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Florida Potable Reuse Rules
As a result of rising demand for and diminishing supply of water, the State of Florida passed rules for direct potable reuse of reclaimed water. This will provide a new sustainable source of water for potable purposes.
In the Florida Administrative Code (F.A.C.) “Direct Potable Reuse (DPR)” means the delivery of advanced treated water from an advanced treatment water facility to a drinking water treatment facility or directly into a potable water supply distribution system without an environmental buffer.
This article includes sections on Pathogen Requirements, Monitoring Requirements for Advanced Treatment Water Facilities, Operation and Maintenance, General [Permit] Conditions, Establishing Specific Permit Conditions, and Compliance for Advanced Treatment Water Facilities.
I must emphasize that in all states with direct potable reuse programs, public water systems are still responsible for compliance with federal and state drinking water regulations, including monitoring and reporting at specific frequencies and locations. Some of the monitoring under the DPR regulations may be coordinated with those required by drinking water regulations, but DPR applicants should contact their states to determine what that would be.
62-565.500. Requirements for Potable Reuse Systems
As with the DPR regulations in other states, Florida does require identifying indicator or surrogate parameters associated with pathogens and chemicals to measure the performance of individual treatment processes. Monitoring shall be conducted at critical control points representing the treatment processes. Pathogen requirements shall be met by at least two separate treatment processes.
Details can be found at 62-565.500 : Requirements for Potable Reuse Systems – Florida Administrative Rules, Law, Code, Register – FAC, FAR, eRulemaking.
62-565.505. Industrial Pretreatment Requirements for Potable Reuse Systems
Each potable reuse system shall develop a comprehensive pretreatment and source control program including legal authority to run the program, establish local limits, require and conduct monitoring, and do reporting to prevent interference or pass-through of treatment processes.
Details can be found at 62-565.505 : Industrial Pretreatment Requirements for Potable Reuse Systems – Florida Administrative Rules, Law, Code, Register – FAC, FAR, eRulemaking.
62-565.520. Off-spec Storage Requirements for Advanced Treatment Water Facilities
In case there is a treatment process failure or the potential to discharge water that does not meet potable water quality requirements, off-spec water needs to be diverted away from the treatment stream. This section describes requirements for the design and installation of off-spec water storage facilities. It includes requirements for storage ponds and tanks.
Details can be found at 62-565.520 : Off-spec Storage Requirements for Advanced Treatment Water Facilities – Florida Administrative Rules, Law, Code, Register – FAC, FAR, eRulemaking.
62-565.530. Pathogen Requirements for Potable Reuse Systems
The minimum pathogen reduction requirements, for pathogens, between the raw wastewater and finished drinking water are as follows:
- 12 log reduction for Giardia lamblia cysts;
- 12 log reduction for Cryptosporidium oocysts; and
- 14 log reduction for enteric viruses.
An applicant shall propose values for log reduction value credits in its engineering report based on engineering analysis, pilot studies, available research, and guidance.
Membrane filtration technologies may receive additional reduction credits based on the results of direct integrity tests.
Requirements are cited or provided for UV and oxidation processes. Surrogate or indicator parameters must be established to monitor the performance of the processes at critical control points. There shall be a minimum of three critical control points with at least one critical control point for a filtration process and one for a disinfection process.
Failure to meet the log reduction requirements of this section is considered a treatment technique violation.
The ATWF shall commence mitigation actions if log reductions, identified through monitoring of surrogate or indicator parameters, occur.
Details can be found at 62-565.530 : Pathogen Requirements for Potable Reuse Systems – Florida Administrative Rules, Law, Code, Register – FAC, FAR, eRulemaking.
62-565-540 Monitoring Requirements for Advanced Treatment Water Facilities and Potable Reuse Systems
Monitoring for the advanced treatment water facilities shall be conducted in accordance with Table 1, Monitoring Frequencies for ATWFs. This monitoring is in addition to monitoring surrogate or indicator parameters used to evaluate ATWF performance. Parameters to be monitored include primary and secondary drinking water standards, and secondary treatment requirements under wastewater discharge permit rules at various locations (e.g. ATWF influent, internal outfall, ATWF effluent). Details can be found at the link below.
