(a)  The department shall administer the provisions of this chapter and all other provisions relating to the regulation of drinking water to protect public health.

(b)  The department shall also have the following responsibilities:

(1)  Conduct research, studies, and demonstration projects relating to the provision of a dependable, safe supply of drinking water, including, but not limited to, all of the following:

(A)  Improved methods to identify and measure the existence of contaminants in drinking water and to identify the source of the contaminants.

(B)  Improved methods to identify, measure, and assess the potential adverse health effects of contaminants in drinking water.

(C)  New methods of treating raw water to prepare it for drinking, so as to improve the efficiency of water treatment and to remove or reduce contaminants.

(D)  Improved methods for providing a dependable, safe supply of drinking water, including improvements in water purification and distribution, and methods of assessing health-related hazards.

(E)  Improved methods of protecting the water sources of public water systems from contamination.

(F)  Alternative disinfection technologies that minimize, reduce, or eliminate hazardous disinfection byproducts.

(2)  Enforce provisions of the federal Safe Drinking Water Act and regulations adopted pursuant thereto.

(3)  Adopt regulations to implement this chapter.

(c)  The department may conduct studies and investigations as it deems necessary to assess the quality of private domestic water wells.

(Added by Stats. 1995, Ch. 415, Sec. 6. Effective January 1, 1996.)