Should Water Sector Utilities Be Regulated As Chemical Facilities?
James K. Sullivan The Clean Water Act and Safe Drinking Water Act, generally regarded as two of the most successful environmental laws in a generation, impose strict requirements on water and wastewater utilities through regulations established by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Now, legislation is moving through the U.S. Congress that, if enacted, would impose additional regulations on water-sector utilities — similar to those currently in place for chemical facilities — with standards established by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Following the events of 9/11, the U.S. government focused on securing “critical infrastructures” from terrorist threats. The water and chemical sectors are two of 18 critical infrastructures outlined in the National Infrastructure Protection Plan (NIPP), which provides a unifying structure for a voluntarypartnership between the government and private sector in protecting U.S. assets. As with the water sector, the chemical sec
