JANUARY 2021
Water quality industry updates distilled into what matters.
2020 Is Finally Behind Us

Looking back, it was an interesting year, to say the least. With a great deal of negative news, it seems like a year worth forgetting; but if you look closely enough, there were some positive things to build from.

Overall, I was very impressed with how the industry responded to all of the year's challenges. From virtual conferences to adopting Microsoft Teams and Zoom calls as part of their daily lives, companies and employees did everything they could to adapt and continue pushing forward. This is all a testament to the hard work and commitment that each of you put forth every day and it serves as a pertinent reminder of how important our industry is to the safety and well-being of the global population.

There was much transformation within IAPMO as well. From staffing changes to redefining how we function as a team, 2020 forced us to be flexible and grow in ways that we would have never imagined going into the year. We appreciate all of your patience and thank you for sticking with us through such a trying year. We will continue improving each day to provide you the best possible service. We are hopeful that 2021 will bring many new positive developments to help us achieve that goal. As a starting point, please take our brief, six-question Filtered Media newsletter survey to help us improve our communication efforts with you.

Here at IAPMO, we wish you all the best in the coming year, and we hope that you and your loved ones remain happy and healthy throughout.
Ryan Prince
Director of Product Certification – Water Systems
Please take our one-minute, six-question survey to let us know how we're doing and how we can improve.
2021 Uniform Plumbing Code (UPC) Reminder
The 2021 Uniform Plumbing Code (UPC) was published in early 2020, and states and municipalities are now beginning to adopt this new version of the UPC. Moving forward, IAPMO R&T will require any new products to immediately comply with the new 2021 UPC requirements. Products with existing certifications will have one year from the renewal date to comply with any new requirements. Certified products that do not comply with the new code requirements at that time will need to change their UPC mark to IAPMO’s classified mark so that inspectors will have clear indication that product does not comply with the UPC.

Some of the revisions to the UPC in the 2021 edition include certification to the ASSE 1087 standard for commercial water treatment equipment, IAPMO IGC 322 standard for alkaline water treatment equipment, IAPMO/ANSI Z601 for scale reducing devices, and ASSE 1023 for hot and cold water dispensers that include filtration.
Additional information on ASSE 1087: The scope of ASSE 1087 includes plumbed-in water treatment devices and components – point of entry and point of use – that are used in buildings (e.g. businesses, schools, churches, hotels, restaurants, etc.) to improve the quality of the water. The standard covers all water treatment products that are connected to the building’s plumbing system for potable water. Examples of water treatment equipment include deionizers, filters, softeners, reverse osmosis equipment, ultraviolet systems, ozone systems, and distillers. The standard is not intended to cover products used for wastewater applications, process water, or residential water treatment.
The key highlights of the testing requirements of this standard are below:
  • Service flow and pressure drop testing is required on all systems.
  • Basksiphonage during system regeneration testing is required on products such as cation exchange water softeners that use brine to regenerate the system.
  • Bypass flow capacity during system regeneration testing is required on products such as cation exchange water softeners.
  • There are four tests required to verify the structural integrity of the system or component.
  • 24-hour pressure loss test
  • Pressure shock (water hammer) test
  • Hydrostatic test
  • Cycle test
  • Material safety testing is required and refers to existing standards, such as NSF/ANSI/CAN 61 or NSF/ANSI 42.
  • All systems and components must comply with the low-lead requirements of NSF/ANSI 372
  • Contaminant reduction testing to verify marketed claims is NOT currently specified or required by the standard
America's Newest Water Safety Challenge – Biofilm

The United States has some of the safest drinking water in the world. But the US water supply is facing a new challenge -- a slimy growth inside pipes that is encouraging outbreaks of illness responsible for over 7 million illnesses ...

Read more
www.cnn.com
PFAS Chemical Associated With Severe Covid-19

Elevated levels of a PFAS compound were associated with more severe forms of Covid-19, according to a Danish study now undergoing peer review. The research, which involved 323 patients infected with the coronavirus, found that ...

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theintercept.com
UI Researchers Find Unsafe Levels Of Lead In Iowa

University of Iowa researchers have found unsafe levels of lead in the drinking water of some Iowa schools, but it's unclear how deep this problem goes. Lead is a toxin that can harm human health, can lead to issues like anemia ...

Read more
www.iowapublicradio.org
As you may already be aware, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released its final regulation on the “Use of Lead Free Pipes, Fittings, Fixtures, Solder and Flux for Drinking Water,” which will directly affect water treatment products, including point-of-entry and point-of-use water treatment products and components, and plumbed in devices such as drinking water coolers. The rule’s goal is to reduce lead in drinking water and assure that states, manufacturers, inspectors and consumers have a common understanding of “lead-free."

The final rule requires manufacturers with 10 or more employees to obtain third-party certification by an ANSI-accredited certification body in order to demonstrate, with some exceptions, that any product intended for providing water for human consumption meets the EPA’s definition of “lead free.” Certification is mandatory for new products.

A helpful flyer explaining the new rule is available at https://www.iapmort.org/media/24548/iapmort_rldwa_fnl.pdf.

To read the rule in its entirety and learn more about it, direct your web browser to the following URLs:
Filtered Media is a free newsletter published by IAPMO R&T Water Systems. Its mission is to keep manufacturers of water quality products informed about the latest updates in the industry, including new contaminants, regulatory items, updates to codes and standards, requirements from individual sellers, and other pertinent industry information.
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