The Public Water Supplies (Scotland) Regulations 2014

Sampling: new sources

14.—(1) This regulation applies in relation to—

(a) any source of water which has not been used for the supply of water by Scottish Water at any time during the period of 6 months preceding 1st January 2015; and

(b) any source of water which has been so used, but not so used during the period of 6 months preceding the date on which Scottish Water proposes to supply water from it.

(2) Scottish Water must—

(a) before it supplies water from a source mentioned in paragraph (1)(a); and

(b) as soon as is reasonably practicable after it has begun to supply water from a source mentioned in paragraph (1)(b),

take, or cause to be taken, in accordance with paragraph (3), such samples of that water as will enable it to establish—

(i) whether water can be supplied from that source without contravening section 76A(1) of the 1980 Act (duties of water authorities with respect to water quality); and

(ii) the treatment necessary to ensure that section 76A(1) of the 1980 Act is complied with in relation to the supply of that water.

(3) Samples must be taken—

(a) in the case of a source of water mentioned in paragraph (1)(a), in respect of—

(i) the parameters in Table A, Table B and Table C; and

(ii) any other micro-organism, substance or parasite which may be present in, or any property of, the water which Scottish Water considers has the potential to cause a supply of water (from that source) to contravene section 76A(1) of the 1980 Act; and

(b) in the case of a source mentioned in paragraph (1)(b), in respect of—

(i) enterococci (item 1) in Table A;

(ii) Escherichia coli (item 2 and item 4) in Table A;

(iii) coliform bacteria (item 3) in Table A;

(iv) conductivity (item 7) in Table C;

(v) hydrogen ion (item 8) in Table C;

(vi) turbidity (item 13) in Table C; and

(vii) any other parameter in Table B or Table C in relation to which Scottish Water considers that the concentration or value of that parameter is likely to have altered since the last occasion on which water from that source was analysed.

(4) Unless the conditions in paragraph (5) are satisfied, Scottish Water must not supply water for human consumption purposes from a source mentioned in paragraph (1)(a) until a period of one month has elapsed since the day on which Scottish Water complied with regulation 31(1) (as read with regulation 30) with respect to the source.

(5) The conditions are that Scottish Water—

(a) must supply water from the source as a matter of urgency in order to prevent an unexpected interruption in a piped supply of water to consumers; and

(b) before the supply is made, has carried out a risk assessment under regulation 30 specifically with respect to the source.

(6) For the purposes of paragraph (4) (in so far as it requires compliance with regulation 31(1)) and paragraph (5)(b), regulation 30 applies in relation to each supply of water mentioned in those paragraphs as if “treatment works” includes the source from which the untreated water is supplied.