Seasonal Water System Shutdown Guidance
Completing shutdown procedures for seasonal water systems, or those systems that depressurize portions of the distribution, will help you reduce contamination risk and minimize work and time required when you begin operations next season. Shutdown is an opportune time for a thorough examination of the system’s physical components. Repairs can be accomplished without being an imposition on your customers. Recommended steps for seasonal water system shutdown on system inspection, de-pressurizing, and system protection can be found by referring to Seasonal Water System Shutdown Guidance (PDF) (https://www.health.state.mn.us/communities/environment/water/docs/ncom/seasonshutdown.pdf).
Contact your sanitarian or engineer if you have questions about seasonal shutdown procedures.
Before the Freeze, Winterize!
For those hearty souls who operate year-round instead of shutting down, the fall season can still be a good time for the system inspection and applicable protection and maintenance described in the shutdown guidance (including fixing leaks, cleaning, and disinfecting non-pressurized storage tanks, flushing sediment from water heaters, and ensuring wellhead protection is in place for the winter). Here are some additional tips for winterizing your system. The following information is adapted from The Well Owners Network Winter 2022 newsletter.
For inside a building:
* When in doubt drip your faucets - Leave faucets dripping slightly overnight in extremely cold weather. This slight trickle allows constant movement of the water which will prevent freezing. Remember more water is wasted from a leaky pipe than from using this tip! You can still save the water you are dripping...just place a bucket or large pot under the faucet. You can use that water to flush the toilet in a power outage or water plants. CAUTION: If your septic line draining to the tank is prone to freezing, this dripping water must be captured and not allowed to drain.
* Mark and remember where your main shut-off valve is - Knowing where this valve is during a water pipe burst can prevent flooding or water damage. Valves should be exercised (open and closed) periodically to ensure they can function in the case of an emergency.
For outside:
* Protect your pipes - Find out how in the factsheet, Protecting your Pipes and Well System from Freezing (PDF) (https://wellcarehotline.org/download/wellcare_information_sheets/maintaining_your_well_information_sheets/Protecting-Your-Pipes-and-Well-System-from-Freezing.pdf)
* Winterize your irrigation system - For information on winterizing your irrigation system contact your irrigation company and read the factsheet, Winterizing and De-Winterizing your Well (https://wellcarehotline.org/download/wellcare_information_sheets/maintaining_your_well_information_sheets/Winterizing-De-winterizing.pdf)
A few tips from MDH!:
* Know your distribution system - Map, label and document the system. Become familiar with where all the shutoff valves are. Adding additional valves to different lines of a distribution system can aid in maintaining pressure should leaks occur.
* Consider electronic freeze and leak protection sensors - There are a variety of small sensors available to monitor temperature or detect water leaks that are designed to connect with your smartphone, tablet, or computer. Early warning for any problems with your system can prevent pipe bursts or flooding. Sensors can be useful in pumphouses, kitchens, and basements, and could be set up to automatically shut off your main supply when a leak is detected.
* Ensure wellhead protection is in place for the winter - Place posts around the well to protect the wellhead from snowplows and vehicles when covered with snow. Consider adding a fiberglass driveway marker to help with locating the well.
* If heat tape is needed for water lines, be sure all electrical and plumbing codes are followed.
* Be careful if heating a well house - Make sure all electrical codes are followed.
* Drain outdoor taps and blow out lines as needed - Many backflow preventers are not to be removed. Lines with non-removeable backflow preventers must be blown out using an oil-less air compressor.
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Lead and Copper Rule Revision Update
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) (https://www.epa.gov/newsreleases/epa-announces-intent-strengthen-lead-and-copper-regulations-support-proactive-lead announced on December 16, 2021 that Lead and Copper Rule Revisions (LCRR), published at Federal Register, 86 FR 4198 (https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2021/01/15/2020-28691/national-primary-drinking-water-regulations-lead-and-copper-rule-revisions) will go into effect to support development of actions to reduce lead in drinking water.
The LCRR require water systems to complete an inventory of the service lines in their system and report that information. During the annual site visit in 2023, your sanitarian will work with you to inventory your service lines.
A service line is a line that connects a main water supply line outside of the building to the interior plumbing in a building. All nontransient noncommunity water systems (NTNCWSs) must prepare an inventory of ALL service lines (including those not in use). All inventories must be completed by October 16, 2024.
The following material classifications are available:
* Lead Service line - made of lead
* Galvanized Requiring Replacement - Any galvanized service line that is or ever was downstream from a lead gooseneck, pigtail, or connector
* Non-Lead Service line - made of copper, plastic, etc
* Unknown - Service line that cannot be identified through any means available. These lines will be treated as if they were lead
A lead gooseneck, pigtail, or connector is defined as “a short section of piping, typically not exceeding two feet, which can be bent and used for connections between rigid service piping” (40 CFR §141.2).
You can help by reviewing your existing records like construction records, maps, plans, service line installation records, etc. If the existing records don’t provide enough information to make the determination(s), your sanitarian can help you with a visual inspection during the annual site visit.
