City Council
Report
City Council Meeting: October 11, 2022
Agenda Item: 12.A
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To: Mayor and City Council
From: Rick Valte, Public Works Director, Public Works, Water Resources Subject: Approval of 2022 Report on Water Quality and Public Health Goals Recommended Action
Staff recommends that the City Council:
1. Hold a public hearing, receive public comments, and approve the attached 2022 City of Santa Monica Water Quality Report Relative to the Public Health Goals.
2. Adopt the determination that the City’s 2022 Water Quality Report Relative to the Public Health Goals is exempt from review pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines Section 15061 (b) and pursuant to categorical exemption under Section 15308.
Summary
The City of Santa Monica Department of Public Works – Water Resources Division delivers high-quality drinking water to over 93,000 residents as well as businesses and visitors throughout the City. The City’s drinking water supply complies with all Federal and State drinking water standards. Provisions of the California Health and Safety Code section 116470 require public water systems to prepare a report every three years that includes information on the detection of any elements in the water at levels above Public Health Goals (PHGs) or the equivalent Maximum Contaminant Level Goals (MCLGs). PHGs are adopted by the State Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment and MCLGs are set by the EPA. A public hearing is required to accept and respond to public comments on the report. Staff has prepared the attached 2022 Water Quality Report Relative to the Public Health Goals (Attachment A) to provide information on the water quality of the City’s drinking water supply relative to adopted PHGs and MCLGs. Staff has also prepared a brief summary of the report (Attachment B). 2 of 4
Discussion
The City’s water quality complies with all of the health-based drinking water standards established by the California State Water Resources Control Board – Division of Drinking Water and the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
With advances in technology, the water industry can leverage ever-more sophisticated testing procedures to detect the presence of chemicals in water at levels of parts per billion (or roughly the equivalent of a single drop of water in an Olympic size swimming pool). While the presence of any level of contaminants may be concerning to the public, State and Federal health standards for drinking water are based on widely-accepted medical science data. The water quality of the City’s drinking water supply is monitored 24/7 across the water system and over 10,000 tests are conducted annually to ensure its quality and safety.
California’s State Water Resource Control Board/Division of Drinking Water and the EPA are responsible for setting regulations and drinking water standards. Drinking water goals include PHGs and MCLGs. PHGs are set by the State Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment and they are the recommended target levels.
MCLGs are set by EPA and are the levels of contaminants in drinking water below which there is no known or expected risk to public health. Both PHGs and MCLGs are not water quality standards and they are not required to be met by any public water system. PHGs and MCLGs are goals identifying extremely small risks. These risks, when normally assessed, pertain to one in one million persons drinking the water over a seventy-year period who may be at risk to a contaminant based on assumptions and theoretical extrapolations available.
Drinking water standards are referenced as Maximum Contaminant Levels (MCLs) and Notification Levels (NLs). MCLs are the highest level of a contaminant allowed in drinking water. They are set as closely to PHGs and MCLGs as economically and technically feasible. MCLs are enforceable water quality standards that public water 3 of 4
systems must meet. NLs are the concentrations of a contaminant which, if exceeded, triggers treatment or other requirements that public water systems must comply with.
The City’s water quality complies with all of the health-based drinking water standards established by the California State Water Resources Control Board – Division of Drinking Water and the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
The 2022 Water Quality Report Relative to the Public Health Goals (Attachment A) has been prepared pursuant to the requirements of the State Health and Safety Code. The report assesses the quality of the City’s groundwater and imported water supplies against PHGs and MCLGs. Trace substances in the City’s water supply are all below the applicable drinking water MCLs required by state and federal regulatory agencies for a safe and high-quality drinking water supply (please refer to Attachment C for the City’s latest annual water quality report). No additional actions are recommended for the treatment of the City’s potable water supply. Copies of the report are available for public review at the City Clerk’s office, the Water Resources Division office, the Main Library, and online at https://bit.ly/3JUvNhx. A public notice advising of the availability of the report was published in the Santa Monica Daily Press on July 7th, 2022.
Environmental Review
The City of Santa Monica Report on Water Quality Relative to Public Health Goals is categorically exempt from the California Water Quality Act (CEQA), pursuant to guidelines under Section 15061 (b), as a Class 8 exemption (Section 15308 of the CEQA Guidelines), actions by regulatory agencies for the protection of the environment.
Financial Impacts and Budget Actions
There is no immediate financial impact or budget action necessary as a result of recommended action.
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Prepared By: Sunny Wang, Water Resources Manager
Approved Forwarded to Council
Attachments:
A. Attachment A - 2022 Water Quality Report Relative to the Public Health Goals B. Attachment B - 2022 Water Quality Report Summary
C. Attachment C - 2022 Water Quality Report
D. PowerPoint Presentation