The State of California, Department of Health Services, has delegated Imperial County, Public Health Department, Section of Environmental Health & Consumer Protection Services, as the public agency responsible for enforcement of state laws and regulations pertaining to operation, maintenance, and monitoring of small public water systems with less than 200 service connections within Imperial County.

There are a number of different classifications of public water systems (link to page “Types of systems.doc”). The extent and frequency of water quality monitoring required will depend, among other things, upon its classification, location, and type of source of supply.

Within Imperial County, there are 56 water systems that serve 199 connections or less; there are 31 systems that use canal water (surface water) from the Colorado River and 25 systems that use well water. The well water systems are located at the western and eastern edges of the county. Surface water is used in the central section of the county, for ground water in the central sections of the county is high in minerals.

Our goal is to assure public water systems are safe and potable. We accomplish this through permitting, monitoring, and inspecting small public water systems.

Water system inspections or sanitary surveys look at all aspects of water plant operations, including water sources, pumps, storage tanks, treatment plants, records of water monitoring, and future needs.

Permitting of new water well construction, reconstruction of existing wells, and destruction of abandoned wells within Imperial County is regulated by the County Planning and Development Department.