Title:

Drinking Water Emergency Planning and Response in New Hampshire

Decision making is an integral piece of planning and response to drinking water emergencies. The goal of this study was to understand the different viewpoints and decisions of stakeholders regarding emergency planning and response. A total of 8 people working in New Hampshire and representing drinking water operators, state agency employees, and emergency committee members were interviewed over Zoom. Results include the historical frequency, planning measures, and emergency response actions for the emergencies interviewees identified as most concerning and prioritized during planning. These emergencies include chronic contamination, acute contamination, cybersecurity, malevolent acts, drought, climate change and severe weather, and water main breaks. An organization map including fourteen different stakeholders was developed to display communication between and responsibilities of the different stakeholders. Interviewees frequently listed an updated Emergency Response Plan, redundancy, interconnections between systems, and thorough planning as keys to a quick and effective emergency response.

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