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Massachusetts Water Suppliers Must Make Reports on Water Quality Public By July 1

Release Date: 06/29/2001
Contact Information: Amy Miller, EPA Press Office (617-918-1042)

BOSTON - All 513 community drinking water systems in Massachusetts are required to deliver public reports on the sources and quality of their drinking water supplies by this Sunday, July 1, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Consumer Confidence Reports, required under 1996 amendments to the Safe Drinking Water Act, give citizens critical information about the sources and quality of the water they consume. The reports are designed to help consumers make practical, knowledgeable decisions about their health and their environment.

"Citizens should have information about where their water comes from and what's in it," said Ira Leighton, acting regional administrator of EPA's New England Office. "The Consumer Confidence Reports give people this information so they can work with local officials to ensure their drinking water is being protected."

For more than two years, EPA New England and the region's six states have worked with drinking water associations to provide technical assistance and outreach to help public water systems draft the reports.