To: Honorable Mayor and Members of City Council
From: Joy Eldredge, Utilities Director
Prepared By: Erin Kebbas, Water Quality Manager
TITLE:
Title
2025 Triennial Public Health Goal Report
LABEL
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
Recommendation
Receive the City’s Triennial Water Quality Report pursuant to Health and Safety Code Section 116470, and determine this action is exempt from CEQA.
Body
DISCUSSION:
The City of Napa Utilities Department Water Division (City) performs extensive water quality monitoring before, during and after the various stages of the water treatment process. In addition, the Water Division performs weekly monitoring throughout the water storage and distribution system to ensure the water meets or exceeds all water quality regulatory requirements. Maximum Contaminant Levels (MCLs) are enforceable water quality standards that are established by the US Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) and the California State Water Resources Control Board Division of Drinking Water (DDW) that consider analytical detection capability, treatment technology available, benefits, health effects, costs, and practical implementation. The City’s water system met all health-based drinking water standards and MCLs required by DDW and USEPA during the last three years.
The Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) develop and publish lofty public health “goals” or PHGs that are idealistic targets that may be based on emerging data in limited studies (human or no-human). These goals are not required to be met by any public water system. PHGs are set without consideration of practical risk-management factors such as analytical detection levels, available treatment technology, benefits, and costs. The goals are often set at zero or at levels that challenge laboratory analytical detection limits. OEHAA has set PHGs for a total of 95 constituents.
State law requires large water systems, such as the City’s, to report every three years on whether at any time over the prior three-year period the water system exceeded any of the “public health goals”. The triennial report, covering the years 2022 through 2024, is included as Attachment 1. The City met the PHGs for 91 of the 95 constituents. As noted in the report, PHGs for Copper and Bromate were not met. For these constituents, the City is below the required MCL and in most cases only slightly over the PHG.
In summary, the performance of the City’s water is extremely good and in compliance with all State and Federal drinking water regulations.
In fact, in recognition of the infeasibility of attainment of many of the public health goals Health and Safety Code Section 116470 (d) states, “The department (State Water Resources Control Board Division of Drinking Water) shall not require a public water system to take any action to reduce or eliminate any exceedance of a public health goal.” State law does require, however, that we prepare this report every three years and “shall hold a public hearing for the purpose of accepting and responding to public comment on the report.”
FINANCIAL IMPACTS:
No immediate impacts. The water enterprise fund must meet operational needs, prioritize capital investments to ensure a reliable service that meets or exceeds all regulatory standards, work with local stakeholders to protect water supply sources, and work toward investments in supplemental treatment trains to improve water quality.
CEQA:
The Utilities Director has determined that the Recommended Action described in this Agenda Report is not subject to CEQA, pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Section 15060(c)
DOCUMENTS ATTACHED:
ATCH - 1 2025 Triennial Water System Report on Public Health Goals
ATCH - 2 Presentation Summarizing Triennial Water Quality Report
NOTIFICATION:
None