Drinking Water Quality Standards

Article 1 ^{[正體中文]}

These Standards are determined pursuant to Article 11, Paragraph 2 of the Drinking Water Management Act (herein referred to as this Act).

Article 2 ^{[正體中文]}

These standards shall apply to drinking water supplied from drinking water equipment designated in Article 4 of this Act and other drinking water designated by the central competent authority.

Article 3 ^{[正體中文]}

Regulations of these standards shall be as follows.

1. Bacterial standards: (Total Bacterial Count sampling sites are limited to the finished water distribution networks of the water supply systems with disinfection units.)

   Item	Maximum limit	Unit
   1. Coliform group	6 (Multiple-tube fermentation method)	MPN/100 milliliters
   	6 (Membrane filtration method)	CFU/100 milliliters
   2. Total bacterial count	100	CFU/milliliter

2. Physical standards:

   Item	Maximum limit	Unit
   1. Odor	3	Threshold odor number (TON)
   2. Turbidity	2	NTU
   3. Color	5	Platinum-cobalt units

3. Chemical standards:

   1. Substances that impact health:

      Item		Maximum limit	Unit
      1. Arsenic		0.01	milligrams/liter
      2. Lead		0.05 But 0.01 from December 25, 2013	milligrams/liter
      3. Selenium		0.01	milligrams/liter
      4. Total chromium		0.05	milligrams/liter
      5. Cadmium		0.005	milligrams/liter
      6. Barium		2.0	milligrams/liter
      7. Antimony		0.01	milligrams/liter
      8. Nickel		0.1	milligrams/liter
      9. Mercury		0.002	milligrams/liter
      10. Cyanide (as CN-)		0.05	milligrams/liter
      11. Nitrite-nitrogen		0.1	milligrams/liter
      Disinfection byproducts	12. Total trihalomethanes	0.08	milligrams/liter
      	13. Bromate (shall apply only to water supply systems that use ozone as disinfectant)	0.01 But all disinfected water must comply starting January 2, 2010. When, during typhoons or other natural disasters, water source turbidity exceeds 500NTU, in consideration of water needs and Taiwan’s special climate and hydrological environment, the bromine salt standard shall not be applicable during this period.	milligrams/liter
      	14. Chlorites (Chlorite) (limited to water supply systems in which gaseous chlorine dioxide is added for disinfection)	1.0	milligrams/liter
      Volatile organic compounds	15. Trichloroethene	0.005	milligrams/liter
      	16. Carbon tetrachloride	0.005	milligrams/liter
      	17. 1,1,1-Trichloroethane	0.20	milligrams/liter
      	18. 1,2-Dichloroethane	0.005	milligrams/liter
      	19. Vinyl chloride	0.002	milligrams/liter
      	20. Benzene	0.005	milligrams/liter
      	21. 1,4-Dichlorobenzene	0.075	milligrams/liter
      	22. 1.1-Dichloroethylene	0.007	milligrams/liter
      Agricultural chemicals	23. Endosulfan	0.003	milligrams/liter
      	24. Lindane	0.0002	milligrams/liter
      	25. Butachlor	0.02	milligrams/liter
      	26. 2,4-dichlorophenoxy	0.07	milligrams/liter
      	27. Paraquat	0.01	milligrams/liter
      	28. Methomyl	0.01	milligrams/liter
      	29. Carbofuran	0.02	milligrams/liter
      	30. Isoprocarb	0.02	milligrams/liter
      	31. Methamidophos	0.02	milligrams/liter
      	32. Diazinon	0.005	milligrams/liter
      	33. Parathion	0.02	milligrams/liter
      	34. O-Ethyl-O-P- Nitrophenyl thionobenzenephosphonate	0.005	milligrams/liter
      	35. Monocrotophos	0.003	milligrams/liter
      Persistent organic pollutants	36. Dioxin (Dioxin) The control item concentration is calculated as the sum of the measured concentrations of 17 compounds, including 2,3,7,8-Tetrachlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxin-2,3,7,8-TeCDD, 2,3,7,8-Tetrachlorinated dibenzofuran,2,3,7,8-TeCDF and 2,3,7,8- penta-, hexa-, hepta-, and octa-chlorinated dioxins and furans, multiplied by the World Health Organization’s dioxin toxic equivalency factors (WHO-TEFs), and is expressed as a total toxicity equivalency quantity (TEQ). (Any water purification plants within a 5-kilometer distance of a large pollution source must be tested once annually; if the test values do not exceed the maximum permissible limits for two consecutive years, the testing frequency may be changed to once every two years starting in the following year.)	12.	Petagram - World Health Organization – total toxicity equivalency quantity/liter (pg-WHO-TEQ/L)

