Summary of Pennsylvania's Water Reuse Guideline or Regulation for Agriculture
This page is part of the EPA’s REUSExplorer tool, which summarizes the different state level regulations or guidelines for water reuse for a variety of sources and end-uses.
The source water for this summary is Treated Municipal Wastewater.
On this page:
- Technical basis
- Water reuse for agriculture approved for use in Pennsylvania
- Water reuse treatment category for agriculture
- Additional context and definitions
- Water reuse for agriculture specifications (table)
- Upcoming state law or policy
- References
- Disclaimer
This page is a summary of the state’s water reuse law or policy and is provided for informational purposes only. Please always refer to the state for the most accurate and updated information.
In Pennsylvania, water reuse for water reuse for agricultureThe use of recycled water to land to assist in the production of both commercially and non-commercially processed food crops consumed by humans or livestock and non-food crops. Includes pasture for milking and non-milking animals, fodder, fiber, and seed crops, vineyards, orchards, ornamental nursery stock, Christmas trees, and silviculture. Excludes consumption by livestock, onsite non-potable reuse, and landscaping. includes irrigation of root crops, animal fodder, animal pasture, fiber crops, seed crops, commercially processed foods and sod farms; spray irrigation of edible crops; silviculture; and surface irrigation or edible crops, orchards and vineyards, where there is no contact between reuse water and edible portion of crops. The source of water treated municipal wastewater Treated wastewater effluent discharged from a centralized wastewater treatment plant of any size. Other terms referring to this source of water include domestic wastewater, treated wastewater effluent, reclaimed water, and treated sewage. is specified by the state as municipal wastewater. This write-up uses state terms when discussing sources or uses of water that may differ from the Regulations and End-Use Specifications Explorer's (REUSExplorer's) terms.
Technical basis
Pennsylvania approves the use of reclaimed water for agriculture, including irrigation of nonedible crops (e.g., crops not intended for human consumption) and edible crops (e.g., crops intended for human consumption). All applicable provisions of the Clean Water Act (CWA) (33 U.S.C. §§ 1251 et seq.), including its implementing regulations, must be met. Additionally, commercial food crop growing operations may be subject to any relevant rule requirements under the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) (124 Stat. 3885). The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has established treatment guidelines for the reuse applications allowable in Pennsylvania and permits the use of Class B and Class C water for reuse related to agriculture. These treatment guidelines are designed “to ensure that reclaimed water discharges are free from substances that pose a serious threat to public health, safety, and welfare” and are protective of “human health, as well as the environment” (Pennsylvania DEP, 2012). All reuse projects in Pennsylvania are required to obtain a Water Quality Permit from DEP (Pennsylvania DEP, 2012). While the Reuse Manual (Pennsylvania DEP, 2012) discusses agricultural applications, the vast majority of water reuse for agriculture are conducted under the Land Application of Treated Sewage and Industrial Waste Manual (Pennsylvania DEP, 1997). Treatment requirements and performance standards are applied for the removal of microbial contaminants, chemicals and other relevant indicators related to agriculture and are summarized in the table. The technical basis for developing the specifications and/or removals of microbial contaminants, chemicals and other relevant indicators is not explicitly specified.
Water reuse for agriculture approved for use in Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania DEP (2012) defines the following approved water reuse for agriculture:
- Irrigation of root crops (Class B)
- Spray irrigation of edible crops (Class B)
- Irrigation of animal fodder (Class C)
- Irrigation of animal pasture (Class C)
- Irrigation of fiber crops and seed crops (Class C)
- Irrigation of commercially processed foods (Class C)
- Silviculture (Class C)
- Irrigation of sod farms (Class C)
- Surface irrigation of edible crops (no contact between reuse water and edible portion of crops) (Class C)
- Surface irrigation of orchards and vineyards (no contact between reuse water and edible portion of crops) (Class C)
Water reuse treatment category for agriculture
The various classes of reclaimed water are defined by their respective treatment requirements and applicable performance standards. The respective treatment requirements are briefly summarized regarding water reuse for agriculture:
- For Class B reclaimed water, the treatment requirements are secondary treatment, filtration and disinfection via chlorination or UV.
- In cases where UV light is used for disinfection, a dose of ≥100 mJ/cm2 is required.
- In cases where chlorine is used for disinfection, a total chlorine residual of at least 1.0 mg/L should be maintained for a minimum contact time of 30 minutes at design average flow.
- For Class C reclaimed water, the treatment requirements are secondary treatment and disinfection via chlorination or UV.
- In cases where UV light is used for disinfection, a dose of ≥75 mJ/cm2 is required.
- In cases where chlorine is used for disinfection, a total chlorine residual of at least 1.0 mg/L should be maintained for a minimum contact time of 30 minutes at design average flow.
