R 325.10704d Total coliform; routine monitoring; noncommunity; serving 1,000 or fewer people; groundwater.

Rule 704d. (1) General total coliform rules routine monitoring requirements are all of the following: (a) This rule applies to noncommunity water supplies using only ground water, except ground water under the direct influence of surface water, as defined in R 325.10105 and serving 1,000 or fewer people. (b) Following a total coliform-positive sample taken under this rule, supplies shall comply with the repeat monitoring requirements and E. coli analytical requirements in R 325.10704h. (c) Once all monitoring required by this rule and R 325.10704h for a calendar month has been completed, supplies shall determine whether 1 or more coliform treatment technique triggers in R 325.10704i have been exceeded. If 1 or more trigger has been exceeded, supplies shall complete assessments under R 325.10704i. (d) For the purpose of determining eligibility for remaining on or qualifying for quarterly monitoring under subrules (6)(a)(iv) and (7)(d) of this rule, respectively, for transient noncommunity water supplies, the department may elect not to count monitoring violations under R 325.10704j(3)(a) if the missed sample is collected no later than the end of the monitoring period following the monitoring period in which the sample was missed. The supply shall collect the make-up sample in a different week than the routine sample for that monitoring period and should collect the sample as soon as possible during the monitoring period. The department shall not use this provision to reduce monitoring for a supply on increased monitoring in subrule (7) of this rule. This authority does not affect monitoring violations in R 325.10704j(3)(a) and reporting requirements in R 325.10704k(1)(d). (2) Supplies shall monitor each calendar quarter that the supply provides water to the public, except for seasonal supplies or as provided under subrules (3) to (8) and (10) of this rule. Seasonal supplies shall meet the monitoring requirements of subrule (9) of this rule. (3)Transition to total coliform rules R 325.10704a to R 325.10704k are both of the following requirements: (a) Supplies, including seasonal supplies, shall continue to monitor according to the total coliform monitoring schedules under R 325.10702, R 325.10704, R 325.10705, R 325.10706, R 325.10707, R 325.10707a, R 325.10707b, and R 325.10709 that were in effect on March 31, 2016, unless 1 or more of the conditions for increased monitoring in subrule (6) of this rule are triggered on or after April 1, 2016, or unless otherwise directed by the department. (b) Beginning April 1, 2016, the department shall perform a special monitoring evaluation during each sanitary survey to review the status of the supply, including the distribution system, to determine whether the supply is on an appropriate monitoring schedule. After the department has performed the special monitoring evaluation during each sanitary survey, the department may modify the supply’s monitoring schedule, as necessary, or it may allow the supply to stay on its existing monitoring schedule, consistent with this rule. The department shall not allow supplies to begin less frequent monitoring under the special monitoring evaluation unless the supply has already met the applicable criteria for less frequent monitoring in this rule. For seasonal supplies on quarterly monitoring, this evaluation shall include review of the approved sample siting plan, which shall designate the time period or periods for monitoring based on site-specific considerations, for example, during periods of highest demand or highest vulnerability to contamination. The seasonal supply shall collect compliance samples during these time periods. (4) Beginning no later than calendar year 2017, supplies on annual monitoring shall have an initial and recurring annual site visit by the department that is equivalent to a level 2 assessment or an annual voluntary level 2 assessment that meets the criteria in R 325.10704i(2) to remain on annual monitoring. The periodic required sanitary survey may be used to meet the requirement for an annual site visit for the year in which the sanitary survey was completed. (5) Criteria for annual monitoring are both of the following: (a) Beginning April 1, 2016, the department may reduce the monitoring frequency for a well-operated ground water supply from quarterly routine monitoring to at least annual monitoring, if the supply demonstrates that it meets all of the following criteria for reduced monitoring, except for a supply that has been on increased monitoring under subrule (6) of this rule: (i) The supply has a clean compliance history for a minimum of 12 months. (ii) The most recent sanitary survey shows that the supply is free of sanitary defects or has corrected all identified sanitary defects, has a protected water source, and meets approved construction standards. (iii) The department has conducted an annual site visit within the last 12 months and the supply has corrected all identified sanitary defects. The supply may substitute a level 2 assessment that meets the criteria in R 325.10704i(2) for the department annual site visit. (b) A supply on increased monitoring under subrule (6) of this rule shall meet the provisions of subrule (7) of this rule to go to quarterly monitoring and shall meet the provisions of subrule (8) of this rule to go to annual monitoring. (6) Increased monitoring requirements for supplies on quarterly or annual monitoring are both of the following: (a) A supply on quarterly or annual monitoring shall begin monthly monitoring the month following 1 or more of the following events, except as required in paragraph (v) of this subdivision: (i) The supply triggers 1 level 2 assessment under R 325.10704i or 2 level 1 assessments under R 325.10704i in a rolling 12-month period. (ii) The supply has an E. coli MCL violation. (iii) The supply has a coliform treatment technique violation. (iv) The supply on quarterly monitoring experiences either of the following events in a rolling 12-month period: (A) Two total coliform monitoring violations. (B) One total coliform monitoring violation and 1 level 1 assessment