Subject Lines

Abstract

used for certain specified purposes. Tesng would be required for agricultural water applied to covered pro‐ duce when it:  is used to make treated agricultural teas,  directly contacts the harvestable poron of the crop prior to harvest, or during or aer harvest;  directly contacts food‐‐contact surfaces,  is used for hand washing during and aer harvest, and  is used for sprout irrigaon water Farmers using public water systems or other water supplies under certain specified condions, or for farm‐ ers who treat their water in accordance with the pro‐ posed rule's treatment provisions would not be required to test their water. Certain acons would also need to be taken if a farm has reason to believe that its agricultural water is not safe and not of adequate sani‐ tary quality for its intended use. Tesng Frequency In proposing tesng frequencies, FDA divided untreat‐ ed surface water into two categories based on their potenal to be impacted by runoff and the amount of control and protecon that can be provided by the farm.  Water that is suscepble to a significant amount of runoff, for example:  Flowing surface waters (rivers, streams, or creeks) or  natural ponds, lakes  Water where runoff drainage is minimized, for exam‐ ple:  where underground aquifer water is transferred to a surface water containment such as an on‐farm constructed water reservoir. Surface water sources in the first category are suscep‐ ble to relavely rapid changes in water quality due to the many addional external forces shaping their com‐ posion. Thus a higher frequency of tesng is proposed for these water sources than for the second category.