[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 72 (Tuesday, April 15, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 18348-18349]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-9694]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-5811-8]


EPA's National Drinking Water Contaminant Occurrence Data Base

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Action: Announcement of a stakeholder meeting on the National Drinking 
Water Contaminant Occurrence Data Base.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has scheduled a 
two-day public meeting on EPA's development of a National Drinking 
Water Contaminant Occurrence Data Base. The purpose of this meeting is 
to have a dialogue with stakeholders and the public at large on the 
process of assembling and maintaining a national drinking water 
contaminant occurrence data base. In recent months, EPA has been 
working on a Conceptual Approach for the National Drinking Water 
Contaminant Occurrence Data Base. At the upcoming meeting, EPA is 
seeking input from key national, State, individual stakeholders and 
other interested parties concerning the development and maintenance of 
the national drinking water contaminant occurrence data base, including 
such issues as the structure and design of the data base, data input 
parameters and requirements, and the use and interpretation of data. 
EPA encourages the full participation of stakeholders throughout this 
process.

DATES: The stakeholder meeting on the National Drinking Water 
Contaminant Occurrence Data Base will be held on May 21-22, 1997 from 
1:00-5:00 p.m. EST on May 21 and 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. EST on May 22.

ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held in the Large Conference Room 6228 
at USEPA Ariel Rios, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 
20044. For additional information, please contact the Safe Drinking 
Water Hotline, at phone: (800) 426-4791, fax: (703) 285-1101, or by e-
mail at [email protected]. Members of the public wishing to 
attend the meeting may register by phone by contacting the Safe 
Drinking Water Hotline by May 5, 1997. Those registered for the meeting 
will receive background materials prior to the meeting.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For general information about the 
meeting logistics, please contact the Safe Drinking Water Hotline, at 
phone: (800) 426-4791, fax: (703) 285-1101, or by e-mail at: hotline-
[email protected]. For other information on the National Drinking 
Water Contaminant Occurrence Data Base please contact Charles Job, at 
the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Phone: 202-260-7084, Fax: 
202-260-3762.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

A. Background

    Background on the National Drinking Water Contaminant Occurrence 
Data Base
    The SDWA, as amended in 1996, states that: Not later than three 
years after the date of enactment of the Safe Drinking Water Act 
Amendments of 1996, the Administrator shall assemble and maintain a 
national drinking water contaminant occurrence data base using 
information on the occurrence of both regulated and unregulated 
contaminants in public water systems obtained under section 
1445(a)(1)(A) or section 1445(a)(2) and reliable information from other 
public and private sources. The National Drinking Water Contaminant 
Occurrence Data Base is required to be developed and maintained by 
August 1, 1999.

B. Request for Stakeholder Involvement

    The upcoming meeting deals specifically with EPA's efforts to 
develop the National Drinking Water Contaminant Occurrence Data Base. 
EPA's goal is to use the data to support ongoing evaluations of 
currently regulated contaminants as well as in making determinations of 
which contaminants to regulate in the future under section 1412(b)(1) 
with respect to the occurrence of a contaminant in drinking water at a 
level of public health concern. The National Contaminant Occurrence 
Data Base will be considered in the listing of contaminants on the 
Drinking Water Contaminant Candidate List which will be used as a first 
step in identifying contaminants to regulate. The prioritization of 
contaminants for drinking water regulation (and for development of 
health advisories, research or monitoring efforts) would ensure that 
EPA uses its limited resources in an efficient manner. The data base 
will be used to assist in establishing these priorities.
    The meeting will be divided into two parts. On May 21, an overview 
of the conceptual approach and data bases which may contribute data to 
the National Occurrence Data Base will be presented. This time will 
also be used for stakeholder comments. On May 22, a structured 
technical session is planned to elicit responses on specific interest 
in data base design and structure, data input and requirements,

[[Page 18349]]

and use and interpretation; as well as which contaminants should be 
included in the data base.
    EPA is working on a Conceptual Approach for the National Drinking 
Water Contaminant Occurrence Data Base. This approach considers factors 
such as what data are needed in the data base, how is the database 
going to be used, what information is available for the database, how 
can databases be merged, and how to address data uncertainty with 
quality assurance and quality control. Both chemical contaminants and 
microbes will be considered in the National Drinking Water Contaminant 
Occurrence Data Base development process. Background material on the 
Conceptual Approach and the process to develop and implement the 
National Drinking Water Contaminant Occurrence Data Base will be sent 
to all registered participants in advance of the meeting. The specific 
issues for discussion at the meeting will be based on this material and 
will include (but may not be limited to) the following:
    1. What type of information does the National Occurrence Data Base 
have to contain for EPA to make determinations on what contaminants 
need further action?
    2. What standard methodologies/analytical techniques and units of 
measure will be acceptable to populate the National Occurrence Data 
Base?
    3. What should be the quality assurance/quality control procedures 
for accepting data into the National Occurrence Data Base and for 
determining its usefulness for a specific end-use?
    4. What should be the criteria for accepting data from external and 
internal data sources? What type of data should be required for data 
quality? Should there be different levels of data quality for different 
uses?
    5. What are the sources of data that can be used to populate the 
National Occurrence Data Base and are they available in a form that can 
be used by the EPA and be accessible to the public?
    6. How should linkages to other databases be accommodated?
    7. Are there certain data fields that EPA should structure its 
query functions around?
    8. In what forms should the data in the National Occurrence Data 
Base be made readily accessible to the public?
    9. In making the National Occurrence Data Base publicly accessible 
should the information be available electronically? What kind of user 
interface is important?
    10. Should the National Occurrence Data Base information be able to 
be graphically displayed?
    11. What data does your organization possess that is relevant to 
the National Occurrence Data Base?
    12. What specific data fields should be included in the National 
Occurrence Data Base?
    13. What historical data should be included in the data base?
    EPA has convened this public meeting to hear the views of 
stakeholders on the Conceptual Approach, concerning the development and 
maintenance of a National Drinking Water Contaminant Occurrence Data 
Base. The public is invited to provide comments on the issues listed 
above or other issues related to the National Drinking Water 
Contaminant Occurrence Data Base during the May 21-22, 1997 meeting.

    Dated: March 25, 1997.
Cynthia Dougherty,
Director, Office of Ground Water and Drinking Water.
[FR Doc. 97-9694 Filed 4-14-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P