Additional context and definitions
Pennsylvania defines reclaimed water as “treated wastewater used in accordance with applicable guidelines for beneficial purpose as a substitute for water withdrawn from a surface or groundwater source. The term reclaimed water includes both recycled and reused water.” (Pennsylvania DEP 2012). They define wastewater as “the combination or the liquid or water-carried wastes removed from residences, institutions, and commercial and industrial establishments” (Pennsylvania DEP 2012).
The use of Class B (or better) reuse water is required in areas where public exposure is likely (referred to as “Unrestricted Public Access Systems”) and the use of Class C (or better) reuse water is required in area where public exposure is controlled (referred to as “Restricted Public Access Systems”) through signage, fencing, barriers or electronic surveillance.
Pennsylvania requires that municipal reclaimed water lines and appurtenances be color coded purple and identified as carrying non-potable water (Pennsylvania DEP 2012). For public access systems, the public should be notified about the use of reclaimed water, typically via signage (the use of purple signage is recommended). In restricted access areas, all employees must be notified in writing and receive awareness instructions about the exposure to reclaimed water.
Water reuse for agriculture specifications
Summary of Pennsylvania's Water Reuse for Agriculture Specifications
| Recycled Water Class/Category | Source Water Type | Water Quality Parameter | Specification | Sampling/Monitoring Requirements (Frequency of monitoring; site/ location of sample; quantification methods)*a |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Class B Reclaimed Water (Irrigation of root crops and spray irrigation of edible crops) |
Municipal wastewater |
Biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) |
<10 mg/L (monthly average) 20 mg/L (single sample maximum) |
Weekly monitoring |
|
Turbidity |
<10 NTU (monthly average) 15 NTU (single sample maximum) |
Continuous monitoring |
||
|
Fecal coliform |
<2.2 organisms/100 mL (monthly average) 23 organisms/100 mL (single sample maximum) |
Monitoring 2/week |
||
|
Total chlorine residualb |
≥1.0 mg/L (maintained for a minimum contact time of 30 minutes at the design average flow) >0.02 mg/L (at point of reuse application) |
Continuous online monitoring |
||
|
UV light design dosec |
≥100 mJ/cm2 under maximum daily flow ≥80 mJ/cm2 (if porous membrane filtration was used) ≥50 mJ/cm2 (if semi-permeable membrane filtration was used) |
Continuous monitoring of lamp intensity, UV transmittance and flow rate |
||
|
Nitrogend |
Not specified |
Not specified |
||
|
Phosphorus |
Not specified |
Not specified |
||
|
Class C Reclaimed Water (Irrigation of animal fodder, animal pasture, fiber crops, commercially processed foods, seed crops and sod farms; Surface irrigation of edible crops and orchards and vineyards where there is no contact between reuse water and edible portion of crops; Silviculture) |
Municipal wastewater |
Biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) |
<30 mg/L (monthly average) 45 mg/L (single sample maximum) |
Weekly monitoring |
|
Total suspended solids (TSS) |
<30 mg/L (monthly average) 45 mg/L (single sample maximum) |
|||
|
Fecal coliform |
<200 organisms/100 mL (monthly average) 800 organisms/100 mL (single sample maximum) |
|||
|
Total chlorine residualb |
≥1.0 mg/L (maintained for a minimum contact time of 30 minutes at the design average flow) >0.02 mg/L (at point of reuse application) |
Continuous online monitoring |
||
|
UV light design dosec |
≥75 mJ/cm2 under maximum daily flow ≥60 mJ/cm2 (if porous membrane filtration was used) ≥40 mJ/cm2 (if semi-permeable membrane filtration was used) |
Continuous monitoring of lamp intensity, UV transmittance and flow rate |
||
|
Nitrogen |
Not specified |
Not specified |
||
|
Phosphorus |
Not specified |
Not specified |
Source= Pennsylvania DEP (2012)
* Information about sampling and monitoring requirements such as frequency, site and quantification methods not specifically listed in the table was not explicitly specified in the State-specific regulations.
a Samples for all parameters, other than fecal coliform and disinfection byproducts, should be taken at the point of discharge from the treatment plant. Samples for fecal coliform and disinfection byproducts should be taken at the point of reuse.
b Only applies if chlorine was used for disinfection.
c Only applies if UV light was used for disinfection.
d Pennsylvania does not have specific criteria for nitrogen, but the amount of nitrogen that can be applied is limited to the amount that can be treated in the soil and taken up by vegetation.
Upcoming state law or policy
No upcoming regulations pertaining to water reuse for agriculture were found for Pennsylvania.
References
Clean Water Act, 33 U.S.C. §§ 1251 et seq.
Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), 124 Stat. 3885.
Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). 1997. Manual for Land Application of Treated Sewage and Industrial Wastewater. Volume 31, Tab 06.
Pennsylvania DEP. 2012. Reuse of Treated Wastewater Guidance Manual 385-2188-002.
Please contact us at waterreuse@epa.gov if the information on this page needs updating or if this state is updating or planning to update its laws and policies and we have not included that information on the news page.