New Policy Addresses Enforcement Discretion Questions on HB24-1344

The Colorado State Plumbing Board convened an emergency meeting on Wednesday, July 17, 2024 in response to the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment's request that the State Plumbing Board use its statutory discretion and not issue disciplinary actions until HB24-1344 has been fully implemented through Board rulemaking. During this meeting, the Board agreed and issued a policy stating that certified cross-connection control technicians would not be subject to discipline for inspecting, testing, and repairing backflow prevention devices through April 1, 2025.

This direction maintains public health protections, supports water utility compliance with drinking water regulations, and does not disrupt the lives of people and businesses operating under the prior status quo.

This timing also allows the General Assembly the ability to hear from all stakeholders and reconsider this issue and its implications for public health during the 2025 session. We hope to reach an agreement that allows technicians to do the critical work they were doing prior to the passage of HB24-1344.

To participate in rulemaking and stakeholder input opportunities with DORA, please sign up through this form.

Storage Tank Roofs - Issues with Metal and Corrugated Metal Roofs

Since Colorado’s storage tank rule went into effect in 2016 we have published many articles on different aspects of finished water storage tanks. Today we would like to focus on another important potential avenue of contamination, corrugated and metal storage tank roofs. 

In recent inspections for systems that have tanks with sheet metal and corrugated metal roofs, the water quality control division (division) has seen an increase in issues with seals between the roof of the tank, and the tank walls, vents, and access hatches. Corrugated tank roofs are of particular concern due to the gaps created by their corrugated ridges. Below are some of our most important lessons learned about metal and corrugated tank roofs.

Corrugated Tank Roofs Can be Difficult to Seal

The voids created between the ridges of a corrugated roof and the walls of a tank can be difficult to effectively seal and may be a desirable shelter for rodents and other small animals. It is also much more challenging to correctly seal roof penetrations for things like tank vents in a corrugated roof. If your system has a preexisting tank with a corrugated roof the division recommends more frequent periodic inspections of these tanks with a particular focus on the seals around the corrugated materials. 

Figure 1 - Improper seal between two corrugated panels

Figure 2 & 3 - Gaps left between corrugated roof and tank walls that can allow rodents and bugs to enter the tank, creating a public health risk.

Figure 4 - Light is visible from the interior of a tank around a vent in a corrugated roof showing that it is improperly sealed.

Figure 5 - Improper seal around a tank hatch.

Expanding Foam is not an Effective Method to Seal Gaps in Tank Openings

Figure 6 - Foam used to seal the interior of a tank.

It is not uncommon to see expanding foam used to seal gaps in corrugated tanks because it can easily fill large gaps. The use of this foam can lead to potential public health risks and sanitary defects. Foam used in exterior gaps can degrade rapidly due to weather and may be used by small animals as nesting material. Foam that is used as a sealant on the interior of tanks may deteriorate and flake off into the water posing a contamination risk itself over time. Condensation collecting on the foam can leach contaminants and then drip into the drinking water.

Metal Tank Roofs Can be Challenging to Inspect

We have seen tanks with metal roofs where it isn’t possible to examine the interface between the walls of the tanks and the metal roof without an interior inspection. A dislocation or break in the gasket material or a warpage or dislocation of the metal panels could allow the entrance of contaminants such as plants, insects, birds, and small animals into the tank. A brief walk around a tank is not effective in finding potential openings. An extendable mirror can be helpful for looking at tough to see locations around all storage tanks.

Drinking Water Design Criteria for Tanks

The division has outlined the requirements for tank roofs in the design criteria. This section of the criteria is currency undergoing a stakeholder update process. If you are interested in receiving updates on this process or getting involved you can find more information on our Drinking Water Design Criteria webpage. 

New or modified storage tanks being submitted to the Department for approval must meet the design criteria. Also, the Department intends to update the design criteria to clarify that we will not approve tanks moving forward with corrugated metal roofing. However, during a sanitary survey an inspector will not issue a significant deficiency solely based on your existing tank not meeting the current design requirements unless there is a condition identified during the sanitary survey that is a potential threat to public health (examples include unprotected openings to tanks, missing/damaged screens, unsealed/un-gasketed hatches, improperly sealed tank roofs, etc.).

Figure 7 - Excerpt from the current Design Criteria for Potable Water Systems (2022 Edition)

Identification of Sanitary Defects and Risks to Public Health

If a supplier finds an animal or other concerning debris in an improperly sealed storage tank please contact the division’s emergency line at 1-877-518-5608 as soon as possible but within 24 hours of discovery. The drinking water acute team will consult with you on next steps.

