Table 4.
Sampling protocols for copper pipelines of different regions.
| Description | US | Canada 1 | Australia | New Zealand | UK 2 | Hong Kong | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number of Draws | Two-Tier | One-Tier | |||||
| Drawing Method | Unflushed | after a Stagnation Period of 6–12 h | 30 min | not Specified | |||
| Flushed | Flush for a While to 5 min | Flush for 2–5 min | |||||
| Sample Volume (L) | 1 | 1 | 0.1 | 0.15 | 1 | 0.25 | |
| Sampling Location | Random | Drinking or Cooking Taps | Representative Points | Consumer Taps | Determined by WSD | ||
| Sampling Size Confidence Level | 95% | not Specified | 95% | not Specified | Exact Number of Sampling Points Specified | ||
| Container | Fully Filled | not Specified | Thoroughly Rinsed | ||||
| Sample Holding Time | not Specified | 28 Days | within the Same Day | 7 Days | within the Same Day | ||
| Sampling Water Temperature | Cold | Cold | Constant | Cold | Constant | Cold | |
| Compliance | unflushed | 90% | 90% | 95% | 100% | not Specified | |
| ≤15 µg/L | ≤10 µg/L | ≤10 µg/L | ≤10 µg/L | ||||
| flushed | 100% | 100% | |||||
| ≤15 µg/L | ≤10 µg/L | ||||||
Remarks: 1 Canada’s regulations are provincial. The actual sampling protocol may differ by provinces. 2 UK adopts Random Daytime Sampling approach to estimate the lead problem in a water supply zone. The consumer tap being sampled is not flushed before taking the water sample. Should excessive lead components be present, two-tier sampling protocol at the consumer tap will be adopted. WSD = Water Supplies Department.