Early Implementation of the Safe Drinking Water Act

Challenges faced in starting up the program, especially in standard-setting.

Audio Track - Chapter 2 - 21 minutes

In this chapter the panelists discuss the challenges that they faced in starting up a large program of which much was expected, especially in the area of standard-setting.

THE INDIVIDUAL CHAPTERS

The individual "chapters" of the discussion are available for viewing individually as is the complete interview (88 minutes).

Chapter 1: Major Elements of the Legislation and their Historical Context (33 minutes)

In this chapter the panelists discuss the context for the passage of the legislation and the major components of the program.

Chapter 2: The Scientific, Technical and Political Challenges (21 minutes)

Challenges faced in starting up the program, especially in standard-setting.

Chapter 3: Implementation (Standards, Regions, and States) (18 minutes)

 How Headquarters, Regions, and States worked together.

Chapter 4: Factors that Led to Successes and some Lessons Learned (17 minutes)

 Panelists reflect back on success and posit some lessons learned.

THE INTERVIEW AS A WHOLE (88 minutes)

Six former leaders of the Drinking Water Program discuss the first 10 years of implementation of the Safe Drinking Water Act of 1974, the challenges, and the lessons learned.

The introduction to the interview is as follows:

Six former senior leaders in the Public Water Supply Program of EPA got together in 2013 from around the country and pooled their memories and "lessons learned" from the 10 years of the implementation of the Safe Drinking Water Act of 1974. They developed this panel discussion to convey this history and lessons learned for current viewers. The six panelists are Vic Kimm, Joe Cotruvo, Jack Hoffbuhr, John Wise, Alan Levin, and Arden Calvert.

The goals in this video are fourfold: First, to set the historical context in which the program was launched and outline the major elements of this historic legislation. Second, describe the scientific, technical, and political challenges the Agency faced. Third, recount how we undertook to implement the new program. And fourth, with the benefit of hindsight, identify the factors that we believe contributed to our successes in implementing the Federal Drinking Water Program. It is our hope that some of the lessons learned through our experiences may be of interest to historians and useful to future managers of environmental programs.

Four of the participants in this video also write a journal article on this same topic that was published in the Journal of the American Water Works Association.  Copies are available from our Association. Just send an email to EPAalumni@aol.com

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