NSF Intl. announced that the revised California Waterworks Standards, effective March 9, 2008, will now formally require certification for all drinking water treatment and distribution products used by public water systems.
The Waterworks Standards provide criteria in the design, construction and operation of public water systems. NSF/ANSI Standard 60: Drinking Water Treatment Chemicals—Health Effects includes requirements for chemicals that are used to treat drinking water, while NSF/ANSI Standard 61: Drinking Water System Components—Health Effects includes requirements for all devices, components and materials that come in contact with drinking water.
NSF/ANSI Standard 60
Certification of products to NSF/ANSI Standard 60 has been required in the California Waterworks Standards since 1994. The new regulations will now also require all treatment chemicals to be tested on an annual basis by an ANSI-accredited certification organization.
Forty-five states require chemicals to comply with NSF 60 requirements, and 40 states require chemicals to be tested and certified by an ANSI-accredited organization. California, however, is the first state to require that chemicals be tested on an annual basis.
According to Dave Purkiss, general manager of NSF's Standards 60 and 61 Certification Program, “These regulations were added when it was announced that an accredited certifier required retesting of certified chemicals only once every five years, a lag period considered too long by public health norms. The new requirement for annual inspections and annual testing of treatment chemicals to NSF/ANSI Standard 60 is a vital step in protecting public health.”
“NSF has always conducted annual testing, but we are aware of other certification organizations that do not,” Purkiss said.
NSF/ANSI Standard 61
Certification of drinking water treatment and distribution equipment to NSF/ANSI Standard 61 has been specified by many water utilities in California for several years; however, the standard was not formally required in state regulations. The new edition of the California Waterworks Standards requires treatment and distribution equipment to be certified to NSF/ANSI Standard 61 by an ANSI-accredited organization. The state plumbing code has required that plumbing products be certified to NSF/ANSI 61 for several years.
