be maintained in the plant's records. Spring water collected with the use of an external force must be from the same underground stratum as the spring, as shown by a measurable hydraulic connection, using a hydrogeologically valid method between the bore hole and the natural spring, and must exhibit all of the physical properties before treatment, and be of the same composition and quality as the water that flows naturally to the surface of the earth. A water chemistry comparison is typically performed by plotting cations and anions for both the spring and borehole on a "Piper Diagram". If spring water is collected with the use of an external force, water must continue to flow naturally to the surface of the earth through the spring's natural orifice. Upon request by regulatory officials, bottled water plants must demonstrate, by using a hydrogeologically valid method, that an appropriate hydraulic connection exists between the natural orifice of the spring and the borehole. Such a demonstration must be submitted by a hydrogeologist certified to perform this type of work in the State of Maine.
SURFACE WATER: All water naturally open to the atmosphere (rivers, lakes, reservoirs, streams, impoundments, seas, estuaries, etc.) and all springs, wells or other collectors which are directly influenced by surface water.
SUPPLIER OF WATER; WATER SUPPLIER; SUPPLIER: Any person who controls, owns, or generally manages a public water system.
SYSTEM: A public water system.
SYSTEM DESIGN CAPACITY: "System Design Capacity" for authorized Community Water Systems withdrawing from surface waters shall be determined by the Department of Health And Human Services as the amount of water that is available for Community Water System purposes expressed as annual withdrawal in total gallons per year taking into consideration actual documented annual withdrawal, and the investments in and limits of the existing system infrastructure, that provides a safe and dependable supply of water for public use. Existing system infrastructure includes water treatment and distribution facilities and other necessary structures that determine how much water can be safely and dependably supplied that is present or in the process of being acquired such as through an investment bond, contractual agreement, or purchase order as of the effective date of 06-096 CMR Chapter 587.
THEORETICAL FLUORIDE CONCENTRATION: The calculated concentration of fluoride ion in a distribution system which includes the theoretical fluoride dose plus the natural fluoride level.
THEORETICAL FLUORIDE DOSE: The calculated dose of fluoride ion added to a drinking water source or supply.
Violation: Noncompliance with state drinking water laws, regulations and rules regardless of whether that noncompliance is intentional, negligent or otherwise.
WATER VENDING MACHINES: Any self-service device located in a retail store, which is a public water system or is served by a public water system, which, upon insertion of coins or tokens, dispenses unit servings of water into a customer's container.
10- 144 C.M.R. ch. 231, § 2