Phoenix to pay high drinking water fines

SAN FRANCISCO - The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 9 has imposed the stiffest fines in Arizona state history against the city of Phoenix.

The fines total more than $1.6 million and were levied against the city for consistently failing to comply with state and federal regulations on drinking water monitoring and reporting between 1993 and 1996, according to EPA officials.

The city has agreed to pay the federal government and the state of Arizona $175,000 each. The fines also call for the city to fund and implement two clean water projects, costing $1.26 million.

In conjunction with Arizona State University, city officials will have to
develop strategies and measures to address taste and odor problems in the drinking water. City water officials will also conduct a study to determine whether methyl tertiary-butyl ether (MTBE) and ammonium perchlorate are present in various water sources under different environmental conditions.

The Arizona Department of Environmental Quality, the Arizona Attorney General's Office and the US Department of Justice worked with the EPA in documenting the violations and negotiating a resolution to the matter.

Under the federal Safe Drinking Water Act, water providers are required to submit regular reports that measure for 90 separate contaminants. Failure to meet these requirements can result in contaminants and waterborne pathogens such as Cryptosporidium entering a water supply system undetected and endangering public health.

For more information, please contact R/O CONN at (602) 432-5402 or fax (602) 942-1451. Or you can E-mail us at roinfo@roconn.com.

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