ABSTRACT
Radon contamination of drinking water primarily affects individual homeowners and small communities using groundwater supplies. Larger municipalities generally are unaffected because they use surface water. Treatment alternatives must be included as part of the maximum contaminant level (MCL) regulation for radon in drinking water, which is expected to be published by the U.S. EPA in 1991. If the MCL is set in the range 200-10,000 pCi/L, the majority of small community public water supplies will only require minor treatment. However, hundreds of small communities will need treatment systems operating at greater than 900Jo removal efficiency. In addition, capital and operational and maintenance costs for the treatment alternatives chosen must be economical because most of the communities that will be affected by the MCL have a very small financial base.
