With its February 13 publication in the Federal Register, promulgation of the Revised Total Coliform Rule (RTCR) became official. Based on the 2008 Agreement in Principle developed by the federal advisory committee tasked with evaluating potential changes to the 1989 Total Coliform Rule, the RTCR establishes a maximum contaminant level goal (MCLG) and maximum contaminant level (MCL) for E. coli in lieu of an MCLG and MCL for total coliforms. The revised rule also establishes assessment and corrective action requirements for E. coli MCL violations with public notification requirements also based on E. coli violations rather than the presence of total coliforms. The beginning date for compliance with all new RTCR requirements is April 1, 2016.
The Federal Register notice, a fact sheet and other supporting documents for the RTCR are available on EPA’s Total Coliform Rule Revisions webpage.