Water Safety Plans Research Articles

A Hazard Assessment Method for Waterworks Systems Operating in Self-Government Units.

Informing users of waterworks systems about the quality of tap water is an obligatory trend. It should be accompanied by studies on the influence of the risk of threats on public health. Waterworks systems, being included in a critical infrastructure of the city, should be subject to special protection in this respect. In the paper, the authors’ method of assessing threats to people and property from waterworks systems functioning in self-government units (SGUs), is proposed. Four categories of factors affecting the risk of threat to tap water consumers were assumed: the frequency or the probability of exposure—P, financial losses—C, damages to peoples’ health—HL, the degree of the security—S. Based on this, a four-parametric risk matrix was developed. It was assumed that risk is a function of the parameters mentioned above: r = f(P, C, HL, S). For every parameter the five-parametric weight scale was assumed. An example of applying the method is presented. The proposed method should be an important element of water safety plans. It can also be adopted for other municipal systems subject to SGU.

Human health risk assessment for the occurrence of enteric viruses in drinking water from wells: Role of flood runoff injections

We demonstrated that floods can induce severe microbiological contamination of drinking water from wells and suggest strategies to better address water safety plans for groundwater drinking supplies. Since 2002, the Italian Water Research Institute (IRSA) has detected hepatitis A virus, adenovirus, rotavirus, norovirus, and enterovirus in water samples from wells in the Salento peninsula, southern Italy. Perturbations in the ionic strength in water flow can initiate strong virus detachments from terra rossa sediments in karst fractures. This study therefore explored the potential health impacts of prolonged runoff injections in Salento groundwater caused by severe flooding during October 2018. A mathematical model for virus fate and transport in fractures was applied to determine the impact of floodwater injection on groundwater quality by incorporating mechanisms that affect virus attachment/detachment and survival in flowing water at microscale. This model predicted target concentrations of enteric viruses that can occur unexpectedly in wells at considerable distances (5–8 km) from the runoff injection site (sinkhole). Subsequently, the health impact of viruses in drinking water supplied from contaminated wells was estimated during the summer on the Salento coast. Specific unpublished dose-response model coefficients were proposed to determine the infection probabilities for Echo-11 and Polio 1 enteroviruses through ingestion. The median (50%) risk of infection was estimated at 6.3 · 10−3 with an uncertainty of 23%. The predicted burden of diseases was 4.89 disability adjusted life years per year, i.e., twice the maximum tolerable disease burden. The results highlight the requirement for additional water disinfection treatments in Salento prior to the distribution of drinking water. Moreover, monthly controls of enteric virus occurrence in water from wells should be imposed by a new water framework directive in semiarid regions because of the vulnerability of karst carbonate aquifers to prolonged floodwater injections and enteric virus contamination.

Capacity building and training approaches for water safety plans: A comprehensive literature review.

The World Health Organization has recommended Water Safety Plans (WSPs), a holistic risk assessment and risk management approach, for drinking-water suppliers across low-, middle- and high-income countries, since publishing its 2004 Guidelines for Drinking-Water Quality. While rapid WSP adoption has occurred, capacity is still catching up to implementation needs. Many countries and regions lack case examples, legal requirements, and training resources for WSPs, corresponding to widespread capacity shortfall in the water supply sector. We undertook a comprehensive review of the literature on capacity building and training for WSPs, with the goal of providing recommendations for multiple stakeholder groups at the scales of individual utilities, national governments, and intermediate units of governance. We propose a WSP training taxonomy and discuss it in relation to the stages of learning (introduction, practice, and reinforcement); describe the importance of customizing training to the target group, local language and circumstances; highlight the relevance of auditing for evaluating change over time; and call for robust methods to monitor WSP capacity development.

