Certifiers, Regulators, and other Water Watchdogs Certifiers, Regulators, and other Water Watchdogs
Underwriters Laboratories Inc. (UL) is an independent, not-for-profit product safety testing and certification organization. UL has tested products for public safety for over a century. Each year more than 16 billion UL Marks are applied to products worldwide.
UL is not affiliated with Drinking Water Filter Systems, Drinking Water Safety and does not endorse this Web site.
UL recently acquired Environmental Health Laboratories (EHL), which is one of the nation's leading facilities for compliance testing and analysis of drinking water. The acquisition of one of the premier drinking water test facilities in the country allows UL to provide a wider range of services and strengthens its collective efforts in working for a safer world.
UL has introduced a new mark specifically for its Environmental and Public Health (EPH) Programs. This mark lets consumers know that products have been thoroughly investigated by UL's chemical, toxicological and engineering specialists. You can find more information about UL certified drinking water systems at http://www.ul.com/eph/waterqry.htm
Underwriter Laboratories Inc. is committed to the environment and public health, and works with government and other environmental and public health professionals on standards and code development.
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NSF International is an internationally recognized, not-for-profit, third-party organization with more than 50 years experience in testing and certifying products to ensure they meet strict public health standards.
For a system to become NSF Certified, it must meet five basic requirements;
(1) The contaminant reduction claims must be true;
(2) the system must not add anything harmful to the water;
(3) the system must be structurally sound;
(4) the advertising, literature, and labeling must not be misleading;
(5) the materials and manufacturing process can not change.
Certification also means systems must continue to meet these requirements, which is why NSF conducts unannounced inspections of manufacturing facilities.
For more information about home water treatment devices standards and certifications:
NSF International
3475 Plymouth Road
P0. Box 1468
Ann Arbor MI 48106
(800) 673-6275
(313) 769-8010
The Federal Safe Drinking Water Act of 1974 established the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as the agency responsible for setting standards for drinking water and monitoring the public water utilities. It called on the EPA to determine what substances were contaminating the nation's drinking water and to assess the potential health effects, establish legal health limits, and intervene where the states failed to enforce them. To date, standards have been set for less than 100 contaminants.
The EPA does not directly regulate the manufacture, distribution, or use of home water treatment units. When the EPA receives questions regarding home water treatment units, they refer the consumer to NSF International and WQA.
For more information about the Federal drinking water standards and regulated and unregulated contaminant monitoring programs:
US Environmental Protection Agency Office of Drinking Water (WH-550A)
401 M Street, SW
Washington, DC 20460
(800) 426-4791
The Water Quality Association (WQA) is a not-for-profit international trade association representing firms and individuals engaged in design. manufacture, production, distribution. and sale of equipment, products. supplies, and services for providing quality water. The WQA Gold Seal is awarded to water treatment equipment that passes testing under industry standards for chlorine, taste and odor, and particulate reduction claims (much like NSF's Standard 42). They will certify that reduction claims (for chlorine and particulates only) are true and that the unit is structurally sound. They do not certify that advertising, literature. or labeling are not misleading, nor do they do leach tests or spot checks (1ike UL and NSF does). Because WQA represents the water treatment industry and is, thus, not considered a disinterested third party, WQA certification is not accepted by state health agencies as the UL and NSF Certification is.
For more information about the drinking water treatment industry:
The Water Quality Association Consumer Affairs Department
P0. Box 606
Lisle IL 60532
(708) 505-0160