If suppliers identify a sanitary defect, it must be documented upon discovery. Also, a corrective action schedule in accordance with the Storage Tank Plan must be developed to fix it as soon as possible. Take photographs before and after making repairs. By doing so, suppliers can avoid a violation for not correctly implementing the storage tank rule.

Sanitary defects that are discovered during sanitary surveys may be cited as significant deficiencies or possibly even as a Tier 2 (treatment technique) violation of the storage tank rule for permitting a known sanitary defect. The risk of violations is especially present for defects that should be ‘obvious’ to anyone performing a periodic tank inspection.

Additionally, if suppliers do not follow the corrective action schedule that they developed, they will also be in violation of the storage tank rule. Avoid violations of the storage tank rule by proactively identifying sanitary defects and then documenting that the supplier is following a corrective action schedule to fix them.

➽ Chelsea Cotton, P.E., Lead Drinking Water Engineer

Mandatory Regulatory Training (MRT) Changes Coming in 2025!

In the Fall of 2023, the Water and Wastewater Facility Operators Certification Board (board) formed a subcommittee to evaluate whether revisions or updates should be made to the board’s guidance for Mandatory Regulatory Training (MRT), Board Guidance 19-1, and associated content and to ensure the intent and purpose of MRT are being applied. The division (in collaboration with the subcommittee) determined there were areas for improvement and clarification. 

The division solicited feedback from stakeholders in May 2024 on the proposed changes to Board Guidance 19-1 and its associated content and presented the subcommittee’s proposed revisions to the board at its June 25, 2024 board meeting. The board approved the proposed revisions to Board Guidance 19-1 and its associated Specific Curriculum Elements. 

To allow time for implementation, the revised version will become effective on January 1, 2025, and the current Board Guidance 19-1 remains effective through December 31, 2024. 

The revisions that were approved: 

• Provide more detail, clarification, and consistency.
• Remove the two-hour cap on MRT courses. 
• Swap the term “required minimum content” with “specific curriculum elements.” 
• Change the format of the specific curriculum elements from PowerPoint slides to a “Reference Guide” that specifies which information is required and which is optional.
• Only allow an MRT course to count as core Training Units (TUs) once per certificate renewal cycle to ensure operators are diversifying their learning by not only taking MRT courses to renew their certification(s). 

Although not yet in effect, you can view the revised guidance document and associated Reference Guide on the board’s website. 

What does this mean for certified operators?

Operators are still required to complete an MRT course when applying for a certification examination, applying for reciprocity, or renewing a certification. As mentioned above, come January 1, 2025, the completion of an MRT course will count as core Training Units (TUs) only once per renewal cycle. Operators may continue to take an MRT course more than once per renewal cycle but any additional attendance at an MRT course within that three-year cycle would count as flexible (or “flex”) TUs. This change helps ensure certified operators are diversifying their learning and not only taking MRT courses to renew certification(s). 

What does this mean for course providers? 

Should a training provider, utility, or other entity desire to provide MRT in 2025 (and thereafter), they must include all the Specific Curriculum Elements outlined in the Reference Guide during each MRT course delivery. The process for submitting and obtaining MRT course approval remains the same. 

As mentioned above, the content of the Reference Guide is not materially different from the current required course content provided in the PowerPoint slides. The format of the content was changed and now indicates which information is required and which is optional (items with a check box and in bold font are required course content; the optional content is bulleted and not in bold font). 

One approved change was to simplify instances where course providers are to show operators where to find division compliance tools, regulations, policies, and guidance documents. Course providers are still required to explain the differences and importance of each and where to find more information when needed. However, walking through examples, including providing the links, click-paths, and/or keywords to search for online, will now be considered optional content and not required course content. Clarification was also added to indicate that all courses, not only online courses, are required to have assessments, and examples of acceptable types of in-person assessments were added. 

Other important changes to note for course providers relevant to the learning objectives is that a certified operator’s mission to protect public health and the environment was added to the sections covering the role of a certified operator (Regulation 100), and for wastewater treatment, industrial wastewater treatment, and wastewater collection, an overview of the tables located at the end of each permit was added to the section on understanding how to read a permit. 

For questions related to these updates, feel free to contact Jessica Morgan at cdphe.facilityoperator@state.co.us. 

➽ Jessica Morgan, Facility and Operator Outreach and Certification Board Liaison