An assessment of the physicochemical quality of some bottle water sold in Kano metropolis, Nigeria

Bottled water like any drinking water used for human consumption should be safe and of standard quality to ensure adequate public health significance. This study is aimed at assessing the physicochemical quality of some bottle water sold in Kano Metropolis. Studies on physicochemical parametric analysis were conducted. A total of 40 samples comprising of 4 different brands were randomly selected from different location. Physicochemical parameters of water samples such as Temperature, pH, Electrical conductivity, Total dissolved solids, turbidity, Magnesium, Calcium, Lead, Copper, Zinc, Bicarbonate, Chloride, Nitrate and Phosphate were analyzed using standard methods of water analysis. The Results of physicochemical parameters were within the drinking water regulatory standard. However, zinc, lead and copper was found to exceed the bottle drinking water standard in the ranges of 3.91 – 6.17Mg/l, 0. 29 – 0. 47Mg/l and 1.54 – 2. 67Mg/l respectively; thereby rendering the water unfit to human consumption. There is the need to embark on routine monitoring and surveillances by the regulatory agencies involved to ensure effective implementation of WHO water safety plans from the catchment source to the consumer. This could be enhanced by replacing old pipes with new ones Bottled water industries should be designated away from heavy metal industries. Keywords : Physicochemical, Bottled water quality, Kano metropolis

Risk Assessment of Water Supply System Safety Based on Water Safety Plan (WSP) Implementation in Hamadan, Iran

Risk Assessment of Water Supply System Safety Based on Water Safety Plan (WSP) Implementation in Hamadan, Iran

National survey of utilization of continuous water quality monitors in water supply systems in Japan

Abstract An investigation of the utilization of water quality monitors at water purification plants throughout Japan was conducted via questionnaire from August to October 2015. The number of types of monitors installed at more than one water purification plant was 34. Chlorine, high sensitivity turbidity, pH, and turbidity monitors were (highly) recommended for installation in four water purification processes (rapid sand filtration, chlorination only, slow sand filtration and membrane treatment), except for high sensitivity turbidity of chlorination only. The number of installations of the monitors recommended and their installation points were dependent upon the processes. Highly recommended points of turbidity were raw water and sedimentation points, which were set for (critical) control points in water safety plans. That of high sensitivity turbidity was the rapid sand filtration point for confirmation of Cryptosporidium control. Chlorine monitors were applied for automatic control, regardless of the water purification processes. Some interesting monitors, such as those for musty odor compounds and trihalomethane, were newly developed and utilized. The results of this study showed that water quality monitors were important for water quality management systems based on water safety plans in Japan.

Improvement of Water Quality after Implementation of Water Safety Plans (WSPs) in Semarang City, Indonesia

We implemented Water Safety Plans (WSPs) program at previous work due to poor of water quality in the coastal area of Semarang, Indonesia. The aimed of the research was to evaluate water quality before and after implementation of WSPs program in Bandarharjo village, Semarang city. This was an experimental design with steps for implementations of WSPs program adopted the guidelines and tools of the World Health Organization. Numbered 80 samples before and after implementation of WSPs and fulfilled by purposive sampling technique. The main parameters of drinking water were total coliform with MPN method, turbidity with turbidity meter, salinity and pH with potentiometer instrument. Data were analyzed using Wilcoxon match-paired signed-rank test at α = 5%. Bacteriological quality of drinking water in Bandarharjo village has increased 17.5% after implementation of WSPs program. There were significant difference between total coliform (p = 0.016), salinity (p = 0.028), and turbidity (p < 0.001) before and after implementation of WSPs. Implementation of WSPs program has improved water quality, however regularly monitoring of the water supply system and bacteriological treatment are needed.

Risk Assessment from Catchment to Consumers as Framed in Water Safety Plans: A Study from Maiduguri Water Treatment Plant, North East Nigeria

Water safety plan as conceived by WHO can lead to prevention of pollution in each component of water supply chain which leads to ensuring safe drinking water. Risk assessment is one of the key components during the development of water safety plan, achieved by identifying hazardous events and estimating their risk towards implementing control measures. This study reports the risk assessment from catchment to consumers in Maiduguri water treatment plant in Northeast Nigeria. Tools such as the field visits, key informant interviews, questionnaire and water quality monitoring were used to identify the hazards and estimate their risk using semi-quantitative matrix. With the existing control measures, the study showed a total of 33 hazardous events; 5 in catchment, 16 in treatment plant, 6 in distribution system and 6 at consumers’ points. The risk score indicated 6 are of medium risk and 9 of high risk. Catchment activities, upgrade of treatment facilities and lack of routine maintenance in the treatment plant, pipeline damages in distribution lines, and consumers’ lack of hygiene knowledge and awareness were found to be the major contributory factors which affect the desired quality. Therefore participation and commitment by all relevant stakeholders are fundamental requisite to manage the identified health risks.

