Wednesday March 17, 2010
If you've ever gotten sick while traveling by air, you'll appreciate a new rule from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) designed to ensure safe and reliable drinking water for passengers and crew on all flights within the United States.
The Aircraft Drinking Water Rule (ADWR), published in October 2009, provides what the EPA is calling "multiple-barrier protection" through a series of requirements that include:
First, the ADWR applies only to drinking water after it is loaded onto an airplane and added to the onboard water system. The EPA has jurisdiction of the water once it's onboard, but the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is responsible for water at the airport, including the carts, trucks, and hoses used to supply drinking water to the aircraft. The FDA also has jurisdiction over culinary water--the water used to prepare food, make ice, and brew tea and coffee--even on the aircraft. Meanwhile, the EPA shares responsibility with the states for regulating public water systems that bring water to the airport. This patchwork jurisdictional puzzle makes ensuring end-to-end drinking water safety aboard commercial aircraft harder than it should be.
Second, the rule only applies to aircraft within the United States, because EPA authority does not extend beyond U.S. national borders. To help address that problem, the EPA is supporting an international effort led by the World Health Organization to develop international guidelines for aircraft drinking water.
As an added precaution, the EPA recommends that passengers with weak or suppressed immune systems, or others who are concerned about illnesses caused by waterborne pathogens, drink only bottled or canned beverages when flying and avoid tea or coffee that isn't made with bottled water. According to the EPA, while boiling water for one minute will destroy any pathogens it may contain, the water used to prepare coffee and tea aboard most airplanes rarely gets hot enough to kill disease-causing bacteria.
For more information, see the Aircraft Drinking Water section of the EPA Web site.
reference:
http://environment.about.com/b/2010/03/17/new-epa-rule-makes-airborne-drinking-water-a-little-safer-2.htm
The Aircraft Drinking Water Rule (ADWR), published in October 2009, provides what the EPA is calling "multiple-barrier protection" through a series of requirements that include:
- Frequent sampling for coliform bacteria such as E. coli.
- Best management practices such as routinely disinfecting and flushing water systems
- Corrective action when problems are discovered.
- Public notification in response to situations that may pose risks to public health.
- Operator training.
- Improved reporting and recordkeeping for better public health protection.
- Periodic audits by the EPA to ensure air carriers are in compliance with the rule.
First, the ADWR applies only to drinking water after it is loaded onto an airplane and added to the onboard water system. The EPA has jurisdiction of the water once it's onboard, but the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is responsible for water at the airport, including the carts, trucks, and hoses used to supply drinking water to the aircraft. The FDA also has jurisdiction over culinary water--the water used to prepare food, make ice, and brew tea and coffee--even on the aircraft. Meanwhile, the EPA shares responsibility with the states for regulating public water systems that bring water to the airport. This patchwork jurisdictional puzzle makes ensuring end-to-end drinking water safety aboard commercial aircraft harder than it should be.
Second, the rule only applies to aircraft within the United States, because EPA authority does not extend beyond U.S. national borders. To help address that problem, the EPA is supporting an international effort led by the World Health Organization to develop international guidelines for aircraft drinking water.
As an added precaution, the EPA recommends that passengers with weak or suppressed immune systems, or others who are concerned about illnesses caused by waterborne pathogens, drink only bottled or canned beverages when flying and avoid tea or coffee that isn't made with bottled water. According to the EPA, while boiling water for one minute will destroy any pathogens it may contain, the water used to prepare coffee and tea aboard most airplanes rarely gets hot enough to kill disease-causing bacteria.
For more information, see the Aircraft Drinking Water section of the EPA Web site.
reference:
http://environment.about.com/b/2010/03/17/new-epa-rule-makes-airborne-drinking-water-a-little-safer-2.htm
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