This section also includes an explanation of when a permittee may reduce monitoring frequencies, primarily due to meeting treatment requirements over specified time periods.
62-565.550 Reporting Requirements for Advanced Treatment Water Facilities
The results of monitoring, including pathogen log-reduction values, should be reported on forms approved by the Department. They shall be submitted by the 28th day of the month following the month the monitoring is conducted.
Details can be found at 62-565.550 : Reporting Requirements for Advanced Treatment Water Facilities – Florida Administrative Rules, Law, Code, Register – FAC, FAR, eRulemaking.
62-565.630 Recordkeeping
This section describes the records that should be retained by the permittee and the periods of time they should be maintained at the ATWF. It includes results of all compliance monitoring, copies of all reports, data collected, calculations made, copies of logs and schedules of operation and maintenance, copy of the permit, operation and maintenance plan, and licenses of current operations personnel.
Details can be found at 62-565.630 : Recordkeeping – Florida Administrative Rules, Law, Code, Register – FAC, FAR, eRulemaking.
62-565.700 Compliance for Advanced Treatment Water Facilities and Potable Reuse Systems
The Department shall use the results of reports submitted by the permittee and Department inspections to evaluate compliance with the potable reuse regulations. Enforcement actions may be taken based on evaluations of these activities and State of Florida Administrative Code.
Details may be found at 62-565.700 : Compliance for Advanced Treatment Water Facilities and Potable Reuse Systems – Florida Administrative Rules, Law, Code, Register – FAC, FAR, eRulemaking.
The table of contents for Florida’s potable reuse rules, which also include permit application requirements and administrative issues, establishing general and specific permit conditions, and design and construction requirements, can be found at 62-565 : Potable Reuse – Florida Administrative Rules, Law, Code, Register – FAC, FAR, eRulemaking.
Applying Florida DPR Rules in Practice with SAMS by NJBSoft
Florida’s direct potable reuse rules under Chapter 62-565, F.A.C. place a strong emphasis on continuous monitoring, defined critical control points, surrogate and indicator parameters, pathogen log reduction verification, and comprehensive reporting and recordkeeping. Successfully implementing these requirements depends on a utility’s ability to consistently document treatment performance and clearly demonstrate compliance across advanced treatment processes.
SAMS by NJBSoft supports Florida potable reuse programs by providing a centralized, audit-ready system aligned with these regulatory requirements. SAMS enables advanced treatment water facilities to manage monitoring locations and frequencies, capture operational and laboratory data, document surrogate and indicator parameter performance, and maintain records necessary to support pathogen reduction verification. The platform also supports organization and retention of permits, operation and maintenance documentation, and compliance records in a manner consistent with Florida Department of Environmental Protection reporting and inspection expectations.
By consolidating monitoring data, workflows, and regulatory documentation into a single system of record, SAMS helps utilities reduce the risk of documentation gaps, improve consistency across treatment processes, and demonstrate ongoing compliance with Florida’s potable reuse, reporting, recordkeeping, and compliance requirements.
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About The Author
At NJBSoft, we’re proud to collaborate with experts like Robert Hollander, P.E., whose extensive experience in water quality and regulatory compliance allows us to design SAMS in order to meet industry needs. Bob’s leadership and deep industry knowledge supports utilities in staying organized, compliant, and focused on protecting public health every day.
Robert Hollander
- 45 years of experience in water quality, regulatory compliance, and utility management
- President of Hollander Consulting Services
- Held senior roles at the City of Peoria, City of Phoenix, and the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality
- Served as President of the AZ Water Association and the Western Coalition of Arid States
- Licensed Professional Engineer in Arizona with multiple Grade 3 operator certifications
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