MDH will work with you on any next steps based on the inventory results for your system. MDH encourages all water systems to proactively consider available funding options to remove any lead service lines. For more information, please see Lead and Copper Rule Revisions - EH: Minnesota Department of Health (state.mn.us) (https://www.health.state.mn.us/communities/environment/water/rules/lcrr.html)
Emergency Wells
An emergency well is one that is never part of the normal use at your facility and is used only in an emergency (e.g., in cases where the primary well unexpectedly goes out). An emergency well is NOT used in periods of high demand and does not serve in a backup capacity.
If the emergency well is put into service, you should contact your sanitarian or compliance officer.
We recommend that you provide consumer notice if the well has not been sampled or if there will be a change in water quality, so consumers are aware. If the well will be in use for an extended period, your sanitarian can sample for nitrate and total coliform. Additional lead and copper sampling during or after emergency well use may be required for nontransient systems.
Your sanitarian can provide a plastic tag with a reminder to contact MDH when an emergency well is put in use. The tag can be attached to a valve or a control panel for the emergency well.
Emergency wells are not scheduled for Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) monitoring. We recommend that you monitor emergency wells for nitrate and total coliform on an annual basis. Your sanitarian can collect an investigative sample for you if the emergency well is exercised during a regularly scheduled annual visit.
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Source Water Protection News
Please join us in welcoming Cynthia (Cindy) Hakala to the Source Water Protection (SWP) Unit of Drinking Water Protection! Cindy began her role as the SWP Small Systems Coordinator in May 2022. Prior to coming to the SWP Unit, Cindy coordinated the MDH Lake Superior Beach Monitoring program where she did field work taking samples at beaches to test for E. coli along with data analysis and planning. Before that, Cindy was a county water planner for Cook County Soil and Water Conservation District.
In her new role, Cindy will use wellhead protection action plans and other tools to help small systems provide safe water to the public. A tool already available is Source Water Protection (SWP) grants. The Clean Water Land and Legacy Amendment has supported SWP grants for public water suppliers in Minnesota since 2010. SWP grants help Noncommunity Water Systems provide safe drinking water Source Water Protection Grants Protect Drinking Water: 2010-2020 (PDF) (https://www.health.state.mn.us/communities/environment/water/docs/ncom/swpprotectdw.pdf) summarizes how Noncommunity public water systems have utilized the SWP Grants program from 2010-2020.
Zion Irving Lutheran Church, located in Kandiyohi County, is an example of a small public water system that benefited from a transient source water protection grant. The old well located five feet from a buried sewer line in a basement offset was replaced with a new well located outside a building to meet current isolation distances of potential contaminants from a water supply well.
Joyce Hedlin, a sanitarian with the noncommunity public water supply unit was quoted as saying ”Providing technical assistance to public water systems as they navigate the grant application process has been a highlight of my career at MDH. Understanding first-hand on a personal level how water quality can impact small businesses has made me realize the importance of SWP Grants. To see how these grants have alleviated some of the financial burden placed on small public water systems as they strive to maintain compliance with SDWA requirements has been very fulfilling. Many small churches would have had to close without the support of a SWP grant. It’s a wonderful program that protects drinking water and produces results for public water supply systems.”
To learn more about Source Water Protection grants, including how to apply, see Source Water Protection Grant Categories: Information for Applicants (https://www.health.state.mn.us/communities/environment/water/swp/grants.html)
Factsheet at a Glance
Noncommunity Public Water System Wellhead Requirements (state.mn.us) (https://www.health.state.mn.us/communities/environment/water/docs/factsheet/wellheadrqmt.pdf)
This MDH factsheet highlights wellhead requirements found in Minnesota Rules, chapter 4725 and offers guidance for uniform and consistent practices. It is intended for those who operate Noncommunity Public Water Systems.
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Operator Certification
Nontransient noncommunity public water supply systems must employ a certified water operator. These systems include schools, daycare facilities, factories, and businesses. Water operators who have questions about their certification status or need to take a water operator exam should reach out to Noel Hansen at 651-201-4690 or mailto:noel.hansen@state.mn.us.
Water Operator and Certification Training (https://www.health.state.mn.us/communities/environment/water/wateroperator/index.htm)
MRWA Training/Resources
Upcoming Training Class E Training (8am – noon):
* November 30, 2022 – Elbow Lake
* December 7, 2022 – Little Falls
* March 8, 2023 – Part of the Annual MRWA Conference in St Cloud
Online Training (10am) – TBD
The Minnesota Rural Water Association (MRWA) is currently working on scheduling additional training workshops for Class D & E small public water systems for January through June 2023. Once these training workshops are scheduled, they will be posted on the training calendar MRWA Training Calendar – Minnesota Rural Water Association (https://www.mrwa.com/training/trainingcalendar/)(https://www.health.state.mn.us/communities/environment/water/wateroperator/index.htm) under the title MRWA Class D & E Small Water Systems Training. MRWA will also mail a flyer with the dates and locations to all certified water operations specialists.
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