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

WATER INDUSTRY FEATURES, INSIGHTS, AND ANALYSIS

Drinking Water Contaminated With 'Forever Chemicals' During Pregnancy Linked To An Increased Risk Of Childhood Asthma
While most of us are routinely exposed to low levels of PFAS, some communities are exposed to far higher levels from nearby pollution sources. A new study shows that in one of these at-risk communities, children were more likely to develop asthma if their mothers were exposed to very high PFAS levels during pregnancy.
The Pragmatic Shift In Source Water Protection: Moving From Symptom Management To Root-Cause Accountability A shift in how we approach source water protection is long overdue. Currently, we are trapped in a cycle of escalating costs, forced to treat symptoms like algae and invasive weeds expediently with chemicals while the underlying risk in the reservoir compounds. True risk management requires breaking this cycle.
The AWWA Said $2.4 Trillion. It Missed The Compound Interest. Einstein once said of compound interest, "He who understands it, earns it. He who doesn't, pays it." The same logic of compounding applies to the organic sediment accumulating on the floor of your drinking water reservoir. The longer you wait to address it, the more exponentially expensive it becomes to fix.
Designing Resilient PFAS Treatment Strategies For Water Agencies Water agencies across the U.S. are facing a rapidly evolving regulatory landscape for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) that poses a conundrum: Should they take a cautious or aggressive approach to treating PFAS contamination in their water system?
The Future Of In Situ Chemical Oxidation For Targeted Solvent Destruction
The U.S. EPA’s 2026 trichloroethylene (TCE) compliance deadlines are now forcing a concrete shift toward source-zone destruction. In situ chemical oxidation (ISCO), sequenced with enhanced bioremediation, is proving to be the most credible path to groundwater contaminant rebound mitigation.
When Drinking Water Raises Bigger Questions About Brain Health And Environmental Risk A new study linking certain groundwater sources to higher Parkinson’s risk underscores a broader question for the water sector: how environmental exposures in drinking water may influence long-term health.
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.
Opinion: Why PFAS Policymakers Should Read Past The Abstract When it comes to drinking water, sound public policy requires sound scientific research. Publication in a prestigious, peer-reviewed journal helps establish legitimacy for scientific claims in public discourse. But science is a social process, scientific standards of evidence vary across disciplines, and peer review does not guarantee validity. For readers who stop at the abstract, these distinctions can be easy to miss.
Planting The Seeds Of Inspiration: Eelgrass Restoration
Restoring eelgrass beds is critical because they provide habitat for many kinds of marine life, improve water quality by filtering out pollution, and the plant’s root system stabilizes the sediment on the seafloor, protecting shorelines from erosion.

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Water Reuse: Solutions For Sustainability, Efficiency, And Resilient Water Systems

What is water reuse?

Water reuse is the process of treating and reclaiming water from various sources for practical purposes, including groundwater recharge, industrial applications, wetland restoration, agricultural irrigation, public access area uses, as well as drinking water applications. By reusing water, communities can reduce dependence on traditional water supplies, avoid costly imported water from 3rd party providers, and improve resilience in water systems. Thanks to progress in water treatment technology, along with economic and regulatory incentives, water recycling has become a cost-effective and sustainable solution to meet the growing demand for highly treated water and overcome supply shortages during droughts.

There are three primary types of water reuse: Indirect Potable Reuse (IPR), Direct Potable Reuse (DPR), and Non-Potable. In IPR reuse systems, advanced treated water is either injected into an environmental buffer (groundwater, river, or reservoir) before being extracted again for use, whereas DPR is directly blended into the drinking water treatment plant or distribution system. Non-potable water is not intended for human consumption and can be used for irrigation, industrial processes, laundry, or toilet flushing.

Advanced treatment technologies, such as membrane filtration, reverse osmosis, ultraviolet disinfection, ozonation, and advanced oxidation processes (AOP), play a crucial role in ensuring the quality and safety of reclaimed water.

Why reuse water?

As water scarcity continues to rise, water reuse is an essential strategy for creating a more sustainable future. The use of recycled water reduces the demand for freshwater sources, which are becoming increasingly scarce due to population growth, climate change, and other factors.

Here are some key benefits of water reuse:

Safeguard quality and resilience: Reused water is purified well beyond drinking water standards, improving resilience and ensuring quality for both potable and even non-potable purposes.
Uphold safety: Treatment processes like ozone and ultraviolet light can be used to disinfect or break down complex contaminants, ensuring water is pathogen-free and concentrations are below maximum contaminant levels (MCL).
Ensure cost savings and efficiency: After treating a waste stream to discharge level, it may require less treatment to bring it to reuse standards, making reuse not only environmentally responsible but also cost-effective in many scenarios and locations.
Conserve traditional water supplies: By reusing water, we can lessen our reliance on conventional water resources like rivers, lakes, and aquifers, thereby conserving them for future generations.
Reduce carbon footprint: Water reclamation is often more efficient than treating a raw water resource, which can lessen environmental impact.
Enable versatility and customization: Advanced treatment systems are tailored to meet specific needs for a variety of sectors, including industrial, urban, agricultural, and public access area uses.

