AWWA News Release 
What's New 


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
January 10, 2002
CONTACT: Alan Roberson 
202-628-8303

AWWA Reaffirms Its Commitment to Providing Safe Drinking Water for
Consumers 
AWWA Continues to Support EPA Efforts to Reduce Disinfection Byproducts
in Drinking Water 

(Denver, Colorado)- The American Water Works Association (AWWA) today reaffirmed its commitment to work that
is being done to reduce the presence of disinfection byproducts (DBPs) in drinking water. AWWA has been working
collaboratively since 1998 with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), environmental groups and other
stakeholders, including consumer groups, to develop a new regulatory framework for the level of disinfection
byproducts in drinking water through a staged process. Stage 1 Disinfectants and Disinfection Byproducts Rule was
finalized by USEPA in 1998, and AWWA along with a wide cross-section of stakeholders are working together toward
the proposal of a Stage 2 rulemaking. 

"As part of our mission to promote public health through safe drinking water, AWWA and its members continue to
work to reduce disinfection byproduct levels in drinking water through a process that protects the public from both
long and short term health risks," said AWWA Executive Director Jack Hoffbuhr. "Safe drinking water disinfection
remains one of the most significant public health achievements of the last century, and by working collaboratively to
develop new regulatory frameworks we are ensuring that drinking water will remain safe." 

In an earlier press release the USEPA stated that, "USEPA does not endorse all the conclusions in this report. The
data that the EWG provides warrants additional review, possibly peer review, but at this time the data is not
conclusive and may be misleading. USEPA agrees with the EWG on the importance of continued research on the
potential adverse reproductive and developmental health effects from exposure to DBPs. However the studies cited in
the EWG report do not support their argument that there is a link between current levels of exposure to DBPs and an
increased risk of adverse reproductive and developmental health effects." 

"After reviewing the 'Consider the Source' report released yesterday, by the Environmental Working Group and U.S.
Public Interest Research Group (U.S. PIRG), AWWA continues to believe working collaboratively with other groups to
prevent source water contamination and reduce the presence of disinfection byproducts in drinking water is the best
course of action," stated Hoffbuhr.