November 2008
UCMR Updates are information sheets issued by the Technical Support Center of OGWDW. They are issued as needed to disseminate information to utilities and laboratories participating in the Unregulated Contaminants Monitoring Rule monitoring and data reporting.
Issue 11
In PDF Format (7 pp, 736K)
EPA 815-N-08-001a
November 2008-11-03
Maria Tomashot and Jillian Hutson, Editors
O.R.I.S.E. Fellows
Technical Support Center
UCMR Update Issue Number 11-Issued by the Technical Support Center (TSC) of the Office of Ground Water and Drinking Water (OGWDW). Future Updates will be distributed as needed to maintain the flow of Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Regulation (UCMR) information.
What’s in Your Toolbox?
Toolbox Contents
Editor’s Notes
As the next generation of interns in the great circle of Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Regulation (UCMR) life, Jillian and I are continuing the tradition of entertaining and informative Updates. We are following in the innovative footsteps of our predecessor, Brenda Parris, who is working with new tools on the UCMR team.
While moving into our cubicles, we have had more than a few instances of poking ourselves with pins and dropping heavy objects on our toes. We spent a lot of time searching for the perfect hammer or screwdriver for all those projects we have come across.
Luckily, the answers to all of your UCMR2 questions can be found in your toolbox. In this edition of The UCMR Update, we gathered the most important resources available for UCMR2. Find out more about the tools in your toolbox and where to find them in this issue!
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Reminders to nail to the wall
Reporting monitoring results
Entity |
Action |
EPA Approved Laboratories |
Must post monitoring results to SDWARS within 120 days from sample collection |
Large Public Water Systems (serving over 10,000) |
Must review and approve data using SDWARS within 60 days of the Laboratory posting your results |
Small Public Water Systems |
Paper reports are sent from EPA directly to small PWSs and States. No action is required by the small PWS. |
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Drilling to the core of UCMR2
Now that UCMR2 implementation is in full swing, the tools needed for compliance are more important than ever. This issue of The Update outlines the resources available and where they are located. Some basic tools are listed here:
SDWARS: The Safe Drinking Water Accession and Review System (SDWARS) provides valuable functions for large PWSs, Labs, States, and Regions. SDWARS is an indispensible tool that is a great place to start nailing down answers to important questions!
The UCMR2 Web site: The Web site is the best resource for those who have questions about any aspect of UCMR2. Need the final list of EPA approved Labs? Need a fact sheet about List 1 or List 2 monitoring? Answers to the above questions, and tons of other information, can be found at the UCMR2 homepage.
Friendly support staff: Have questions that no other tool can answer? Get the fix you need by contacting the UCMR Sampling Coordinator.
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UCMR2 tools crossword challenge!
Test your knowledge of UCMR2 by completing the UCMR2 crossword challenge. Read about the UCMR2 tools in this issue of The Update and see if you can fill in the blanks!
Across
1 Link on the UCMR2 Web site to find the UCMR Reference Guide
4 Labs can view and edit their ____ list in SDWARS
6 List 1 monitoring
9 Acronym for the Central Data Exchange, where SDWARS is accessed
10 Maximum number of contaminants UCMR can monitor every five years
Down
2 Largest population served by a small public water system
3 List 2 monitoring
5 Acronym for the Safe Drinking Water Accession and Review System
7 Small PWS reports are sent to the PWS and ____.
8 E-mail notifications ____ link allows States and Regions to keep track of notices sent to PWSs
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Cutting out the details for PWSs
PWSs are off and running (without scissors)! They are doing a great job with their sampling schedules. As a reminder, surface water sites and sites using ground water under the direct influence of surface water sample quarterly, 3 months apart, within a 12-month period. Ground water sites sample twice, 5-7 months apart, within a 12-month period.
Have questions about your sample schedule or sample locations (sometimes called inventory)? Large systems (serving a total population over 10,000) can check their schedule and inventory in SDWARS (see page 4), and small systems can check their monitoring review sheet (MRS).
PWSs must contact EPA if their sample schedule or inventory needs changed. A great place to look for further sampling questions is the UCMR Reference Guide, found on the Web by following the Water Systems link on the UCMR2 homepage. Fact sheets for List 1 (Assessment Monitoring) and List 2 (Screening Survey) contaminants can also be found on the Web page. UCMR can monitor up to 30 contaminants every 5 years, as defined in the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA). You can read more about SDWA here.
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PWSs searching for Laboratories
Still searching for an EPA-approved Laboratory to process your UCMR2 samples? The complete list of EPA-approved Labs is on the UCMR2 Web page - click on the Laboratories link and open the document in the upper right of the page titled “List of Approved Laboratories.” Remember, UCMR2 samples MUST be analyzed by EPA-approved Laboratories, and this is the all-inclusive list! If you have not found a Lab, start shopping now because negotiating a Laboratory contract may take some time.