How to reuse water

The major aim of every reuse project is to minimize human health risk associated with the use or consumption of reclaimed water. While the exact treatment requirements depend upon the source water quality and the reuse purpose, to be cost-effective, the treatment must be energy efficient and have a high-water yield.

An adequate treatment design plan depends on the application the water will be used in. In non-potable applications, normally filtration and disinfection will suffice, while potable reuse generally requires a combination of advanced treatment processes such as membrane filtration, reverse osmosis, disinfection, and/or advanced oxidation.

Xylem has brands and solutions to fit every stage of the water reuse process:

beginning with the transport of raw sewage and wastewater with Xylem brands like Flygt
to secondary treatment to remove most dissolved and suspended organic matter and nutrients with brands like Sanitaire and Envirex
to tertiary stages that remove residual particulate matter, nutrients, TDS, and nematode eggs with brands like Leopold and Davco
along with disinfection and advanced oxidation that inactivates pathogens, and breaks down trace constituents and emerging contaminants of concern with brands like Wedeco, ETS-UV, ATG UV Systems, Pacific Ozone, and Wallace & Tiernan
and finally, digital solutions like YSI, OI Analytical, Xylem Vue that leverage remote monitoring, alerts, and data analytics for proactive and predictive maintenance

Based on practical knowledge from decades of combined brand experience, thousands of installations worldwide, and strengths in powerful R&D innovation, our team looks at the entire wastewater process at your plant. We will work with your consulting engineer and State regulators to integrate the right technologies to meet your intended targets. Modular design makes it easy to fit your requirements now and easily expand to meet your future needs.

Water reuse partnership

Though Xylem has teams of specialists, years of expertise, deep understanding of water regulations, and a broad solutions portfolio, we understand the complexities of water systems and the potential to partner with various water treatment experts. Xylem has partnered with hundreds of different firms around the globe to ensure the most efficient and viable water systems for communities and municipalities.

Our goal is to thoroughly understand each project, determine the best methods, and customize optimal solutions that meet local regulations and requirements while delivering resiliency, quality, and cost savings.

Let us be your partner in making every drop count. Contact us today to discuss your project needs.

TOC Reduction

NeoTech Aqua Solutions provides the most efficient and cost-effective UV systems for destroying Total Organic Carbons (TOC’s) in water. Whether your destroying NDMA, 1,4-dioxane, TCE, MTBE, urea, endocrine disruptors or other organics, only NeoTech Aqua provides ultraviolet TOC reduction with a treatment chamber optimized for low pressure mercury lamps. As a result, NeoTech Aqua’s UV systems achieve a three times greater TOC reduction per kilowatt compared to standard UV systems, reducing our clients’ costs and energy consumption. In addition to efficiently generating ample 185 nm UV for TOC reduction, NeoTech Aqua’s TOC reduction systems also generate significant levels of 254 nm UV which serve as a powerful disinfectant, providing you both TOC-free and organism-free product water.

SALINO® Pressure Center

In small to medium-sized desalination systems the SALINO® Pressure Center proves that greatness has nothing to do with size. The 4-in-1 technology combines all relevant components needed for pressure boosting and energy recovery in one RO system.

TrojanUVFlex -- Water Reuse & Drinking Water Disinfection System

TrojanUVFlexAOP – Advanced Oxidation System

Meeting the demand for clean water has never been more challenging. Communities around the world are facing a growing water stress – an insufficient supply, in terms of water quality or water quantity – and often both. Many are turning to potable reuse and drinking water remediation to meet these demands. The TrojanUVFlex®AOP can be part of the solution. This UV advanced oxidation system destroys a range of chemical contaminants while simultaneously providing final treatment, helping municipalities relying on lower quality water sources to continue producing high-quality potable drinking water.

DE NORA TETRA DeepBed Tertiary Filtration System

The DE NORA TETRA DeepBed tertiary filtration system is an economical solution for the removal of total suspended solids and total phosphorus.

Aria FAST Mobile Water Treatment

Aria FAST mobile water units deliver the water you need, when and where you need it. Our mobile systems are easily installed and produce highquality water in as little as four hours after utility connections are complete.

