Summary of Pennsylvania's Water Reuse Guideline or Regulation for Impoundments

This page is part of the EPA’s REUSExplorer tool, which summarizes the different state level regulations or guidelines for water reuse for a variety of sources and end-uses.
The source water for this summary is Treated Municipal Wastewater.

On this page:

• Technical basis
• Water reuse for impoundments approved for use in Pennsylvania
• Water reuse treatment category for impoundments
• Additional context and definitions
• Water reuse for impoundments specifications (table)
• Upcoming state law or policy
• References
• Disclaimer

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This page is a summary of the state’s water reuse law or policy and is provided for informational purposes only. Please always refer to the state for the most accurate and updated information. 

In Pennsylvania, water reused for impoundments impoundmentsThe use of recycled water in an impoundment (body of water within an enclosure). This includes both unrestricted (use of reclaimed water in an impoundment in which no limitations are imposed on body-contact water recreation activities) and restricted (use of reclaimed water in an impoundment where body contact is restricted). Includes recreational impoundments, aesthetic impoundments, and ornamental impoundments with and without public access. Excludes landscape impoundments and storage of recycled water intended for other specific reuse applications (e.g., for agricultural irrigation). include restricted and nonrestricted recreational impoundments. The source of water (treated municipal wastewater) treated municipal wastewater Treated wastewater effluent discharged from a centralized wastewater treatment plant of any size. Other terms referring to this source of water include domestic wastewater, treated wastewater effluent, reclaimed water, and treated sewage. is specified by the state as municipal wastewater. The write-up below uses state terms when discussing sources or uses of water that may differ from the Regulations and End-Use Specifications Explorer's (REUSExplorer's) terms.

Technical basis

Pennsylvania approves the use of municipal wastewater for impoundment-related reuse applications including recreational and aesthetic impoundments. All applicable provisions of the Clean Water Act (CWA) (33 U.S.C. §§ 1251 et seq.), including its implementing regulations, must be met in addition to any state water quality standards. The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has established treatment guidelines for the reuse applications that are allowable in Pennsylvania. The DEP allows the use of Class B and Class C water for reuse applications related to impoundments and impoundments where recreation is unrestricted have more stringent performance standards than restricted recreational impoundments. These treatment guidelines are designed “to ensure that reclaimed water discharges are free from substances that pose a serious threat to public health, safety, and welfare” and are protective of “human health, as well as the environment” (Pennsylvania DEP, 2012). All reuse projects in Pennsylvania are required to obtain a Water Quality Management Permit from DEP (Pennsylvania DEP, 2012). Pennsylvania guidelines include specific treatment requirements, which vary by the class of reclaimed water. Treatment requirements and performance standards are applied for the removal of microbial contaminants, chemicals and other relevant indicators related to impoundments and are summarized in the below table. The technical basis for developing the specifications and/or removals of microbial contaminants, chemicals and other relevant indicators were taken from Pennsylvania DEP’s Dry Stream Policy (Pennsylvania DEP, 2012).

Water reuse for impoundments approved for use in Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania DEP (2012) defines the following approved water reuse for impoundments:

• Unrestricted recreational impoundments (Class B)
• Restricted recreational impoundments (Class C)

Water reuse treatment category for impoundments

The various classes of reclaimed water are defined by their respective treatment requirements and applicable performance standards. The respective treatment requirements are briefly summarized for reuse applications related to impoundments: 

• For Class B reclaimed water, the treatment requirements are secondary treatment, filtration and disinfection via chlorination or UV. 
  • In cases where UV light is used for disinfection, a dose of ≥100 mJ/cm2 is required. 
  • In cases where chlorine is used for disinfection, a total chlorine residual of at least 1.0 mg/L should be maintained for a minimum contact time of 30 minutes at design average flow. 
• For Class C reclaimed water, the treatment requirements are secondary treatment and disinfection via chlorination or UV. 
  • In cases where UV light is used for disinfection, a dose of ≥75 mJ/cm2 is required. 
  • In cases where chlorine is used for disinfection, a total chlorine residual of at least 1.0 mg/L should be maintained for a minimum contact time of 30 minutes at design average flow. 

Additional context and definitions

Pennsylvania defines reclaimed water as “treated wastewater used in accordance with applicable guidelines for beneficial purpose as a substitute for water withdrawn from a surface or groundwater source. The term reclaimed water includes both recycled and reused water.” (Pennsylvania DEP, 2012). They define wastewater as “the combination or the liquid or water-carried wastes removed from residences, institutions, and commercial and industrial establishments” (Pennsylvania DEP, 2012).

Recycled water can be used to create impoundments where there are both imitations and no limitations to recreational contact activities. In Pennsylvania, no limitations are imposed on body-contact water recreation activities, such as swimming or wading when recycled water is used for unrestricted recreational impoundments (Pennsylvania DEP, 2012). When recycled water is used for restricted recreational impoundments, recreation is limited to fishing, boating or other non-contact or incidental contact recreational activities and there should be no outlet to surface or groundwater (Pennsylvania DEP, 2012). Pennsylvania requires that municipal reclaimed water lines and appurtenances be color coded purple and identified as carrying non-potable water (Pennsylvania DEP, 2012). For public access systems, the public should be notified about the use of reclaimed water, typically via signage (the use of purple signage is recommended). In restricted access areas, all employees must be notified in writing and receive awareness instructions about the exposure to reclaimed water.

Water reuse for impoundments specifications

Summary of Pennsylvania's Water Reuse for Impoundments Specifications

Source= Pennsylvania DEP (2012)

* Information about sampling and monitoring requirements such as frequency, site and quantification methods not specifically listed in the table was not explicitly specified in the State-specific regulations. 

^a Samples for all parameters, other than fecal coliform and disinfection byproducts, should be taken at the point of discharge from the treatment plant. Samples for fecal coliform and disinfection byproducts should be taken at the point of reuse.

^b Only applies if chlorine was used for disinfection. 

^c Only applies if UV light was used for disinfection. 

Upcoming state law or policy

No upcoming reuse regulations related to impoundments were found for Pennsylvania.

References

Clean Water Act, 33 U.S.C. §§ 1251 et seq.

Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). 2012. Point and Nonpoint Source Management. Reuse of treated wastewater guidance manual 385-2188-002.

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Disclaimers

Please contact us at waterreuse@epa.gov if the information on this page needs updating or if this state is updating or planning to update its laws and policies and we have not included that information on the news page.