Client: USACE Alaska
Location: Wake Island Atoll
Scope of Work:
- Drinking Water Source Protection Plan
Brice developed a Drinking Water Source Protection Plan (DWSPP) on Wake Island Airfield (WIA). A DWSPP is required for public drinking water systems, per Section 1428 of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA). The purpose of the DWSPP is to protect the source water, prevent contamination from entering groundwater sources, reduce impact to groundwater sources, and provide reliable and safe drinking water for WIA’s inhabitants and visitors. The DWSPP also provides guidance to enable civil engineer personnel to effectively respond to water emergencies, maintain or restore the installation’s water system, and support the U.S. Air Force mission.
To do this, Brice performed an inventory and evaluation of out-of-service drinking water wells and other potential sources of contamination within the Source Water Protection Area (SWPA) at WIA. We documented the findings in the final DWSPP, delineating the SWPA based on site hydrogeology, identifying potential sources of contamination, establishing recommended contaminant separation distances from the watershed, and recommendations for installation of backup wells. We also included the following:
- A risk assessment for inventoried contaminants within the SWPA
- A water conservation plan
- A water contingency plan
- Recommendations for removing or mitigating contaminants from the watershed, including rough order of magnitude cost estimates
- Recommendations to implement institutional controls for the SWPA
We prepared the final DWSPP in accordance with the SDWA and Clean Water Act.