Latest news, insights, and discussion on US and global drinking water regulations.

WATER INDUSTRY FEATURES, INSIGHTS, AND ANALYSIS

PFAS Funding Is Flowing — But Does The Water Sector Have Enough People To Deliver It?
For several years, the PFAS conversation has centered on treatment options, testing, and funding. Those factors still matter, but they are no longer the primary constraint. Most utilities already understand the treatment routes available to them; the real challenge now is moving from technical possibility to operational performance, and that depends entirely on people.
The Cost Of Waiting: Utilities Face A Narrowing PFAS Compliance Window
For years, the water industry's PFAS conversation centered on monitoring, testing, and regulatory anticipation. Today, that phase is largely over.
D.C. Circuit Upholds EPA's Hazardous Substance Designation For PFOA, PFOS
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit recently rejected industry challenges to the EPA's designation of PFOA and PFOS as hazardous substances under CERCLA, leaving the agency's April 2024 rule fully intact. While the case centered on the EPA's authority to make the designation, its practical significance for water utilities is simpler: the liability concerns that have accompanied the rule since its adoption remain unresolved.
How Donner Summit PUD Cut Backwash Water Use By 45% With Ultrasonic Algae Control
Recurring algal blooms severely compromise water treatment efficiency, clogging filters and wasting finished water through frequent backwashing. Targeted ultrasonic suppression controls raw water algae growth at the source, significantly improving influent turbidity and lowering operational costs.
SRP-Funded Technology Provides Affordable PFAS Testing For Homeowners
Widespread chemical contamination leaves many small water systems without viable testing options.Discover how an innovative, plant-based extraction method delivers affordable, highly accurate screening to identify complex contaminants and protect public health.
The Enzyme Bottleneck: Why Conventional Lake Management Is Failing — And What The Science Says About Genuine Bio-Dredging For decades, the dominant framework for assessing and managing lake health has been built around surface water measurements: chlorophyll-a, total phosphorus, water clarity, and the composite Trophic State Index derived from them. These metrics are familiar, standardized, and widely accepted. They are also, according to a growing body of peer-reviewed literature, measuring the wrong part of the lake.
Ozone Off-Gas: What It Reveals About System Efficiency, Safety, and Design
Learn how ozone off-gas impacts system efficiency, safety, and performance, and why monitoring and management are critical for optimized water treatment operations.
UK Reservoirs, Water Shortages, And Legionella Risks Is there a clear link between a less plentiful water supply and an increase in Legionella in our domestic water systems?
The Devastating Legacy Of Algaecides: Why The Quick Fix Is Failing Our Lakes As warmer months approach, water management professionals must confront the compounding consequences of biocidal algae treatments.
What Is The Future Of Source Water Protection? Water utility managers and municipal leaders have long struggled amid the convergence of several threats to public water supplies. During a recent Water Online Live event, I sat with a panel of industry experts to examine the transition from reactive crisis management to a proactive, adaptive resilience framework.

DRINKING WATER PRODUCTS

Desalination Of Sea Water

Desalination is the name given to processes that remove salt from water

NIROBOX™ FW

One Nirobox FW unit can transform freshwater sources to drinking water or industrial process water.

SuperDisc™ Disc Filter

WesTech’s SuperDisc™ Disc Filter from Nordic Water is a Title 22 approved inside-out disc filter.The SuperDisc provides easy access for maintenance and has an efficient high pressure cleaning system. The small footprint and low head required for the filter provides an excellent option for tertiary retrofits, such as travelling bridge sand filters. The SuperDisc can produce reuse-quality effluent and total effluent phosphorus concentrations of less than 0.1 mg/L. Other applications include primary and secondary treatment, as well as a wide range of industrial applications. The SuperDisc filter is available as a freestanding unit with filter discs contained in a stainless steel tank and a version for installation in a concrete basin.

MECTAN® Induced Vortex Grit Chamber

Grit is a source of problems in wastewater treatment facilities, which causes wear and tear on mechanical equipment, decreases the effective treatment volume in basins, causes pipe blockages and generally increases operating costs.

EPRO™ LMF Reverse Osmosis Systems

EPRO™ LMF Series are engineered our from the ground up to provide maximum treatment efficiency in a compact, skidded package. This series of RO systems removes impurities, such as bacteria and dissolved solids, from source water, including brackish water. Available configurations deliver permeate flow rates of 21 to 60 GPM (30,000 to 86,400 GPD) to address the diverse requirements of light industrial applications and commercial users.

