Summary of Texas' Water Reuse Guideline or Regulation for Potable Water Reuse
This page is part of the EPA’s REUSExplorer tool, which summarizes the different state level regulations or guidelines for water reuse for a variety of sources and end-uses.
The source water for this summary is Treated Municipal Wastewater.
On this page:
- Technical basis
- Types of planned potable reuse approved for use in Texas
- Water reuse treatment category/type
- Additional context and definitions
- Potable reuse specifications (table)
- Upcoming state law or policy
- References
- Disclaimer
This page is a summary of the state’s water reuse law or policy and is provided for informational purposes only. Please always refer to the state for the most accurate and updated information.
In Texas, potable water reuse The use of highly treated recycled water for drinking water purposes. This reuse application includes both indirect potable reuse through introduction of recycled water into an environmental buffer such as a surface reservoir or groundwater aquifer, and direct potable reuse through introduction of recycled water into a drinking water system. applications include direct potable reuse and indirect potable reuse. The source of water treated municipal wastewater Treated wastewater effluent discharged from a centralized wastewater treatment plant of any size. Other terms referring to this source of water include domestic wastewater, treated wastewater effluent, reclaimed water, and treated sewage. is specified by the state as municipal wastewater. The write-up uses state terms when discussing sources or uses of water that may differ from the Regulations and End-Use Specifications Explorer's (REUSExplorer's) terms.
Technical basis
Potable water in the United States must meet all applicable Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) requirements, including its implementing regulations (40 C.F.R. § 141) for chemical and microbial contaminants and pollutant discharges from a point source for surface water augmentation require a federal National Pollutant Discharge Elimination Systems (NPDES) permit (40 C.F.R. § 122). Texas approves DPR projects on a case-by-case basis with certain treatment requirements for pathogens.
Using disinfected wastewater treatment plant secondary effluent as the starting point, the minimum log removal and/or inactivation targets for direct potable reuse are 5.5 logs for Cryptosporidium, 6 logs for Giardia and 8 logs for virus. The baseline log removal targets are considered a starting point and may be revised based on data collected from the wastewater effluent in question. The technical basis for the derivation of final pathogen removals for a project is based on this site-specific data and are a health-based target of less than 1 infection per 10,000 people per year. State guidelines advise incorporating water quality performance targets beyond those established under the SDWA into a DPR project. The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) addresses these factors under 30 Tex. Admin. Code § 290.41 by reviewing DPR projects on a case-by-case basis and incorporating site-specific water quality targets that are tailored for a specific plant design and unique source water quality. If federal and state finished drinking water standards can be met, TCEQ “can approve the proposed plant design and ensure public health is protected and avoids unnecessary over design of the plant” (TCEQ, 2022).
TCEQ does not have specific treatment requirements for chemical contaminants in DPR projects beyond meeting SDWA and TPDES requirements. However, TCEQ will only approve proposed DPR plants that include treatment units that remove or degrade a wide range of chemical contaminants, like reverse osmosis membranes and UV light with advanced oxidation (TCEQ, 2022). TCEQ reviews at least one year of chemical monitoring data of secondary or tertiary effluent from the selected treatment plant to understand the specific chemical compounds in the potential DPR plant’s source water (TCEQ, 2022). Regulated drinking water contaminants must be monitored and TCEQ strongly recommends monitoring of unregulated contaminants, such as personal care products (TCEQ, 2022). This monitoring informs the type of treatment needed at the proposed DPR plant and reviewing a full year of monitoring data captures seasonal fluctuations.
Types of planned potable reuse approved for use in Texas
TCEQ (2015) defines the following approved planned potable uses:
- Direct Potable Reuse (DPR): The introduction of advanced-treated reclaimed water either directly into the potable water system or into the raw water supply entering a drinking water treatment plant.
- Indirect Potable Reuse (IPR): The use of reclaimed water for potable purposes by discharging to a water supply source, such as a surface water or groundwater. The mixed reclaimed and natural waters then receive additional treatment at a water treatment plant before entering the drinking water distribution system.
Water reuse treatment category/type
Texas does not assign reclaimed water used for surface water augmentation to a category or class.
Additional context and definitions
There are no specific water quality standards for indirect potable reuse beyond complying with federal and state requirements of the Clean Water Act and the SDWA.
30 Tex. Admin. Code § 290.39(l) is the rule that provides the basis for the site-specific process used for approving proposed DPR facilities which allows Texas PWS to request exceptions to any rule in Subchapter D (Standards and Reporting for Public Water Systems). Subchapter D contains the state-specific design and operating requirements. 30 Tex. Admin. Code § 290.41 describes sources allowed to be used as drinking water sources. Since wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) effluent is not a listed as a source (wells, springs, surface water), Texas requires an exception to the Rule under 30 Tex. Admin. Code § 290.39(l) which can be considered on an individual basis. Furthermore, each proposed DPR facility must perform WWTP effluent sampling for pathogens and the maximum pathogen levels found are used to determine if the proposed pathogen treatment levels for the DPR facility are adequate. The 5.5-log Cryptosporidium, 6-log Giardia and 8-log virus treatment levels are the minimum requirements.
Potable reuse specifications
Summary of Texas' Potable Reuse Specifications
| Recycled Water Class/Category | Source Water Type | Water Quality Parameter | Specification | Sampling/Monitoring Requirements (Frequency of monitoring; site/ location of sample; quantification methods) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Direct Potable Reuse |
Municipal wastewater |
Cryptosporidium |
5.5 log removal |
The TCEQ sets project- and site-specific monitoring requirements for chemicals and for pathogen reduction and inactivation for DPR |
|
Giardia |
6 log removal |
|||
|
Viruses |
8 log removal |
Sources = TCEQ (2015).
Upcoming state law or policy
A bill was filed by Texas legislators during the 2021 legislative session to define direct potable reuse and require TCEQ to develop a regulatory guidance manual to explain the rules for direct potable reuse in Texas. The bill, SB 905, was signed into law in June 2021 and went into effect on September 1, 2021 (Bill SB 905, 2021).
References:
Bill SB 905, Texas Legislature. 2021.
EPA-Administered Permit Programs: The National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System, 40 C.F.R. § 122.
National Primary Drinking Water Regulations, 40 C.F.R. § 141.
Rules and Regulations for Public Water Systems, 30 Tex. Admin. Code § 290.
Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ). 2015. Direct Potable Reuse Resource Document, Volume 1 of 2. Final Report to the Texas Water Development Board.
Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ). 2022. Direct Potable Reuse for Public Water Systems - RG-634.
Use of Reclaimed Water, 30 Tex. Admin. Code § 210.
Please contact us at [email protected] if the information on this page needs updating or if this state is updating or planning to update its laws and policies and we have not included that information on the news page.