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Texas Optimization Program (TOP)

Texas Optimization Program (TOP). Environmental Trade Fair May 2014 TCEQ Texas Optimization Program. Kenneth Dykes. Outline of Today’s Talk. Optimization – What is it? Striving for public health protection-historical, risk, & regulatory perspective Texas Optimization Program (TOP):

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Texas Optimization Program (TOP)

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  1. Texas Optimization Program (TOP) Environmental Trade Fair May 2014 TCEQ Texas Optimization Program Kenneth Dykes

  2. Outline of Today’s Talk • Optimization – What is it? • Striving for public health protection-historical, risk, & regulatory perspective • Texas Optimization Program (TOP): • Surface Water Treatment Plant optimization • Groundwater and Distribution System optimization

  3. Optimization Picture of target with arrows in center “Do the very best you can with what you’ve got”

  4. Aren’t regulations enough? • The EPA and TCEQ provide “minimum regulatory standards” • Compliance is the starting point on the road to BEST • Compliance is passing; • Optimization is A+

  5. Why optimize drinking water? • Because of the potentially devastating effect of illness.

  6. What are we trying to optimize? • We are partners in a shared goal: • PROTECTING PUBLIC HEALTH • Optimization (and best practices) accomplish public health protection through • MULTIPLE BARRIERS to pathogens

  7. Why optimize? • We want to do a great job of protecting public health, so we are interested in optimizing barriers to pathogens (and other health risks). • RISKS & BARRIERS: • Source water • Water treatment • Water distribution

  8. Multiple Risks Source Plant  EP  Distribution  Main breaks Poor Design  Distribution Plant Source Entry Points Inadequate Treatment Fecal Contamination  No/Poor Disinfection Cross Connection & backflow  Geological contaminants  SW GW

  9. Optimization means doing the very best we can with what we have. • Focus on operations and maintenance. • Focus on goals and data. • Be effective with existing structures, only invest in capital when it is absolutely necessary.

  10. Yesterday… 100+ years ago

  11. History • The history of optimization is the history of how we learned to keep our drinking water safe. • The need for safe drinking water came before regulations. • If optimization means going beyond the regulations, before 1937, all drinking water safety was optimization.

  12. The Early Years (1915-1937)Education & Persuasion = Optimization • In the early twentieth century… • No Public Health regulations • US Public Health service existed, but just barely • Waterborne disease was rampant • Cholera, Typhoid, etc. • 52,000 pathogenic illnesses in 1915

  13. The Early Years Milestones • 1920 – First Annual Waterworks Short School for Operators and Engineers • 1935 – Social Security Act provided funding for the U.S. and State Health Departments • 1937 – The first rules: Well construction, location, connections

  14. Mission Accomplished? • Was this effort to regulate drinking water worth the trouble? • Did it help public health?

  15. This graph shows the death rate for typhoid fever in the United States from 1900 to 1960. In 1900, the death rate from typhoid fever was about 30 deaths per 100,000 people. In about 1908, water systems started chlorinating to kill pathogens, including typhus. After chlorination started, the incidence of typhoid dropped, to about 8 deaths per 100,000 population in 1920 to about zero in 1948. This graph was provided by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Summary of Notifiable Diseases, 1997.

  16. However … ! • Although typhoid and cholera were essentially eliminated, other waterborne diseases continue to make people ill. For example: • Milwaukee • Georgetown Cryptosporidium

  17. Yesterday and Today… More recent history

  18. EPA’s role • After EPA’s creation in 1970, EPA played a greater role in drinking water regulation and optimization. • EPA established general requirements for all states, in addition to specific regulatory requirements: • Capacity Development • Operator Licensing & training • EPA started helping states to help public water systems optimize.

  19. Relative Risks: Source Water • First, optimization programs focused on systems that used surface water as source water • Surface water is more vulnerable, but wells can also be contaminated

  20. Texas Optimization Program • The Texas Optimization Program (TOP) started in the early 1990s. • Surface water: • Historically, the primary goal of the TOP is to help Surface Water Treatment Plants reduce the turbidity (cloudiness) in treated water. • Turbidity includes pathogens like Cryptosporidium • More recently, risks in distribution and groundwater have received attention.

  21. Texas Optimization Program • Change in focus to ‘outside the fence’ • More recently, risks in distribution and groundwater have received attention. • TOP participated in EPA’s Ground Water Optimization Pilot testing with three Texas systems: • Argyle, Kennedale, and Whitesboro • TOP participated with EPA in the Disinfection Byproducts Performance Based Training

  22. Texas Optimization Program • Tools to help YOU! • Directed Assistance Modules (DAMs) • Free, on-site, technical assistance • Contract currently held by Texas Rural Water Association (TRWA) • Many topics, including • Chloramination • Setting goals • Jar testing • Validating on-line chlorine residual monitors (New!) • Call Stacy Foster at 512-239-3105 to request help!

  23. The future of TOP… Distribution System Optimization “The dirty glass concept” Picture of dirty glass.

  24. Why not stick with surface water plants? • The large number of groundwater systems • Most disease outbreaks occur at groundwater systems • Impact of disease outbreaks can be devastating!

  25. Why optimize ground water and distribution systems? • Wells can be vulnerable, • Especially to viruses. • Distribution systems are vulnerable, • Even if the water is perfect. • If you put clean water in a dirty glass, the water is no longer clean

  26. EPA Multi-Barrier Strategy for Groundwater Systems • Source Water Protection • Treatment • Distribution • Picture of well, chlorinator and distribution system. • .

  27. The TOP optimization process in a nutshell Picture of clean glass of water

  28. Building a New Optimization Process • Set performance goal. • Develop sampling plan. • Determine baseline • Current conditions – track data. • Review data • Identify factors that keep you from meeting the goal. • Act on factors to control process • Address those factors to continuously meet goal. • Repeat as needed. Picture of water plant staff meeting and working in lab.

  29. Building a New Optimization Process • Another way to say that: • Do SPECIAL STUDIES! • Every plant is different! Picture of water plant staff meeting and working in lab.

  30. Take home message

  31. Take Home Message • Optimization means doing the very best you can with what you’ve got. • You are the expert on your system. You can set goals, establish baselines, identify performance-limiting factors, and achieve optimization of your distribution system. • Distribution optimization is important: • Don’t put clean water in a dirty glass.

  32. Take Home Message “Good, better, best. Never let it rest. 'Til your good is better and your better is best.” --St. Jerome

  33. THANKS! THANKS!

  34. Contact Information Kenneth.Dykes @tceq.texas.gov • (512) 239-4753

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