Small drinking water systems.
A well that serves the public — a campground, a school, a small community, a clubhouse, a camp, a mobile home park, a business on its own well — is a public water system with a classification, a monitoring schedule, and in most cases a licensed operator requirement. We provide that operator for very small water systems, run the monitoring, and handle the reporting and notifications so the system stays in compliance between seasons and between staff.
Services
Licensed operator coverage
Operator of record for very small water systems (VSWS).
Classification review
What the system is, what it requires, and whether it has drifted into a category that needs more than it has.
Monitoring
Bacteriological, nitrate, and the parameters the classification and permit require, sampled on schedule through accredited laboratories and reported to NJDEP and the county.
Routine operation
Visits, chlorination and simple-treatment oversight, well and pressure-system checks, logs and records.
Seasonal systems
Start-up sampling and shutdown for systems that run part of the year.
Results out of range
Public notification, resampling, and corrective action, handled correctly and quickly.
Reporting
Consumer confidence reports where required; operator reports and recordkeeping.
Emergency response plan
For the water system.
Applicability
In New Jersey a public water system is one that has at least 15 service connections or regularly serves an average of at least 25 people a day for at least 60 days a year (N.J.A.C. 7:10). Community systems serve year-round residents; nontransient noncommunity systems serve at least 25 of the same people for more than six months a year, such as a school or a workplace on its own well; transient noncommunity systems serve a changing population for at least 60 days, such as a campground or a restaurant. Each class carries its own monitoring schedule.
A licensed operator is required for community and nontransient noncommunity systems (N.J.A.C. 7:10A). The VSWS license covers community systems serving 100 or fewer dwellings or properties with no treatment, and nontransient noncommunity systems with no treatment or with disinfection or simple filtration that needs no chemical feed, process adjustment, backwashing, or media regeneration.
Typical situations
- A positive total coliform result in season, with notification clocks running
- A system that added treatment and no longer qualifies for the license it has
- A camp reopening without the start-up sampling
- A community whose operator moved away and whose last report is overdue
- A county inspection notice and records in three different places
FAQ
Is a campground, school, or clubhouse well a public water system?
If it has at least 15 service connections or regularly serves an average of 25 or more people a day for at least 60 days a year, yes. A campground or restaurant serving a changing population is a transient noncommunity system; a school or workplace serving the same 25 people for more than six months is a nontransient noncommunity system; a system serving year-round residents is a community system. Each class has its own monitoring schedule.
Does my system need a licensed operator?
A community or nontransient noncommunity water system must be under the responsible charge of a licensed operator, with a license class that matches the system’s classification. We hold the VSWS license and serve as operator of record for the systems it covers.
What does a VSWS license cover?
Community systems serving 100 or fewer dwellings or properties with no treatment, and nontransient noncommunity systems with no treatment or with disinfection or simple filtration that needs no chemical feed, process adjustment, backwashing, or media regeneration.
What monitoring does a small system have to do?
The schedule depends on the system’s classification and source: bacteriological samples at a fixed frequency, nitrate, and the chemical and radiological parameters the rules assign, all through a certified laboratory and reported to NJDEP and the county. Seasonal systems sample at start-up before serving water.
What happens on a positive coliform result?
Repeat samples are collected within 24 hours, an assessment of the system follows where the rules require it, and public notice goes out where and when it is required — each on its own clock. We run the sequence and the notifications, and we fix the cause.
Need a licensed operator for a small water system, or help getting one back into compliance?
Tell us what the system serves, what treatment it has, and who has been operating it. We’ll tell you what coverage looks like.