*3.2. Expert Panel Report*

Motivated by the findings of its SWP THM study [33], CDWR assembled an independent expert panel in 1982 to evaluate the consequences of using Delta source waters for domestic purposes. Panel findings were documented in a report [35] and are summarized here. The panel concluded that:

*The current Delta water monitoring program* ... *was developed primarily to monitor quality from an ecological perspective specifically directed towards fishery resources and not to assess human health aspects with respect to drinking water. The program as presently constituted* ... *is not entirely adequate to assess the present or projected suitability of these waters as a source of drinking water supply [35].*

The panel opined that drinking water quality " ... should be given a much higher priority in decisions about the Delta." While some of the panel members believed that the traditional public health practice of obtaining drinking water from the best source available should be adhered to (providing support for a peripheral canal), other panel members believed that advanced water treatment could provide adequate public health protection. The panel unanimously agreed that public health should be more broadly considered in decisions about Delta water management.

The expert panel recommended that a monitoring program be initiated to identify the sources of drinking water contaminants in the Delta (e.g., THM precursors, sodium, asbestos, pesticides, and heavy metals), how contaminants are transported through the system, and how contaminant sources impact water quality at drinking water diversions. Furthermore, the panel recommended that information from the monitoring program be incorporated into a comprehensive modeling framework that would support public health decision-making as it related to Delta water management.
