than normal seasonal water level fluctuations than are experienced on other unregulated natural ponds. These annual fluctuations may range from a few feet to several feet.

From the earliest times of settlement in Maine, continuing until the middle part of the 20^th Century, Maine’s rivers and streams (and even some of its lakes and ponds) were used as convenient receptacles for untreated industrial wastes and domestic sewage. During that same time frame, many water systems have taken measures necessary to secure access to high quality sources of supply. They have also purchased watershed lands in order to control activities and protect water quality. These holdings, many of which are extensive, have been accumulated over many years. Systems continue to acquire critical properties as opportunities arise.

FEDERAL AND STATE INITIATIVES

The 1960’s and 70’s was a time of heightened environmental awareness in Maine and the rest of the country. Comprehensive legislation was enacted to protect ecological systems. During the same time frame national drinking water standards were enacted to ensure protection of public health.

Federal Activities

In 1962 the U.S. Public Health Service Drinking Water Standards stated: “the water supply should be obtained from the most desirable source which is feasible, and effort should be made to prevent or control pollution of the source.” In 1974 the U.S. Public Health Service Drinking Water Standards became the Safe Drinking Water Act as the federal government enacted a more comprehensive process to regulate the operation - and resultant quality - of the nation’s public water supplies.

The Safe Drinking Water Act Amendments of 1986 introduced federal regulations through the Surface Water Treatment Rule, which sought to minimize the risk of drinking water exposure to pathogenic microorganisms. In doing so, watershed protection became recognized as an essential barrier to contamination. In Maine, exceptional water quality and watershed land use controls deemed fifteen (15) surface water bodies, which are utilized by twelve (12) public water systems, eligible for a filtration waiver to comply with regulations in the early 1990s.

Water utilities that had secured pristine lakes, ponds, and flowing waters and had invested in (and continue to invest) in source protection measures were able to comply with the filtration waiver requirements. As a result, the twelve (12) systems that met these standards without filtration collectively realized savings of well over $100 million. It is estimated that the annual savings in avoided debt and operations, that accrue to the customers, exceeds $25 million per year.

For those water systems with minimal control and/or poor water quality, major capital infrastructure was constructed for new or upgraded treatment plants, essentially committing a water system to one or multiple sources of supply for twenty plus years.

During the late 1990s and early part of this decade, federal regulations for the surface water supplies became even more stringent through the Interim Enhanced Surface Water Treatment Rule and Long Term 1 Enhanced Surface Water Treatment Rule. Specific filtered water performance and watershed control guidelines were established for utilities to implement for additional public health benefits. 

State Activities

Maine, recognizing the value of its natural resources, was a leader in environmental protection efforts. Many of the statutes that have been enacted by the Maine Legislature over the last 30 – 40 years acknowledge the importance of drinking water supplies. A sample of legislative actions are listed below:

• The Legislature has classified the surface waters of the state, stating in each classification that the waters “are suitable for the designated uses of drinking water supply after disinfection (or treatment)”  (Title 38, Chapter 3, § 465… 1985).

• The Legislature has found that “an adequate supply of safe drinking water is the matter of the highest priority and that it is the policy of the State to protect, conserve, and maintain ground water supplies in the State” (Title 38 § 401… 1979).

• The Legislature has classified all ground waters in the state to class GW-A, stating that they “be of such quality that it can be used for public water supplies”. (Title 38 Chapter 3, § 465-C & 470… 1985; 1985)

• In 1999 the Legislature also promulgated law in Title 22, including Chapter 601, § 2601-A: “This chapter establishes a system designed to help ensure public health; to allow the State, municipalities and public water systems to identify significant public water supplies and strive for a higher degree of protection around source water areas or areas that are used as public drinking water supplies; and to allow the State, municipalities and water systems to pursue watershed or wellhead protection activities around significant public water supplies.”

In January of 1996 the Maine Environmental Priorities Project Steering Committee issued a ranking of environmental risks facing Maine. The committee ranked issues based on current circumstances, assuming current control measures in place, and that issues would be compared with one another and ranked as "high risk," "medium risk," or "low risk." 

The Steering Committee concluded that, compared to the other issues ranked, the contamination of drinking water in Maine constitutes a high risk to both human health and quality of life.  The primary reasons for the high ranking are: the high percentage of Maine people who derive their drinking water from private wells; the numerous and geographically dispersed instances of ground water contamination that have been documented; the ongoing threats of additional contamination; and the fact that individual, privately owned wells are not required to be tested.  The fact that some public water supplies occasionally exceed health standards for certain contaminants also contributed to the high ranking.

The ranking points out what can happen when inadequate attention is given to the prioritization and protection of drinking water sources. The waters of the state clearly have multiple uses, including ecosystem values, recreation, fisheries, agriculture, waste assimilation and transport. However, when the balance is tipped, and drinking water protection is not considered a priority, there is a resultant risk to both human health and quality of life.

