Alabama Takes a Key Step to Make Drinking Water Safer

The State of Alabama has taken a key step in helping to ensure safer drinking water for its citizens. The Alabama Department of Environmental Management has passed a regulation that requires NSF-61 certified gaskets for all gaskets that contact potable water including meter gaskets. This means that all components of water systems in Alabama are now required to be NSF-61 certified.

 

Are you compliant?

NSF-61

NSF/ANSI Standard 61 affects businesses in the United States that manufacture products that come in contact with drinking water. This standard was developed by a team of scientists and industry experts to set health effects for infrastructure that comes in contact with drinking water. 

 

Why is NSF-61 so important? Gaskets manufactured using cheap and unsafe materials can release chemicals into the water that we consume. With drinking water catastrophes like the one in Flint, MI, regulators and industry experts are implementing measures to make drinking water safe nationwide. NSF-61 is a critical component of this strategy to make sure that more citizens are not exposed to dangerous toxins as they were in Flint. 

 

While this is a nationwide regulation, implementation can vary from state to state.   

 

Alabama’s New Regulation

Alabama has had NSF-61 regulations in place for years. These regulations have focused primarily on buried pipe. This left a critical component, gaskets at the meter and flanged pipe, unregulated even though these gaskets come in direct contact with drinking water. ADEM’s new regulation ensures that all gaskets from the water treatment facility to homes and businesses are water safe. Along with regulations that govern pipe in the ground, the new regulations close the loop on securing Alabama’s drinking water supply.

 

100% NSF-61 Certified and Made in America

Specification Rubber Products has thrived because we are the only gasket manufacturer that is 100% certified NSF-61 compliant and 100% made in America. We have manufactured gaskets at our facility in Alabaster, AL since 1968. Spec Rubber is unique among gasket manufacturers in that we have survived increasing competition by focusing on quality rather than importing cheap gaskets from Vietnam and other Southeast Asian countries. Many gasket companies claim to be “NSF-61 compliant”, but they forego the costly certification process. Spec Rubber certifies all gaskets so that water system managers can rest assured that gasket problems will not lead to water system issues affecting their customers and local citizens. 

 

Get compliant

 

Would you like to find out more about how Alabama’s new regulations affect your water system?

Contact us today for more information about these important changes.

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