Maintenance & Monitoring Plan

A well-managed drinking water system is critical for the delivery of safe drinking water. To ensure this, there are both administrative and technical components that need to be managed. These include duties and responsibilities in the operation and maintenance of your small water system, as well as annual reporting requirements.

Expectations and Requirements of Operations and Maintenance

To operate and maintain a small water system effectively, the water supplier needs to:

• ensure that the operators have adequate training 
• charge water consumers a rate that supports a sustainable system
• plan for maintenance on a frequent and ongoing basis
• maintain adequate disinfectant residual throughout the distribution system
• ensure the operators know the water system’s infrastructure (assets), their locations and condition
• implement a cross control connection program (with particular attention to monitoring and maintenance of backflow prevention devices and the maintenance of positive water pressures throughout the system)
• implement proper disinfection and flushing procedures for new construction and repairs to the distribution system (water mains, etc.)
• monitor piping and equipment for corrosion and, if necessary, implement measures to reduce corrosion
• maintain water mains by routine flushing and/or swabbing
• measure or estimate water usage to determine water consumption and losses
• implement a leak detection program to help detect leaks that occur or may occur
• monitor and maintain the source water (well, lake, river, creek, spring) intake structure/equipment
• monitor, maintain, repair and replace water system components such as intakes (for wells and surface water sources), treatment systems, reservoirs, water mains, pumps, pipes, hydrants, valves, other equipment, etc.
• maintain an inventory of spare parts for water system equipment (treatment equipment, pumps, valves, etc.)

Tasks

This may seem like an overwhelming number of tasks to complete. However, by creating and using a schedule, the operations and maintenance tasks can be planned in advance and carried out in a timely manner. The following is general guidance, your specific needs may be different.