Water Thought Leadership

UL's drinking water team delivers the widest range of testing and certification services for water product manufacturers and is the most certified laboratory in the U.S. for drinking water analysis.  The following white papers, produced by UL engineers, chemists and other subject matter experts, highlight our broad spectrum of research on the drinking water industry and insights based on science based results. 

Meeting the Requirements of the EPA's Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule 3- NEW!

Since the establishment of the federal Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) more than 35 years ago, the safety of the U.S. drinking water supply has been an ongoing priority for health officials. To continue the protection of drinking water in our changing environment, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) uses peer-reviewed science and collects its own data to understand a number of factors about potential contaminants.

The Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring program is designed to collect data on contaminants that are suspected to be present in drinking water but that are not currently regulated. In support of that data collection effort, the EPA has recently implemented its third Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule (UCMR 3), which will require public water systems (PWSs) to conduct assessment monitoring for the presence of 28 additional chemicals and two viruses during a 12-month period beginning in January 2013. The EPA will use the data from this and prior UCMR assessment phases to determine whether further drinking water regulations are in the interest of public health.

This UL white paper provides a detailed overview of the EPA’s UCMR 3 monitoring program for PWSs.

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An Overview of Regulations for Lead Levels in Drinking Water System Components- NEW!

Since the establishment of the federal Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) more than 35 years ago, the safety of the U.S. drinking water supply has been an ongoing priority for health regulatory officials.  Among the most recent efforts in this area is the passage of the federal Reduction of Lead in Drinking Water Act signed into law by President Barack Obama in January 2011. The new law redefines “lead-free” under the SDWA to further restrict permissible levels of lead in drinking water system components.

While the complete implementation of these recent regulatory changes will play out over the next few years, the trend toward increased regulation of the lead content of drinking water system components is clear. Yet, confusion still exists among manufacturers and distributors regarding federal and state requirements for lead content in drinking water system components, and what steps manufacturers should take to ensure that their products are compliant now and in the future.

This white paper from UL presents an overview of the federal and state requirements governing the lead content in drinking water system components. It also reviews and discusses the standards and testing protocols that currently apply to these products as well as anticipated changes in the current standards. Finally, the paper identifies the likely enforcement mechanisms for lead content regulations and outlines compliance options for manufacturers.

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Hexavalent Chromium in Drinking Water: A Review of Regulations and Testing Procedures - NEW!

This UL white paper provides background on chromium and chromium exposure, specifically, human exposure to chromium-6 in drinking water, and discusses the results of recent studies showing levels of chromium-6 in drinking water greater than California’s initial public health goal of 0.06 µg/L (parts per billion or ppb). The paper reviews current government regulation and oversight of chromium-6, testing procedures and protocols for assessing chromium-6 levels in water, and the minimum laboratory capabilities required for accurate chromium-6 testing. The white paper concludes with recommendations for public water system operators addressing future chromium-6 regulations and testing requirements.

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Pharmaceuticals and Personal Care Products in Drinking Water- NEW!

Scientific advances in pharmaceutical therapies and the growing availability of pharmaceutical drugs has done much to improve the overall health of the world’s population. But the widespread use of pharmaceuticals and other personal care products has increased concerns about concentrations of these substances throughout the water cycle, including surface and ground waters, wastewater, and drinking water. Despite seemingly small concentrations, the presence of pharmaceuticals in drinking water has raised concerns about the potential risks to human health from exposure to water-borne pharmaceuticals.

This UL white paper provides an overview of the issues related to the presence of pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) in drinking water. The paper discusses the possible effects of PPCPs on humans and on the environment and summarizes recent research conducted by U.S. government agencies, UL and others on PPCP concentrations found in public drinking water supplies and wastewater facilities. The white paper also discusses available water treatment options for reducing PPCP concentrations and their relative effectiveness. The paper concludes with areas for further research and a preview of possible future regulatory actions.

Click here to download the full technical white paper.