Committee Report: Options for a Taste and Odor Standard

Abstract

With increased public awareness of drinking water issues, water suppliers are under growing pressure to adhere to an acceptable standard of aesthetic quality. However, establishing a practical, feasible level of control for tastes and odors in drinking water is fraught with difficulties. A variety of chemical compounds can affect taste and odor, and the analytical methods available for detecting them vary in cost, effectiveness and ease of use. Taste and odor preferences are also subjective, and sensitivities to tastes and odors vary not only from customer to customer but for the same individual from day to day. The Taste and Odor Committee of AWWA's Water Quality Division reviewed existing taste and odor guidelines, from the US Environmental Protection Agency's 1979 guidance establishing secondary maximum contaminant levels to more recent regulatory actions regarding volatile organic chemicals and methyl tertiary butyl ether. In addition, the committee critiqued a range of possible regulatory options based on such criteria as chemical concentrations, frequency of occurrence, treatment techniques, and use of surrogates. The committee concluded that there was little possibility of establishing a single taste and odor standard that could apply equally to public perception of tap water quality nationwide. As an alternative, they proposed self‐regulation by the industry, through the creation of a quality program similar to the Partnership for Safe Water. Such a program could help improve the taste and odor quality of drinking water and, at the same time, eliminate the need for cumbersome regulatory standards or guidelines.