VIEWS ON THE LATEST REGS

PFAS regulatory requirement-GettyImages-2220893562

EPA Seeks Court‑Ordered Removal Of 4 PFAS Limits

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.
Clearing LCRI Hurdles

Assessing what lies ahead in the 10-year race to go lead-free, otherwise known as the Lead and Copper Rule Improvements (LCRI).

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Comprehensive Workflow For The Quantification Of Peptides And Proteins

Biologics are transforming medicine, with semaglutide leading the way. Discover how an automated LC-MS/MS workflow enables high-sensitivity quantification of peptides in plasma.
When Granular Activated Carbon Isn't Enough: Optimize Performance With A Multi-Barrier Approach

Learn why GAC alone may fall short in PFAS treatment—and how utilities can future-proof performance with multi-barrier strategies that tackle short-chain compounds, regulatory shifts, and rising operational risks.
Turbidity, What It Is And How It's Successfully Mitigated

This article will clarify the essential aspects of turbidity, how it can affect human health, and how best to measure and mitigate it.
How Digital Twins Help Water Utilities Optimize Network Performance

Rising city populations, high consumption of resources, ageing infrastructure, climate change, complex Water Distribution Systems — these are but a few issues forcing those in city management to rethink their sustainability and efficiency efforts. Underlying each is the question of clean water management, and how water utilities can be empowered to make informed decisions in the face of the issues combined.
How GenAI Is Supercharging Digital Transformation For Rural Water Utilities Across The United States

From streamlining data workflows to preserving decades of field knowledge, utilities of all sizes are demonstrating that GenAI isn’t just a technology trend — it’s a workforce enabler.
Analytics: A Referee For The Tug-Of-War Between MSC-EVs' Nature And Nurture

Like a referee in a contest, advanced analytical methods are essential to mediate the push and pull of different factors influencing therapeutic efficacy.
System Performance Depends On Cleanliness

The Lee Company highlights contamination risks in fluidic systems, offering guidance on detection, prevention, safety screens, and ROB number comparisons to ensure long-term performance and reliability.
Custom Tank Designs That Actively Manage PFAS Mass Transfer Zone (MTZ) — And Why It Matters More Than Ever

As utilities prepare for the pending 4-ppt PFAS drinking water MCL, many are discovering that legacy lead/lag designs—workhorses for decades when treating contaminants in the ppm and ppb range—simply are not optimized for the parts per trillion-level (ppt) precision PFAS demands.
Ensure Safety And Compliance With A Guide To Sterilization Validation

Sterilization validation is vital in pharma and medical device manufacturing to ensure product safety and regulatory compliance. Explore essential principles, best practices, and frameworks for effective implementation.
From Depths To New Heights: Revolutionizing Wastewater Pumping With Above-Ground Technology

Read this article for an overview of key advantages, as well as examples of how communities have achieved cost savings by moving towards above-ground systems.
New Monochloramine Sensor Technology Measures Free Chlorine And Total Chlorine On The Same Sensor

Traditional chloramine monitoring methods have drawbacks that complicate water treatment. A new sensor can measure multiple parameters, offering operators better process control.
Development Of A High Sensitivity SPE-LC-MS/MS Assay

Achieve ultra-sensitive glucagon quantification with ionKey/MS, μElution SPE, and advanced MS fragmentation to deliver low LOD, reduced sample loss, and enhanced confidence in results.
Designing For Harmful Algal Blooms (HABs) In Surface Water Treatment Plants

The Toledo water crisis exposed treatment gaps, highlighting harmful algal blooms as a core design challenge requiring flexible, multi-barrier systems and scenario-based planning.
Measuring Scanning Motion Flatness With AFM

Learn how scanners used for high resolution metrology measurements should be designed and tested for flatness of motion, particularly for atomic force microscopy (AFM).

Identifying Contaminants Of Concern

In this article, we outline the sources, occurrence, known health issues, and mitigation options for specific contaminants.
A True PFAS Solution Is About More Than Removal

Engineers and project managers must take a complete cradle-to-grave approach when considering which technologies to implement as well as which vendors to partner with for their PFAS solution.
Martin County Saves Millions With leadCAST's Automated Workflows And Statistical Analysis To Tackle LCRR

With the LCRR deadline fast approaching and over 59% of its service lines unverified, Martin County recognized the significant work ahead in preparing to meet the LCRR requirements. The county needed to establish a clear strategy for its compliance program, and to support this effort, it needed an engineering consulting partner with extensive expertise in LCRR.
Track Microbial Contamination In Environmental Water

Microbial testing of environmental water demands efficient, contamination‑resistant workflows. Discover a membrane filtration technique that offers rapid, reliable colony isolation.

WATER INDUSTRY FEATURES, INSIGHTS, AND ANALYSIS

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