Secondary maximum contaminant level SMCL

EPA requires industry to report spills of more than 5,000 pounds of aluminum sulfate. Special regulations are set for aluminum phosphide because it is a pesticide. EPA has recommended a Secondary Maximum Contaminant Level (SMCL) of 0.05 to 0.2 milligrams per liter (mg/L) for aluminum in drinking water. The SMCL is not a based on levels that will affect humans or animals. It can be based on taste, smell, or color. OSHA says that the amount of aluminum dusts that workers breathe should be not more than 15 milligrams per cubic meter (mg/m3) of air. FDA has determined that aluminum cooking utensils, aluminum foil, antiperspirants, antacids, and other aluminum products are generally safe. To learn more, see Chapter 7. 

For a specific waste to be treated, the appropriate ratio of the treatment additive (phosphate) and pH control agent (magnesium oxide) that gives the best performance in terms of maximum contaminant level (MCL) and the secondary maximum contaminant levels (SMCL) for drinking water of the EPA s National Primary and Secondary Drinking Water Regulations is determined experimentally. One hundred grams of the waste is blended... 

Secondary drinking water standards are unenforceable federal guidelines with regard to taste, odor, color, and other nonaesthetic effects of drinking water. Federal law does not require water systems to comply with them. States may, however, adopt their own enforceable regulations. Secondary maximum contaminant levels (SMCLs) are presented in Table A7. 

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