ABSTRACT
Environmental testing laboratories existed primarily for the purpose of monitoring public drinking water for bacteriological contamination. Drinking water regulations fall into two basic categories: primary and secondary. This chapter provides primary and secondary drinking water standards with maximum contaminant levels (MCLs), established by the Amendments of the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) in 1986. It provides the requirements for drinking water standards with MCLs, detection limits (DLs), and analytical methods. In 1970, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was established. Responsibilities of the EPA include research on the health and environmental impact of a wide range of pollutants as well as development and enforcement of environmental standards for pollutants outside of the workplaces. Individual states began drafting legislation to regulate environmental problems in their own states.
