Large Building Water Quality Issues Workshop developed by RCAP/AWWA - - PDF document

Developed by AWWA in partnership with RCAP and funded by USEPA, Published 2015

1

Workshop developed by RCAP/AWWA and funded by the USEPA

Large Building Water Quality Issues

Developed by AWWA in partnership with RCAP and funded by USEPA, Published 2015

2

Learning Objectives

As a result of this lesson you will be able to:

• Recognize water quality challenges of premise plumbing

systems in large buildings

• Discuss the difference between water supplier and

building owner responsibilities

• Identify actions you can take from the water supply side

to help mitigate or prevent water quality issues

• Advise building owners on water quality improvement

strategies

Agenda

• Premise plumbing challenges
• Roles and responsibilities
• Regulations and guidelines
• Legionella and premise plumbing
• Lead and premise plumbing
• Communicating with large building owners

Developed by AWWA in partnership with RCAP and funded by USEPA, Published 2015

3

Premise plumbing challenges

Source water

Water treatment facility Distribution system Premise plumbing in large buildings

Safe water  Safe water ?

• Premise plumbing refers to the pipes after the

service connection line all the way to the tap, such as those in hospitals, hotels, schools, and other buildings.

• Premise plumbing environments

commonly host bacteria that thrive and proliferate in these unregulated conditions

What is premise plumbing?

Developed by AWWA in partnership with RCAP and funded by USEPA, Published 2015

4

Large Building Water Quality

• Complex distribution systems (premise

plumbing)

• Water quality can degrade

Complex distribution systems

• Dead ends
• Areas of little use
• Oversized

Decreased water quality due to:

• High water age

– Loss of residuals – Disinfection byproduct (DBP) formation

Developed by AWWA in partnership with RCAP and funded by USEPA, Published 2015

5 Who is responsible for premise plumbing? Water supplier responsibility typically ends at property line

Property boundary Water supplier responsibility Building owner responsibility

Legal responsibility:

– Water supplier responsible to produce/deliver high to the service connection (exception in U.S. is Lead and Copper Rule) – Building owner legally responsible for water quality in premise plumbing

Developed by AWWA in partnership with RCAP and funded by USEPA, Published 2015

6

Responsibilities for Building Owner/Operator if they install treatment

• Water quality management
• Following published standards
• Monitoring and responding to

changes in water quality

Utility and Building Owner Collaboration

• Two way communication

– understand any potential water quality issues before making treatment-related decisions

• Understanding the issue and solutions

helps utilities direct customers to proper resources to solve the problem

Group Discussion

• Public Water System suppliers are not legally

responsible for premise plumbing water quality. So why is it important for premise plumbing

• wner/operators to consult with their water supplier

prior to making treatment-related decisions?

Developed by AWWA in partnership with RCAP and funded by USEPA, Published 2015

7

Regulations and Guidelines Regulations for a water utility

• Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA)

– Regulates contaminants that may cause adverse public health effects

• Surface Water Treatment Rule (SWTR) or

Groundwater Rule (GW)

– Requires water systems to remove pathogens and provide disinfection

Developed by AWWA in partnership with RCAP and funded by USEPA, Published 2015

Guidelines for building management water quality

• American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and

Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) – ASHRAE Standard 188-2015 - Legionellosis: Risk Management for Building Water Systems – ASHRAE Guideline 12-2000 - Minimizing the Risk of Legionellosis Associated with Building Water Systems

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

(CDC) – Developing a Water Management Program to Reduce Legionella Growth and Spread in Buildings

Developed by AWWA in partnership with RCAP and funded by USEPA, Published 2015

8

Guidelines for building management water quality

• Centers for Medicare &

Medicaid Services (CMS)

– CMS mandates water management plans

– Includes hospitals, critical access hospitals, long-term care facilities

When does a building become a Public Water System?

• Definition of a Public Water System:

– “a system for the provision to the public of water for human consumption through pipes or other constructed conveyances if the system has at least 15 service connections or regularly serves at least 25 individuals”

PWS exempt from regulations if they meet all 4 criteria:

– Consists only of distribution and storage facilities and does not have any collection and treatment facilities – Obtains all of its water from, but is not owned or operated by, a regulated public water system – Does not sell water to any person – Is not a carrier which conveys passengers in interstate commerce

• Once building installs treatment system, they are

subject to federal drinking water regulations

Developed by AWWA in partnership with RCAP and funded by USEPA, Published 2015

9

Regulatory Impacts

• The problem lies with management of

water quality once it enters premise plumbing

• Regulations stop at premise –

responsibility of building owner

Knowledge Checkpoint

• A building owner decides to install a

treatment system. What additional control measures should they consider?