DEVELOPING SUSTAINABLE WATER USE POLICY

In 2001 the Maine Legislature enacted, in Title 38, §470-E, water use standards legislation, which requires the Board of Environmental Protection to adopt rules that would “establish water use standards for maintaining in-stream flows and GPA lake or pond water levels that are protective of aquatic life and other uses and that establish criteria for designating watersheds most at risk from cumulative water use”. The standards adopted under this section “must be based on the natural variation of flows and water levels, allowing variances if use will still be protective of water quality within that classification”.

When implemented the rules will essentially rewrite the Standards for Classification of Fresh Surface Waters (Title 38, Chapter 3, § 465)

There are critical considerations that need to be taken into account as the State adopts water use standards and develops sustainable water use policy.

• Maine’s policy of designating high quality water resources as water supplies and the water system’s significant investment in their protection and improvement have produced lasting benefits. The granting of water rights by the Maine Legislature - through the Private and Special Laws – constitute special rights. The enactment of environmental protection legislation of a broader nature is reflective of the fact that society considers the designation of water resources for human use to be of the highest priority. Any balancing of the multiple uses of these resources needs to recognize that drinking water is and continues to be the highest priority use of these resources.

• There are shortcomings in the way Maine values and protects its drinking water resources. The level of protection from activities affecting sources of water supply often is no greater than that for activities impacting other resources. Regulatory agency staff often find themselves in a dilemma when confronted with activities which are adversely impacting water supplies as they may feel they do not have the ability to go the extra mile to safeguard drinking water resources.

• Approximately half the state’s population utilizes public water systems. For calendar year 2002, total water utilities usage has been calculated to be approximately 115 million gallons per day. Approximately three fourths of that comes from surface water. How these surface water supplies function, and are managed, depends on water system demand and the variability of precipitation. Water is drawn from them each and every day of the year. During the dry season there is a draw on storage. At some point the water level drops below the sill or the top of the dam, the flow through the outlet is diminished and the water level in the pond drops. When it rains, the pond level rises and, if it rains hard enough for long enough, flow in the outlet stream is restored. 

• Approximately 55 of the 5,000 +/- Great Ponds in the state (1%) are currently used as water supplies. Many of the lakes and ponds that are used as water supplies experience seasonal water level fluctuations of several feet. The drawdown of these bodies of water may result in the dewatering of outlet streams. This has been happening for decades, the biota have adapted and the system has reached an equilibrium. There needs to be an acknowledgement and acceptance of the fact that this is how the supplies have been, currently are and will continue to be operated. If there is a desire to change the status quo, there will be economic and environmental prices to pay. Any change will require development of additional supplies. The economic costs will be significant and the environmental impacts will be shifted to the other resources. 

• The implementation of water use standards is just one part of a comprehensive plan that is needed in order to meet Maine’s water requirements. In order to develop a sound state water policy one must first create a master plan that quantifies the resource and the uses and creates a framework and process that manages the resource while balancing the needs of the users, now and in the future.

CONCLUSIONS

Total water management revolves around three factors: Water quantity, water quality and establishing priorities to deal with limitations of quantity and quality.

Water, by its very nature, is an integral part of every ecological system. Water is also a basic requirement for public health and welfare and prosperity. The government has an obligation to protect the health, safety and welfare of its citizens. Water utilities in Maine have been tasked with the responsibility of supplying Maine communities with adequate and safe potable water service. They have been fulfilling this mandate for decades, often with little assistance from state agencies. Because of the water quality standards that must be met at the consumer’s tap, the public water systems will always be the best stewards of the resources they use to provide that service.

Not all water resources are of equal value for all uses. Any water use standards that are proposed should ensure that water is managed for the greatest good of the people. Water use standards should in no way limit a water system’s ability to meet the obligations imposed upon them by the Maine Legislature. The best way to ensure that is to exempt water bodies for which public water systems have chartered rights, from any water use standards.

It has already been stated that water use standards are but one piece of what is needed in order to develop and implement a total water management framework that is effective in managing Maine’s water resources. This process needs to be one that utilizes a problem solving approach. The data that are used to arrive at decisions must be comprehensive and accurate.

Development and implementation of sustainable water use policy is not a small task. It will require much in the way of resources and it will likely be necessary to go back and modify certain aspects of the program as the degree of success of this new regulatory program becomes evident.

This is not the first attempt to develop and implement sustainable water use policy. Previous efforts have failed, for various reasons. This effort could fail; worse yet, Maine could end up with a cumbersome and burdensome regulatory program, not unlike those in place in some of the Southern New England states.

It is possible that resources allocated to this new regulatory program will focus, initially at least, on compliance, as opposed to assembling and analyzing data for the purpose of molding a total water management plan appropriate for Maine. All who are involved in this process have an obligation to ensure that the necessary resources are allocated to this endeavor. It is imperative that decisions be data based and that the impact of decisions on the users be predictable.