SAFE DRINKING WATER ACT (SDWA) (Public Law 93-523)

An amendment to the Public Health Service Act which established primary and secondary quality standards for drinking water. The SDWA was passed in 1976 to protect public health by establishing uniform drinking water standards for the nation. In 1986 SDWA Amendments were passed that mandated the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to establish standards for 83 drinking water contaminants by 1992 and identify an additional 25 contaminants for regulation every 3 years thereafter. See Drinking Water Standards, Drinking Water Standards (Nevada), Primary Drinking Water Standards, and Secondary Drinking Water Standards. (Also see Appendix D-5, Nevada Drinking Water Standards.)