Lewiston Water Division.

A division of the Lewiston Department of Public Services, the Lewiston Water Division is municipally owned and operated. It is responsible for oversight of the city’s infrastructure, which includes public fire protection and public drinking water.

Auburn Water District.

A quasi-municipal entity that was formally organized by a charter granted by the Maine Legislature in 1923, it provides public drinking water and fire protection services to the citizens, businesses, and industries of Auburn. The fiscal and operational decisions of the district are made by a seven-member Board of Trustees appointed by the mayor of Auburn and the Auburn City Council.

Lake Auburn Watershed Protection Commission.

The commission is made up of nine members:

• Three members appointed by the Auburn Water District (only one may be an AWD trustee)

• Three members appointed by the city of Lewiston (only one shall be a Lewiston city councilor)

• One member appointed by the municipal officers of Turner to represent Turner

• One member appointed by the municipal officers to represent the three towns of Minot, Hebron, and Buckfield

• One member designated by the Androscoggin Valley Council of Governments

Turner, Minot, Hebron, and Buckfield do not get their water from Lake Auburn. However, nearly one-third of the total watershed acreage for Lake Auburn is located in those neighboring towns.

LAWPC owns about 1,350 acres within Auburn. However, through ownership in other towns, conservation easements, and life estates, LAWPC has interest in nearly 2,000 acres in the watershed, including more than 80 percent of the shoreline of Lake Auburn. LAWPC oversees and enforces the watershed protection by-laws on behalf of the Auburn Water District and Lewiston Water Division.

Maine Department of Health and Human Services:

Drinking Water Program

The Maine Drinking Water Program helps public water systems comply with the Federal Safe Drinking Water Act and state regulations, provides technical assistance, works with systems to protect source water areas, and provides grants or loans for infrastructure improvements.

Public Utilities Commission

The commission regulates water utilities to ensure that Maine consumers enjoy safe, adequate, and reliable services at rates that are just and reasonable for both consumers and utilities. The commission also promotes and regulates safe digging through the Dig Safe underground utility damage prevention program.

Department of Environmental Protection

The Department of Environmental Protection is an agency of Maine state government charged with preventing, abating, and controlling pollution of the air, land, and water. The Bureau of Land and Water Quality administers several programs focusing on watershed management, environmental assessment, and water quality management.

United States Environmental Protection Agency

The EPA has primary responsibility for enforcing many of the environmental statutes and regulations of the United States. Under the Safe Drinking Water Act, EPA sets legal limits on the levels of certain contaminants in drinking water.

The limits reflect both the level that protects human health and the level that water systems can achieve using the best available technology. EPA also sets water-testing schedules and methods that water systems must follow.

The rules list acceptable techniques for treating contaminated water. SDWA allows states to set and enforce their own drinking water standards if the standards are at least as strong as EPA’s national standards. Most states and territories directly oversee the water systems within their borders.

Copy the Story Link