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Spanish sampling instructions
Are you a small system that needs Spanish sampling instructions? Contact the UCMR Message Center.
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Gearing up for small PWS reports
As small system sampling continues, you may wonder what happens when the sample leaves your hands and continues on its way to the Lab. Who gets the Laboratory results? You do! Reports for each small PWS are generated and mailed to the official contact for the PWS as well as the contact for the state in which the PWS resides.
But when do you get your report? Reports are generated as data are submitted by Labs and reviewed by EPA. The gears of UCMR2 are turning and, generally within 3-6 months of sampling, you will receive the results of all your hard work and that of the Labs. Samplers are doing a great job of collecting water samples and sending them to their Labs - keep up the good work!
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Toolbox revealed: SDWARS for large PWSs
Confused by SDWARS? Not sure what this tool has to offer? No worries! Utilizing this important tool can be done by following these simple steps.
Important: You must make schedule changes before results are posted on SDWARS. Request inventory and schedule changes from EPA before samples are collected and data are posted. In the current version of SDWARS, once data are posted it is impossible to edit inventory or schedules for that location.
- Go to http://cdx.epa.gov. This is EPA’s Central Data Exchange (CDX), the primary hub for submission of environmental data. You can access your SDWARS account by logging into CDX and choosing the UCMR2: SDWARS link under “Available Account Profiles.”
- Contacts. Your PWS must list at least one official and one technical contact. If you need to add a contact, choose “Add a Contact” to fill in the contact’s information. Additional contacts are labeled as “Other.” You can edit a contact or change whether or not to receive e-mail reminders for sample months by clicking on “Edit” next to any contact.
- Inventory Maintenance. You can see your sample points and download or print them, if desired. The downloaded file is a text file (.txt extension) that most software packages can convert.
- Schedule Maintenance. View your sample schedule and add comments about sample events and points. Add comments by clicking the date under “SE1”- this is where sampling irregularities are tracked by EPA. Hit “Save” when you are done!
During sampling: Review and approve data uploaded by your Lab
- Review Data. You can search for data submitted by your Lab for approval. Results are limited to 250 records. If your search returns more than 250 records you must refine your criteria for result viewing. If you are monitoring for List 2 contaminants, this is also the stage where you MUST enter a disinfectant residual type. After your review, click on “Save.” When searching, use the percent sign (%) as a wildcard (for example, to search for any sample ID ending with “001”, use the search term “%001”).
- Compliance Report. View your data for completeness.
- Nominate User. Give others at your PWS the opportunity to establish a PWS SDWARS account. You will instantly receive a CRK to give to the nominee so that they can register for access.
- SDWARS2 Help lists frequently asked questions and answers about monitoring for UCMR2 and SDWARS.
Important: Your Laboratory must post your UCMR2 data to SDWARS within 120 days from the sample collection date. Unless you un-check the “receive e-mail notification” checkbox during registration, you will receive an e-mail notifying you when your Laboratory posts data to SDWARS. If you do not act on data posted by your Lab within 60 days, it will be automatically approved.
Don’t have a user name and password? Use the Customer Retrieval Key (CRK) found on the CRK letter sent to you by EPA. If you need a CRK, please call the UCMR Message Center at 1-800-949-1581.
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Labs measure their success
Labs are off to a great start analyzing samples and posting results. In SDWARS, remember that after data are approved they cannot be changed without contacting the UCMR Sampling Coordinator (see page 7 for the email address). If sample recollection is required due to improper sampling or shipment (e.g. temperature limit exceeded) or Lab error (e.g. quality control failure), the Laboratory must contact the PWS immediately and the PWS must recollect the sample within 30 days.
As you receive and analyze samples for PWSs, questions about UCMR2 may arise. The UCMR2 Web site (see page 7 for the Web address) and SDWARS are valuable tools for answering those questions. And remember all the contacts (listed on page 7) that can serve as further resources.
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SDWARS for Labs
EPA-approved Laboratories post analytical results for review by public water systems (PWSs), PWSs meet their reporting requirements, and States and EPA review PWS’s monitoring results through SDWARS.
- Go to http://cdx.epa.gov. This is EPA’s Central Data Exchange (CDX), a primary hub for submission of environmental data. You can access your SDWARS account by logging into CDX and choosing the UCMR2: SDWARS link under “Available Account Profiles.”
- Client List. This is a list, created by you, of all PWS clients for which you will be submitting data to SDWARS. You can add and delete PWSs to and from your client list here. A PWS must be on your client list before you can enter and review data in SDWARS.