   2. Substances with the potential to impact health:

      Item	Maximum limit	Unit
      1. Flouride (as F-)	0.8	milligrams/liter
      2. Nitrate nitrogen	10.0	milligrams/liter
      3. Silver	0.05	milligrams/liter
      4. Molybdenum (When a pollution source such as a semiconductor manufacturing plant or optoelectronic materials or elements manufacturing plant is located within a 5-kilometer distance of the area upstream from the water intake of a water supply system, the water supply system must be tested once each quarter; if the test values do not exceed the maximum permissible limits for two consecutive years, the testing frequency may be changed to once every year starting in the following year.)	0.07	milligrams/liter
      5. Indium (When a pollution source such as a semiconductor manufacturing plant or optoelectronic materials or elements manufacturing plant is located within a 5-kilometer distance of the area upstream from the water intake of a water supply system, the water supply system must be tested once each quarter; if the test values do not exceed the maximum permissible limits for two consecutive years, the testing frequency may be changed to once every year starting in the following year.)	0.07	milligrams/liter

   3. Esthetic influential substances:

      Item	Maximum limit	Unit
      1. Iron	0.3	milligrams/liter
      2. Manganese	0.05	milligrams/liter
      3. Copper	1.0	milligrams/liter
      4. Zinc	5.0	milligrams/liter
      5. Sulfate (as SO4-2)	250	milligrams/liter
      6. Phenols	0.001	milligrams/liter
      7. Anionic surface-active agents (MBAS)	0.5	milligrams/liter
      8. Chloride (as Cl)	250	milligrams/liter
      9. Ammonia nitrogen	0.1	milligrams/liter
      10. Total hardness as CaCO3	300	milligrams/liter
      11. Total dissolved solids	500	milligrams/liter

   4. Limits on residual chlorine (Limited to water supply systems using chlorine as disinfectant)

      Item	Limit range	Unit
      Free available residual chlorine	0.2–1.0	milligrams/liter

   5. Limit range for pH index (water treated by stationary continuous water supply equipment that a public or private premises provides to the public for drinking shall not be subject to these limits):

      Item	Limit range	Unit
      Hydrogen ion concentration index (pH value)	6.0–8.5	NA

Article 4 ^{[正體中文]}

When torrential rains or other natural disasters cause high turbidity in source water for tap water, small water treatment facilities or community-installed public water supplies to exceed 200NTU, the following water quality standards may apply to turbidity requirement for water quality standards.

Item	Maximum limit	Unit
Turbidity	4 (when source water turbidity is under 500NTU)	NTU
	10 (when source water turbidity exceeds 500NTU but is under 1500NTU)
	30 (when source water turbidity exceeds 1500NTU)

Drinking water source turbidity testing data in the foregoing paragraph shall be provided by tap water enterprises, small water treatment units or community-installed public water supply units. Turbidity sampling sites for treated drinking water in the first paragraph shall be at a point after treatment by water purification plants or water purification facilities and prior to where drinking water enters water distribution pipelines.

Article 5 ^{[正體中文]}

When torrential rains or other natural disasters cause high turbidity in source water for tap water, small water treatment facilities or community-installed public water supplies to exceed 500NTU, the following water quality standards may apply to free available residual requirement for water quality standards (shall apply only to water supply systems that add chlorine disinfectants).

Item	Limit range	Unit
Free available residual chlorine	0.2–2.0	milligrams/liter

Article 6 ^{[正體中文]}

(Deleted)

Article 7 ^{[正體中文]}

Testing methods for each water quality item designated in these Standards shall be designated and officially announced by the central competent authority.

Article 8 ^{[正體中文]}

A competent authority that conducts water quality analysis in accordance with these Standards may commission an approved analysis laboratory to assist with analysis.

Article 9 ^{[正體中文]}

Unless an implementation date is separately designated, the regulation items in these standards shall take effect on the date of promulgation.