Microbiological Quality of Drinking Water and Prevalence of Waterborne Diseases in the Gaza Strip, Palestine: A Narrative Review

Water quality and occurrence of water-borne diseases in the Gaza strip are vivid examples for most developing societies. In recent years, the quality and quantity of groundwater, the only source of waters in the Gaza strip, have deteriorated markedly. A general rundown of the infrastructure and water distribution networks, in particular, the spread of cesspools, excessive use of pesticides and fertilizers, and improper treatment and disposal of wastewater remain major contributing factors to the continued deterioration in the water status in the Gaza strip. Without a doubt, the (Israeli)-Palestinian conflict had a clear negative impact on the water sector in the Gaza strip. Apparently, there is a dire need to adopt the WHO’s water safety plan in the management of Gaza’s water supply systems from catchment to consumer’s tap in order to maintain the sustainability and quality of water resources and prevent outbreaks of waterborne diseases. Therefore, this review has been prepared to highlight the overall picture of the water dilemma in the Gaza strip in the last years and in addition, to identify the sources, sorts, levels, and health risks of consequence to microbial contamination of water. The impact of political conflicts on the water sector in the Gaza strip also was reviewed. Furthermore, recommendations were formulated in order to assist and guide future researchers, stakeholders, and policymakers to avoid the more exacerbation of water contamination as well as to protect public health.

Risk assessment of water supply system safety based on WHOs water safety plan: case study Semnan, Iran

Risk assessment of water supply system safety based on WHOs water safety plan: case study Semnan, Iran

Comparative evaluation of risk management frameworks for U.S. source waters.

The U.S. Safe Drinking Water Act required states to develop source water assessment programs identifying existing and potential contamination sources; however, comprehensive risk prioritization and management approaches for surface water supplies have seen limited application. This participatory study assessed which permutation(s) of risk management frameworks and tools might benefit U.S. utilities by combining a literature review with external utility interviews. Qualitative data provided a basis for categorical assignments of goodness of fit with each of 24 framework evaluation criteria across five categories. Weighted integration using stakeholder input provided a relative ranking of applicability, later validated at a decision‐making workshop. Hybridization of the American National Standards Institute/American Water Works Association (ANSI/AWWA G300) source water protection standard and World Health Organization Water Safety Plan guidance was recommended to develop a comprehensive risk management approach for U.S. source waters. Cost–benefit components of other guidance materials were recommended to incorporate financial considerations into risk ranking and mitigation decisions.

Drowning Prevention: Define and Then Gather Evidence or Gather Evidence to Define?

According to the World Health Organization, drowning fatalities are a neglected public health issue ranked as the third most frequent cause of unintentional death by injury. Data used to record drowning incidents are acknowledged as inaccurate. Recommendations on drowning prevention based on these data are currently not informed by accurate, detailed and reliable evidence. Two modifications to current practice are proposed: 1) an Aquatic Incident Report needs to be developed as an extension of the current workplace incident report to prompt for information commonly not included in current drowning reports; and 2) National Water Safety Plans should be modified to include a learn-to-swim program database registering the name/elements of programs taught. Worldwide implementation of these modifications is the goal. Using improved information databases will enable researchers to better identify patterns in the drowning data. Improved current data collection methods will lead to more informed recommendations on drowning prevention.

Evaluation and Impact of a Polluted Stream on the Integrated Management of a Drinking Water Resource: A Case Study of the Middle Vaal River, South Africa

