What Are the TOP Goals?
The optimization goals were set by the Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) when the program was established in 1994. These are
the goals that a plant should strive for to minimize the possible
passage of pathogens through the plant. The goals are:
- a settled water turbidity of 2.0 NTU or less on a continuous
basis;
- a turbidity of 0.10 NTU or less at the discharge of each
filter;
- a maximum turbidity spike of 0.3 NTU following the filter
backwash; and
- reestablishing a filtered water turbidity of 0.10 NTU within 15
minutes after returning the clean filter to service.
TOP Recognition
The TCEQ wanted to recognize the efforts that public water
systems were making to optimize the performance of their surface
water treatment plants. As a result, when the TOP program was
begun, the TCEQ met with a group of stakeholders to develop a TOP
Recognition Program. The TCEQ worked with the utilities and
developed recognition criteria that are based on the national
optimization goals.
Each time that a plant meets the extremely stringent recognition
criteria continuously for six consecutive months, the TCEQ presents
the water system with a TOP Recognition Award. When the plant
receives its first award, one of the TCEQ's top officials will come
to the water system and present the plant staff with a Recognition
Award and a TOP flag that can be displayed at the plant. During the
ceremony, the water system administrators will also be presented
with a copy of the Recognition Award. If the plant meets the
criteria for twelve consecutive months, the plant and the system
administrators will receive another Recognition Award and the TCEQ
staff will present each of the plant operators with a Recognition
Pin.
This program has proven to be popular and effective since its
inception in January 1998. Twelve plants have been recognized at
least once and one plant has met the criteria continuously for five
years.
What Are the TOP Recognition Criteria?
The performance criteria for the TOP Recognition Program were
set by the stakeholders in Texas, including utilities and
regulators, and were updated in August 2002. To receive a TOP
Recognition Award, a plant must continuously meet all of the
following criteria for six consecutive months:
- none of the filtered water turbidity readings from any of the
filters can be above 0.5 NTU;
- at least 99% of the filtered water turbidity readings from each
individual filter (i.e., the total number of readings from each
individual filter) must have a turbidity of 0.3 NTU or less;
- at least 90% of the filtered water turbidity readings from each
individual filter must have a turbidity of 0.1 NTU or less;
- at least 95% of the total number of filtered water turbidity
readings (i.e, the total number of readings from all of the
individual filters) must have a turbidity of 0.1 NTU or less;
- the filtered water turbidity must not exceed 0.3 NTU during
post-backwash turbidity spikes; and
- the filtered water turbidity level must drop to 0.1 NTU or
lower within 30 minutes of returning a filter to service after it
is backwashed.
To Learn More
For more information on the Texas Optimization Program, contact
our Public
Drinking Water staff and mention the Texas Optimization
Program.
