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Canal Network Not a Public Water System
Publication year - 1994
Publication title -
journal ‐ american water works association
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.466
H-Index - 74
eISSN - 1551-8833
pISSN - 0003-150X
DOI - 10.1002/j.1551-8833.1994.tb06217.x
Subject(s) - water supply , water tanks , safe drinking water act , water resource management , bathing , irrigation , business , water quality , environmental planning , environmental engineering , environmental science , geography , archaeology , biology , ecology
The Imperial Irrigation District, formed in 1911 to bring Colorado River water to California's Imperial Valley, delivers 2.6 million acre‐ft annually through 1,675 mi of open canals and laterals. The district sells 98 percent of the water for agricultural use. However, it sells some water to cities and other entities, which treat the water and deliver it to their customers. The district also sold untreated canal water directly to 5,700 residential customers along the canals in rural areas. These customers owned and operated water connections to their homes from the district's distribution system. They typically used canal water for bathing, washing clothes, and toilets. In December 1992, the US Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) invoked emergency powers granted to it by the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) to order that the district's distribution of water posed an imminent danger to health. The Circuit Court of Appeals reviewed the USEPA order.