The Koekemoerspruit is a possible pollution source of the Middle Vaal River, an important drinking water source in South Africa. This case study aimed to establish the water quality of the Koekemoerspruit, to evaluate the impact of the Koekemoerspruit on the Vaal River, and to use this information to identify shortcomings in the monitoring program. Monthly and weekly samples from both the Vaal River and the Koekemoerspruit were analyzed at an accredited testing laboratory based on ISO 17025 for 20 chemical methods. A dataset from 2002 to 2015 was statistically analyzed by means of Statistica software, the Mann-Kendall test and the Sens’s slope to determine descriptive statistics and significant trends respectively. The sites’ water quality was evaluated by comparison with both national drinking water standards and environmental target water quality objectives. Results indicated that the target water quality objectives for orthophosphate, nitrate and nitrite, and ammonia concentrations were considerably exceeded in the Koekemoerspruit. The drinking water quality of the Koekemoerspruit and the Middle Vaal was noncompliant with South African standards. Color, electrical conductivity, turbidity, sulfate, recoverable cyanide and arsenic at one site posed aesthetic, operational, acute and chronic health risks. Color, mean ammonia and total chlorophyll concentrations displayed significant trends of increase over time and increased drastically after 2012 at the site where water enters the Middle Vaal River. However, the Koekemoerspruit did not seem to have a significant impact on the overall water quality of the Middle Vaal River, except for total chlorophyll concentrations. Moreover, the review and recommendations for optimizing the water quality monitoring program proved that original monitoring objectives have been achieved. The reviewed monitoring program has consequently been adopted in the water safety plan to address the shortcomings that were identified during this case study.

A phytoplankton risk matrix: combining health, treatment, and aesthetic considerations in drinking water supplies

Worldwide, the risk profile of drinking water supplies is uniquely shaped by differing geology, climate, and human-based developmental practices. The World Health Organisation’s Water Safety Plans (WSPs) are designed to improve the quality of water supplies, particularly regional supplies. One advantage of WSPs is that they are water supply-specific, thus reflecting local conditions; however, WSPs are also limited by a sole focus on health risks, with a little reference to treatment or aesthetic risks such as filter clogging and taste and odour complaints. Appropriately managing these non-health risks is important in effective infrastructure management and in developing consumer trust; however, currently, there is a lack of practical techniques to enable water managers to identify and respond to the threefold-risk profile (health, treatment, and aesthetic) that exists in all regional water supplies. To address this, phytoplankton concentration and bio-volume data were analysed from freshwater samples collected over 2 years, from an ephemeral subtropical catchment in Central Queensland, Australia. This study investigated the temporal and spatial patterns of phytoplankton, as influenced by flow events. Based on field data, a semi-quantitative risk matrix methodology was developed for use as a supplement to the existing WSPs and allows a more comprehensive assessment of phytoplankton-based hazards related to health, treatment (e.g., clogging) and aesthetic risks for individual water supplies. For example, the primary risk identified for the studied catchment was the presence of Cyanobacteria in the pre-chlorinated supply chain immediately prior to entering the treatment plant, specifically Limnothrix redekei. Modelling of the data within these risk matrices demonstrates that the approach is useful in identifying overall catchment risks as well being applied for seasonal and event-based risk assessment of regional drinking water supplies.

Preventing Healthcare-Associated Legionellosis: Results after 3 Years of Continuous Disinfection of Hot Water with Monochloramine and an Effective Water Safety Plan.

The purpose of this study is to report the experience of the implementation and application of a 3-year Water Safety Plan (WSP) together with the secondary disinfection of water by monochloramine to control and prevent healthcare-associated legionellosis in an Italian hospital strongly colonized by Legionella. Risk assessment was carried out by the WSP team. The main critical control points focused on in developing the WSP for the control of Legionella was the water distribution system. A sampling plan for the detection of Legionella was implemented. A widespread contamination of the hot water distribution system by L. pneumophila sg5 was found. Results after 3 years of the continuous disinfection of hot water with monochloramine indicate the eradication of Legionella. The implementation and application of a WSP in a hospital, together with the disinfection of the water distribution system with monochloramine, can be effective in controlling the growth of Legionella and in preventing nosocomial legionellosis.

Assessing operational performance benefits of a Water Safety Plan implemented in Southwestern France.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has recommended Water Safety Plans (WSPs) since 2004 as a means to reduce drinking water contamination and risks to human health. These risk management programs have shown promise across several potential areas of evaluation, such as economic benefits and regulatory compliance. Since WSPs are largely carried out by people who interact with water treatment equipment and processes, operational performance indicators may be key to understanding the mechanisms behind desirable WSP impacts such as water quality and public health improvement. This study reports performance measures collected at a WSP implementation location in southwestern France over several years. Quantitative assessment of performance measures supported qualitative reports from utility managers. Results indicate significantly reduced duration of low-chlorine events at one production facility and a significant decrease in customer complaints related to water quality, manifesting reported improvements in operational performance and the customer service culture. The findings demonstrate some success stories and potential areas of future performance tracking. Cyclical iteration of the WSP can help to achieve continuous quality improvement. Successfully applied evaluation criteria such as the number of water quality complaints or alarm resolution time might be useful across other locations.