under R 325.10704i. (v) The supply on annual monitoring has 1 total coliform rule monitoring violation. The supply shall begin quarterly monitoring the quarter following the event. (b) The supply shall continue monthly or quarterly monitoring until the requirements in subrule (7) of this rule for quarterly monitoring or subrule (8) of this rule for annual monitoring are met. A supply on monthly monitoring for reasons other than those identified in subdivision (a)(i) to (iv) of this subrule is not considered to be on increased monitoring for the purposes of subrules (7) and (8) of this rule. (7) The department may reduce the monitoring frequency for a supply on monthly monitoring triggered under subrule (6) of this rule to quarterly monitoring if the supply meets all of the following criteria: (a) Within the last 12 months, the supply shall have a completed sanitary survey or a site visit by the department or a voluntary level 2 assessment by the department. (b) The supply is free of sanitary defects. (c) The supply has a protected water source. (d) The supply has a clean compliance history for a minimum of 12 months. (8) The department may reduce the monitoring frequency to annual monitoring for a supply on increased monitoring under subrule (6) of this rule if the supply meets the criteria in subrule (7) of this rule to reduce to quarterly monitoring plus both of the following criteria: (a) An annual site visit by the department and correction of all identified sanitary defects. The supply may substitute a voluntary level 2 assessment by the department for the department annual site visit in a given year. (b) The supply shall have in place or adopt 1 or more of the following additional enhancements to the water supply barriers to contamination: (i) Cross connection control, as approved by the department. (ii) An operator certified by the department or regular visits by a circuit rider certified by the department. (iii) Continuous disinfection entering the distribution system and a residual in the distribution system under criteria specified by the department. (iv) Demonstration of maintenance of at least a 4-log removal or inactivation of viruses as provided for under R 325.10739a(3). (v) Other equivalent enhancements to water supply barriers as approved by the department. (9) Seasonal supplies shall comply with all of the following: (a) Beginning April 1, 2016, all seasonal supplies shall complete the department- approved start-up procedure, which may include a requirement for startup sampling, and submit a certification to the department, before serving water to the public, that it has completed the department-approved start-up procedures. (b) A seasonal supply shall monitor every month that it is in operation unless it is eligible for quarterly monitoring beginning April 1, 2016, except as provided in subrule (3) of this rule. Seasonal supplies shall not reduce to annual monitoring. To be eligible for quarterly monitoring, a seasonal system shall meet both of the following criteria: (i) Have an approved sample siting plan that designates the time period for monitoring based on site-specific considerations, for example, during periods of highest demand or highest vulnerability to contamination. Seasonal supplies shall collect compliance samples during this time period. (ii) Meet the criteria in subrule (7) of this rule. (c) The department may exempt a seasonal supply from some or all of the requirements for seasonal supplies if the entire distribution system remains pressurized during the entire period that the supply is not operating, except that supplies that monitor less frequently than monthly shall monitor during the vulnerable period designated by the department. (10) Supplies collecting samples on a quarterly or annual frequency shall conduct additional routine monitoring the month following 1 or more total coliform-positive samples, with or without a level 1 treatment technique trigger. Supplies shall collect at least 3 routine samples during the next month. Supplies may either collect samples at regular time intervals throughout the month or may collect all required routine samples on a single day if samples are taken from different sites. Supplies shall use the results of additional routine samples in coliform treatment technique trigger calculations under R 325.10704i(1). The department may waive the requirement to collect 3 routine samples the next month in which the supply provides water to the public if 1 or more of the following conditions are met: (a) The department, or an agent approved by the department, performs a site visit before the end of the next month in which the supply provides water to the public. Although a sanitary survey need not be performed, the site visit shall be sufficiently detailed to allow the department to determine whether additional monitoring or corrective action, or both, is needed. The department shall not approve an employee of the supply to perform this site visit, even if the employee is an agent approved by the department to perform sanitary surveys. (b) The department has determined why the sample was total coliform-positive and has established that the supply has corrected the problem or will correct the problem before the end of the next month in which the supply serves water to the public. In this case, the department shall document this decision to waive the following month's additional monitoring requirement in writing, have it approved and signed by the supervisor of the department official who recommends the decision, and make this document available to the EPA and public. The written documentation shall describe the specific cause of the total coliform-positive sample and what action the supply has taken and/or will take to correct this problem. (c) The department determines that the supply has corrected the contamination problem before the supply takes the set of repeat samples required in R 325.10704h, and all repeat samples were total coliform-negative. The department shall not waive the requirement to collect 3 additional routine samples the next month in which the supply provides water to the public solely on the grounds that all repeat samples are total coliform-negative.