Cross Connection Control
Community public water supplies are required by State regulations to maintain active cross-connection control programs to protect the safety of water consumers. Increased health and safety protection for water consumers necessitated by recent backflow incidents across the country and within Illinois have increased enforcement of cross-connection regulations. Soaring liability insurance costs which specify exclusionary clauses for pollution related claims have begun to impact water supplies which do not enforce stringent cross-connection control.
Industries or facilities installing or possessing backflow prevention devices must have those devices inspected and tested at the time of installation and at least annually thereafter to ensure continued proper operation. Verification of inspection must be submitted to community public water supply officials, who must ensure that appropriate inspections and maintenance of all cross-connection control devices has been performed.
The cross-connection control device inspector (CCCDI) approval program is coordinated by the FOS as a basic element of the water supply program. Actual registration and instruction is primarily conducted by the Environmental Resources Training Center, Edwardsville (ERTC at SIU-E). One and two day refresher courses for device inspectors which provide hands-on testing opportunities are also held. One-day symposiums on state-of-the-art changes and regulatory developments are held annually, coordinated by ERTC. Information can be found here: Environmental Resources Training Center-Cross-Device Inspector Certification/SIUE