ABSTRACT
In the U.S.A., the Safe Drinking Water Act regulates most underground injection activities. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) Underground Injection and Control (UIC) program, created in 1980 to provide minimum standards, helps harmonize regulatory requirements for underground injection activities. The explicit goal of the UIC program is to protect current and potential sources of public drinking water. The Safe Drinking Water Act expressly prohibits underground injection that “endangers” an underground source of drinking water. Endangerment is defined with reference to national primary drinking water regulations and adverse human health effects. For certain types or “classes” of wells, regulations by the USEPA prohibit injection that causes the movement of any contaminant into an underground source of drinking water.