System assessment and analysis of dangers in water safety plan: a case study in a desert city in Iran in 2017

Access to clean and safe drinking water has been the focus of officialsin charge of supplying water through many different methods. Water safety program is a new method for ensuring the safety of water by applying systematic prevention and risk analysis approach. The present study has been performed on a water supply system. Water Safety Plan contains 12 different steps which analyze topics such as system description, identifying dangers, risk analysis, etc. The checklist obtained by using the above steps will be applied as input information to a water safety program software named WSP-QATOOL. The risks identified and listed by experts in drinking water were scored using the world health organization data. Also, the results of data analysis are given in tables and graphs. The 12 different steps of analysis earned 212 points out of the total possible points of 440. Basins, water treatment, distribution network, and water outlet points earned 48.86 percent of these points and the reviewing step had 0.0 percent of the total points for coordination with water safety program. The questions related to the system description and identifying dangers and risk analysisstep with 100 percent point had the highest percentage in coordination with the program. System Analysis earned a score of 48.18 percent in general. In order to increase this score, the water safety program should be fully performed and a program should be developed to control the recognized risks with a specified amount to support it.

Evaluación del riesgo en procesos de tratamiento de agua para el desarrollo de un Plan de Seguridad del Agua – PSA

Las Plantas de Tratamiento de Agua (PTA) deben garantizar el suministro de agua segura; con este fin, se aplicaron herramientas de evaluación del riesgo para el desarrollo del Plan de Seguridad del Agua (PSA) en una PTA de Cali-Colombia que abastece 1.4 millones de habitantes. Para la identificación de peligros y valoración del riesgo, se usaron cuatro herramientas: análisis exploratorio de datos de turbiedad, visitas de inspección, matriz de peligros/eventos peligrosos y matriz semicuantitativa. En condiciones normales y extremas de turbiedad (&gt;400 – 2500 UNT) se garantiza turbiedad del agua tratada de 0.39±0.15 UNT, mostrando la robustez de la PTA. El 60% de los 40 eventos peligrosos presentaron nivel de riesgo muy alto sin considerar medidas de control y se redujeron hasta 7% con medidas de control existentes. Los programas de mejoramiento o soporte se deben orientar hacia las fases del tratamiento identificadas como prioritarias (acondicionamiento químico, coagulación, floculación/clarificación y filtración).

Water safety plans by utilities: A review of research on implementation

Water supply is essential to public health, quality of life, environmental protection, economic activity, and sustainable development. In this context, it is imperative to assure the continuous improvement of all processes and practices conducive to guarantee water quality and safety. Water Safety Plans (WSPs) by water utilities are an important public policy tool to accomplish these goals. This manuscript reviews the international evidence of the adoption and implementation of water safety planning and reports the current situation in Portugal, as part of the necessary adjustment of the national legal framework to the publication of the Directive (EU) 2015/1787, October 6th, on water quality for human consumption. The aim is to draw lessons from several successful WSP experiments around the world and extract lessons from these cases when drafting new legislation in Portugal and elsewhere. Findings suggest there are four critical dimensions and key elements of success in developing and implementing WSPs: leadership commitment, technical knowledge, governance, and interagency collaboration.

Measuring the Impacts of Water Safety Plans in the Asia-Pacific Region.

This study investigated the effectiveness of Water Safety Plans (WSP) implemented in 99 water supply systems across 12 countries in the Asia-Pacific region. An impact assessment methodology including 36 indicators was developed based on a conceptual framework proposed by the Center for Disease Control (CDC) and before/after data were collected between November 2014 and June 2016. WSPs were associated with infrastructure improvements at the vast majority (82) of participating sites and to increased financial support at 37 sites. In addition, significant changes were observed in operations and management practices, number of water safety-related meetings, unaccounted-for water, water quality testing activities, and monitoring of consumer satisfaction. However, the study also revealed challenges in the implementation of WSPs, including financial constraints and insufficient capacity. Finally, this study provided an opportunity to test the impact assessment methodology itself, and a series of recommendations are made to improve the approach (indicators, study design, data collection methods) for evaluating WSPs.