Legionella & Premise Plumbing

Developed by AWWA in partnership with RCAP and funded by USEPA, Published 2015

10

Legionella Background

• Most prevalent in aquatic and moist

environments – Occurs in distribution systems and premise plumbing

• L. pneumophila first identified after

1976 pneumonia outbreak at American Legion Convention in Philadelphia

• The genus Legionella includes >50

species, many of which are pathogenic

How Legionella Affects Building Water Systems & People

Legionella in water Transmission (inhalation or aspiration) susceptible host Amplification biofilm, stagnation, temperature, disinfection loss, etc. Aerosolization showers and faucets, cooling towers, etc.

Legionella Health Effects (continued)

• Legionellosis occurs in two forms:

– Legionnaires’ Disease (LD): pneumonia, high fever, respiratory or multi-organ failure, death – Pontiac Fever: fever, muscle aches, mild respiratory infection (flu-like illness)

Developed by AWWA in partnership with RCAP and funded by USEPA, Published 2015

11

Factors within building water systems that promote Legionella growth:

aBiofilms form when microbes stick to surfaces in aqueous environments and excrete a slimy, glue-like substance

that can anchor them to all kinds of material.

• Higher temperature

(95-115°F)

• Stagnation
• Biofilm growtha
• Scale and sediment
• Disinfection loss

Source: CDC

Risk Management Approaches

• Water temperature
• Ensure disinfection residual
• Flushing
• Add treatment systems

Water temperature management

– Temperatures of 95 to 115° F (outside of Legionella’s growth range), are effective – Be aware of scalding risks posed by higher water temperatures – Higher temperatures may impact existing chemical treatment

Developed by AWWA in partnership with RCAP and funded by USEPA, Published 2015

12

Risk Management Summary

• Before making treatment-related decisions, consult:

– public water system to better understand any potential water quality issues – primacy agency about specific requirements

• To help mitigate growth of Legionella:

– Avoid dead ends and stagnation – Control water temperature

Knowledge Checkpoint

• What major factors promote Legionella growth in

building water systems (provide at least two)?

• Where can Legionella grow and/or spread within

building water systems (provide two examples)?

Lead & Premise Plumbing

Developed by AWWA in partnership with RCAP and funded by USEPA, Published 2015

13

Sources of lead in buildings

• Service pipes that contain lead corrode
• Brass or chrome-plated brass faucets

and fixtures with lead solder

Large building plumbing systems

• Water quality parameters

– pH, alkalinity, dissolved inorganic carbon, hardness – Chlorine residual levels, – Presence of corrosion inhibitors

• Materials
• Other conditions

– Temperature, Flow velocity, Electrical current

Factors that impact dissolved lead concentrations

Developed by AWWA in partnership with RCAP and funded by USEPA, Published 2015

14

EPA’s 3Ts for Reducing Lead in Drinking Water in Schools

• Training school
• fficials to raise

awareness of the potential occurrences, causes, and health effects of lead in drinking water.

EPA’s 3Ts for Reducing Lead in Drinking Water in Schools (continued)

• Testing drinking water in schools to identify

potential problems and take corrective actions as necessary.

• Telling students,

parents, staff, and the larger community about monitoring programs, potential risks, the results of testing, and remediation actions.

EPA’s 3Ts for Reducing Lead in Drinking Water in Schools (continued)

Developed by AWWA in partnership with RCAP and funded by USEPA, Published 2015

15

• The utilities responsibilities are:

– Monitoring – Controlling the corrosivity of the water – Public education and outreach – Operation practices to minimize lead – Programs to get the lead out

What can the water supplier do? Knowledge Checkpoint

Your utility and local schools are collaborating to implement EPA’s 3T’s for Reducing Lead in Drinking Water in Schools. Give some examples of how your utility can help follow the 3T’s guidelines to “Train, Test, and Tell” about lead in schools.

Communicating with Large Building Owners

Developed by AWWA in partnership with RCAP and funded by USEPA, Published 2015

16

• Case studies:

– Proctor et al., 2017: temperature strongest factor in Legionella control. In terms of pipe material, when water temperatures were less than 45 °C (105.8 °F), copper pipes supported less L. pneumophila than PEX pipes – Krageschmidt et al., 2014: increase awareness of water quality issues and improve water system management – Cristino et al., 2012: Implement risk assessment‐based water management plans & control measures such as disinfection and environmental monitoring

How to work with large building water quality: case studies (cont.)

• Proactive risk management strategies

– Temperature control – Managing circulation – Flushing and water quality monitoring – Adequate disinfectant levels throughout system

• EPA suggests case‐specific management of premise

plumbing water quality issues

How to work with large building water quality: suggested approaches

• Which customers in your system would

benefit from a discussion on large building water quality and premise plumbing issues?

– How will you begin this discussion? – What will you tell them? – What steps can you suggest they take to prevent

• r mitigate these water quality issues?

Activity: Discussion

Developed by AWWA in partnership with RCAP and funded by USEPA, Published 2015

17

Localization

• Discussion:

− What local conditions

• r factors in your area

has your system had with large building water quality issues?

Summary

• Premise plumbing systems present unique water

quality challenges

– System is controlled by building owner/operators – Premise plumbing not managed by public water system – Public water supplier can advise on water quality improvement strategies