1. (a) If the department determines that a composite correction program serves the interest of public health, the owner of a public water system identified in 18 AAC 80.700, 18 AAC 80.701, or 18 AAC 80.702 shall conduct a composite correction program to

   1. (1) identify opportunities for improving the performance of water treatment and distribution; and
   2. (2) implement changes that will capitalize on opportunities identified under (1) of this subsection.

2. (b) A composite correction program must include

   1. (1) a comprehensive performance evaluation that

      1. (A) is conducted by the department, upon payment of the fee required by 18 AAC 80.1910(a)(13);
      2. (B) thoroughly reviews and analyzes a treatment plant's performance-based capabilities and associated administrative, operation, and maintenance practices;
      3. (C) identifies factors that may adversely impact the public water system's capability to achieve compliance with this chapter;
      4. (D) emphasizes approaches that the public water system can implement without significant capital improvements; and

      5. (E) includes each of the following components to identify plant-specific areas for improvement:

         1. (i) an assessment of plant performance;
         2. (ii) an evaluation of major unit processes;
         3. (iii) identification and prioritization of performance limiting factors;
         4. (iv) identification of training needs in the public water system;
         5. (v) an assessment of the applicability of comprehensive technical assistance as described in (2) of this subsection;
         6. (vi) preparation of a written report that discusses the results of the comprehensive performance evaluation; and

   2. (2) a comprehensive technical assistance phase, if the results of the comprehensive performance evaluation, as conducted under (1) of this subsection, indicate improved performance potential unrelated to design flaws; the comprehensive technical assistance phase includes the preparation of a report by the department that references the assessment identified in (1)(E)(v) of this subsection and that includes any recommendations or requirements of the department; in coordination with the department, comprehensive technical assistance shall be implemented by the owner of a public water system to improve performance of the public water system; comprehensive technical assistance includes one or more of the following:

      1. (A) a plan for implementing process control priority-setting techniques;
      2. (B) a plan for systematically training staff and administrators in accordance with any recommendations or requirements made in the report prepared under this paragraph;
      3. (C) a plan for systematically addressing the plant-specific areas for improvement that were identified in the comprehensive performance evaluation;
      4. (D) a plan for implementation of any recommendations or requirements of the department made in the report prepared under this paragraph.
3. (c) The owner of the public water system shall comply with any requirements set by the department in the report prepared under (b)(2) of this section.

(Eff. 9/28/2001, Register 159; am 8/19/2006, Register 179; am 11/9/2006, Register 180; am 4/24/2009, Register 190; am 7/25/2010, Register 195; am 11/11/2010, Register 196)

Authority: AS 46.03.020, AS 46.03.050, AS 46.03.710, AS 46.03.720