Turbidity Filtration: Turbidity Filtration Using Alum

Electromedia® V effectively filters turbid waters at 10 g.p.m. per sq. ft. to produce treated waters having turbidities less than 0.2 NTU

VIEWS ON THE LATEST REGS

PFAS Label on hundred dollar bill-GettyImages-2193126716

The Cost Of Waiting: Utilities Face A Narrowing PFAS Compliance Window

EPA Seeks Court‑Ordered Removal Of 4 PFAS Limits

The U.S. EPA is testing a new procedural strategy to remove four PFAS drinking‑water limits from ongoing litigation, asking the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals to invalidate those limits on the grounds that the EPA itself committed a procedural misstep when issuing the 2024 PFAS rule.
Putting The National Toxicology Program's Fluoride Review In Context

Despite renewed public concern over fluoride and cognition, the National Toxicology Program’s findings focus on high‑fluoride groundwater conditions — not the controlled levels used in U.S. drinking water systems. Understanding that distinction is critical for utilities navigating policy questions and community expectations.
HAAs In The EU: Monitoring For Haloacetic Acids Under The Drinking Water Directive

In this Q&A, Dr. Elke Süss of Metrohm addresses the urgent need for haloacetic acid testing in response to “one of the most significant updates to EU drinking water monitoring in recent years.”
PFAS Unpacked: Experts Answer Questions On EPA Rules, Funding, Treatment, And More

With the U.S. EPA's PFAS rules now in place, utilities are finding themselves with a growing number of questions regarding how to treat these chemicals, the potential costs, and much more. For answers, Water Online's chief editor, Kevin Westerling, hosted an Ask Me Anything session featuring Ken Sansone, Senior Partner at SL Environmental Law Group; Kyle Thompson, National PFAS Lead at Carollo Engineers; and Lauren Weinrich, Principal Scientist at American Water.
Monitoring Know-How For PFAS Regulations

A Q&A to explain and resolve issues confronting water suppliers as they endeavor to comply with the monitoring requirements of federal PFAS regulations.

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Keep Your Cool: The Importance Of Advanced Side Stream Filtration In Data Center Operation

Advanced side stream filtration protects sensitive cooling infrastructure in data centers, extending membrane life, reducing water and energy use, and preventing costly downtime caused by particulate-loaded cooling water.
Overcoming Scale-Up Challenges In iPSC Production: A Joint Investigation

Discover how new processing methods tackle challenges in large-scale stem cell production and how automated, low-shear processing maintains cell health and pluripotency across production scales.
Ozone Contactors: The Engineering Variable That Determines Oxidation Success

Ozone system performance hinges on reactor design, not generator size. Efficient mass transfer, hydraulic integrity, and contact time ensure consistent oxidation, reduced energy use, and reliable treatment results.
Robust Database Characterizes And Optimizes Product Development

Integrating material characterization data with process parameters accelerates drug development, reduces empirical testing, and strengthens regulatory compliance.
Why Has Ion Exchange Become The PFAS Treatment Of Choice?

Regulated PFAS limits necessitate efficient, long-term treatment strategies. Ion exchange technology offers a high-capacity, small-footprint solution that outperforms traditional media. Learn how selective resins provide a cost-effective path to compliance and simplified utility operations.
Identifying Contaminants Of Concern

In this article, we outline the sources, occurrence, known health issues, and mitigation options for specific contaminants.
900 Series Chemical Process Control Case Studies

Learn how ECI consultants radically reduced costs and wastes while improving working conditions and ensuring compliance using 900 Series Monitor/Controllers.
The Role Of Ozone In Municipal Water Treatment

Discover why ozone, a powerful oxidant and sanitizer, has become a leading solution for addressing water quality challenges.
PPD Filters: Pleated Polypropylene Depth Media

Increase process efficiency using high-capacity depth filtration to remove contaminants, protect downstream filters, and extend filter life for more consistent results.
Chlorine Sensors Waste An Estimated 6.1 Billion Gallons Of Non-Revenue Water Every Year

Chlorine sensor waste streams cause massive water loss and costs. The Halogen MP-5 sensor eliminates waste, reduces maintenance, and improves efficiency—offering a breakthrough in sustainable water monitoring.
The Active Control Program For Advanced UV Oxidation

This application note will explore how active control programs lower operational costs of compliant contaminant removal.
Covalent Warhead Reactivity: A New Look At GSH Reactivity Assays

Understanding covalent warhead kinetics is key to reducing safety risks early in discovery. Learn about a new approach to GSH‑based measurements that offers clearer predictors of toxicity.
To 10X & Beyond, AgentV™-DSP Arrives Ready To Rock

Filter fouling has limited exosome therapeutic scalability—until now. Explore how a breakthrough reagent achieves 50% particle recovery versus 5% traditionally, enabling affordable clinical manufacturing.
Protecting Communities With Calgon Carbon's AquaKnight™ Technology

Calgon Carbon’s AquaKnight GC systems are designed from the top down to improve flow, adsorption, and media life.

Ozone Formulas And Conversions

Learn key ozone formulas, unit conversions, and measurement standards to accurately calculate generator output, concentration, and dosage for effective system design, performance verification, and safe operation.
Increase Throughput For Intact Mass Confirmation And Impurity Screening

Accelerate intact mass analysis of GLP-1 analogues with automated purity calculations, sub-ppm mass accuracy, and impurity detection for consistent results in under one minute per sample.
How Fresno Turned An Inherited LCRI Backlog Into A Model Compliance Program

How one utility turned a backlog they didn't create into a program they're proud of.
Hunting An Unexpected mAb Variant With LC‑MS

A tailored LC–MS approach enables sensitive detection and tracking of monoclonal antibody variants, supporting deeper product characterization and better control of quality‑impacting changes.

WATER INDUSTRY FEATURES, INSIGHTS, AND ANALYSIS

DRINKING WATER PRODUCTS

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