- Enter Data. Add, edit, or delete sample information and analytical results here. Enter results after choosing a method. Data reporting can be made easier by choosing “All<MRL,” if appropriate, when entering data and “Approve all” when approving data.
- Inventory/Schedule. Search by PWS or State for your client PWSs’ inventory and schedule.
- Review Data. Review and lab-approve analytical results. Your PWS clients can review their data only after you have lab-approved the results in SDWARS.
- Upload File (optional electronic upload). Browse for your flat/tab delimited or XML file. Implementation guides for preparing your electronic upload file are available for download from your SDWARS Lab home page. When entering data, a range check violation warning box will appear if results are out of an expected range or if the data are deemed invalid for some reason. If the data are okay, override the warning by closing this box and save the data.
- Nominate User. You can give others at your Lab the opportunity to establish a Laboratory SDWARS account. You will instantly receive a CRK for the nominee so they can register to gain access.
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States and Regions digging up the
States and Regions are busy working with PWSs and reviewing data in SDWARS. EPA appreciates all of the hard work Regions and partnering States contribute to the UCMR2 monitoring effort. Take advantage of your UCMR2 resources to keep up the good work. Tools for States and Regions include all the information on the UCMR2 Web site, as well as SDWARS for reviewing large PWS data and monitoring overall compliance progress of PWSs in a State. SDWARS tracks large PWS inventories, compliance, sampling schedules, and contacts for State and Region officials. Stay out of the dark with SDWARS!
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SDWARS for States and Regions
- Go to http://cdx.epa.gov. This is EPA’s Central Data Exchange (CDX), the primary hub for submission of environmental data. You can access your SDWARS account by logging into CDX and choosing the UCMR2: SDWARS link under “Available Account Profiles.”
- Review Data. You can search for data in your State or Region that have been PWS approved. You can refine your search to many different criteria, including all results greater than the minimum reporting level (MRL), and can sorted by analyte and/or by status.
- Select PWS. View information on each PWS in a State using five options:
- All inventory lists all of the sample sites for a particular PWS.
- Inventory w/ Schedule gives dates for sample events at each sample point.
- Contacts lists the contacts for a PWS.
- Compliance Report lists results for each sample event. If there are no results posted for a past scheduled sample date, the PWS may be out of compliance.
- E-mail Notifications Audit lists sampling notifications and the contact to whom they were sent. This information can assist the investigation of non-compliant PWSs.
You can print or download these reports.
Large system sampling reminders and small system
SDWARS is the way to keep track of large PWSs (serving over 10,000 customers). If large PWSs in your State or Region ask about receiving sampling reminders, don’t worry about sending out hundreds of e-mails! Through SDWARS, PWSs receive an automated e-mail reminder 15 days before sampling is scheduled (see page 4). Also, states will receive a copy of small system reports from EPA.
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Now we can all get to work!
Whew, that’s quite a tool box! UCMR2 monitoring can be much easier when you have your toolbox to lean on. Whether you need to check a sample schedule, review sample locations, list monitoring results for a State or Region, or add or edit a contact, SDWARS is the tool for you. General questions about sampling, EPA-approved Laboratories, Screening Survey or Assessment Monitoring contaminants, and procedures, can all be found at the UCMR2 Web site. Keep up the good work!
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Questions about your tools? Contacting EPA
Is there more information you would like in The UCMR Update? Think we have (or haven’t) hit the nail on the head with this issue? Let us know! Send feedback to:
UCMR_Sampling_Coordinator@epa.gov
Laboratories and PWSs: When contacting EPA about UCMR issues, please use your U.S. EPA Lab ID or Federal PWSID, respectively.
Safe Drinking Water Hotline: General UCMR questions: 1(800)426-4791
CDX/SDWARS Help Desk: SDWARS/UCMR registration and reporting system questions: 1(888)890-1995
UCMR Message Center: UCMR implementation questions: 1(800)949-1581
UCMR Sampling Coordinator Correspondences:
UCMR Sampling Coordinator
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Technical Support Center (MS-140)
26. W. Martin Luther King Drive
Cincinnati, OH 45268
Fax: (513) 569-7191
E-mail: UCMR_Sampling_Coordinator@epa.gov
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Change your contact information
Please contact the UCMR Sampling Coordinator if you are not the correct person to receive this newsletter, your address needs to be corrected, or you do not want to receive this newsletter. Please include your name, PWSID (or Lab ID), the name of the PWS (or Laboratory), and, if applicable, the way you want to receive the newsletter: e-mail or mail. Thank you.
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UCMR 2 tools crossword challenge answers
Across: 1. water systems; 4. client; 6. assessment; 9. CDX; 10. thirty
Down: 2. ten thousand; 3. screening survey; 5. SDWARS; 7. state; 8. audit
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