scholarly journals Awareness, adoption and implementation of the water safety plan methodology: insights from five Latin American and Caribbean experiences

2013 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
pp. 541-548 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brian Hubbard ◽  
Richard Gelting ◽  
Maria del Carmen Portillo ◽  
Tom Williams ◽  
Ricardo Torres

Considerable effort has been made worldwide to disseminate information and provide technical assistance to encourage the adoption and implementation of the water safety plan (WSP) methodology. Described since the third edition of the World Health Organization (WHO) Guidelines for Drinking-water Quality, a WSP provides guidance for water utilities to ensure the delivery of safe drinking water and protect health. Attention is now being given to understand the success of efforts to advance adoption of the WSP methodology in the Latin America and Caribbean (LAC) region. More specifically, there is interest in knowing how early adopters developed strategies to implement the WSP methodology and what challenges exist for further implementation. To better understand adoption and implementation trends, key informants from five LAC countries were interviewed and case studies were developed to reveal the diversity of WSP approaches applied in the region. Results indicate that WSP implementation is more widespread than previously reported. Respondents affirmed that the WHO Guidelines for Drinking-water Quality are routinely used as a model for country-level drinking-water regulations, which has led to uptake of the WSP methodology. Interview respondents also revealed innovative national strategic approaches for WSP implementation.

2020 ◽  
Vol 698 ◽  
pp. 134185 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria J. Gunnarsdottir ◽  
Sigurdur M. Gardarsson ◽  
Maria J. Figueras ◽  
Clàudia Puigdomènech ◽  
Rubén Juárez ◽  
...  

2019 ◽  
Vol 17 (6) ◽  
pp. 870-883 ◽  
Author(s):  
Isabelle Schmidt ◽  
Bettina Rickert ◽  
Oliver Schmoll ◽  
Thomas Rapp

Abstract The World Health Organization (WHO) promotes water safety plans (WSPs) – a risk-based management approach – for premise plumbing systems in buildings to prevent deterioration of drinking-water quality. Experience with the implementation of WSPs in buildings were gathered within a pilot project in Germany. The project included an evaluation of the feasibility and advantages of WSPs by all stakeholders who share responsibility in drinking-water safety. While the feasibility of the concept was demonstrated for all buildings, benefits reported by building operators varied. The more technical standards were complied with before implementing WSP, the less pronounced were the resulting improvements. In most cases, WSPs yielded an increased system knowledge and awareness for drinking-water quality issues. WSPs also led to improved operation of the premise plumbing system and provided benefits for surveillance authorities. A survey among the European Network of Drinking-Water Regulators on the existing legal framework regarding drinking-water safety in buildings exhibited that countries are aware of the need to manage risks in buildings' installations, but experience with WSP is rare. Based on the successful implementation and the positive effects of WSPs on drinking-water quality, we recommend the establishment of legal frameworks that require WSPs for priority buildings whilst accounting for differing conditions in buildings and countries.


2008 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. 547-557 ◽  
Author(s):  
Asoka Jayaratne

The use of a comprehensive risk management framework is considered a very effective means of managing water quality risks. There are many risk-based systems available to water utilities such as ISO 9001 and Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP). In 2004, the World Health Organization's (WHO) Guidelines for Drinking Water Quality recommended the use of preventive risk management approaches to manage water quality risks. This paper describes the framework adopted by Yarra Valley Water for the development of its Drinking Water Quality Risk Management Plan incorporating HACCP and ISO 9001 systems and demonstrates benefits of Water Safety Plans such as HACCP.


2011 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. 568-577
Author(s):  
P. F. de Souza ◽  
J. E. Burgess ◽  
M. Swart ◽  
V. Naidoo ◽  
A. Blanckenberg

Despite a good legislative framework, South Africa faces significant challenges in the sustainable provision of adequate and safe water services. To improve the situation, South Africa's Department of Water Affairs (DWA) and other water sector partners undertook initiatives to assist municipalities with operation and management of water services. By way of example, in 2006, the municipal engineering oriented electronic Water Quality Management System (eWQMS) was implemented, providing municipalities with a platform for loading drinking water quality data and tracking performance of key water services management functions. Following this in 2008, DWA introduced an incentive-based regulatory programme, Blue Drop Certification (BDC), and the associated regulatory drinking water quality information system, the Blue Drop System (BDS) which is, for example, populated with data loaded by municipalities onto eWQMS. An integral part of BDC is the development of Water Safety Plans (WSPs). Due to the challenges faced by municipalities in developing WSPs, the Water Research Commission (WRC) saw a need to assist municipalities, and subsequently a generic Water Safety Plan for Small Community Water Supplies was developed. The WRC also saw the need to develop an easy-to-use WSP tool for municipalities. The eWQMS was selected as the platform for making the tool available. This paper presents the development of a web-enabled WSP tool on the eWQMS which ultimately will provide the information to the BDS.


Water ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (20) ◽  
pp. 2905
Author(s):  
Marta Mazzotta ◽  
Silvano Salaris ◽  
Maria Rosaria Pascale ◽  
Luna Girolamini ◽  
Graziella Ciani ◽  
...  

The use of Microfiltered Water Dispensers (MWDs) is increasing in offices, companies, or commercial facilities, as a response to plastic pollution. Despite their widespread use, poor data are available about the water quality and pathogens developed. Starting from a high contamination found in MWDs, a Water Safety Plan (WSP) was implemented on 57 MWDs to improve the water quality. To assess the effectiveness of WSP during the period 2017–2021, the environmental monitoring of heterotrophic plate counts (HPCs) at 36 °C and 22 °C, Enterococcus spp., Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, and Clostridium perfringens, as prescribed by Italian regulation for drinking water, was conducted. A high level of HPCs at both temperatures was observed, over the regulation limit; contrarily, the pathogenic bacteria were absent. The contamination found was studied with respect to the temperature threshold of 25 °C, suggested by directives. No significant differences were found between samples above and below the threshold, while a significant decrease over the years was observed for HPCs at 36 °C (p = 0.0000000001) and 22 °C (p = 0.000006). The WSP implementation resulted in a 43.09% decrease for HPCs at 36 °C and a 24.26% decrease for HPCs at 22 °C. Moreover, during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, the WSP contributed to limit the microbial contamination, preserving the MWDs’ functionality and hygienic conditions and the drinking water quality.


Author(s):  
Dora Cardona Rivas ◽  
Militza Yulain Cardona Guzmán ◽  
Olga Lucía Ocampo López

Objective: To characterize the burden of intestinal infectious diseases attributable to drinking-water quality in 27 municipalities in the central region of Colombia. Materials and methods: A time-trend ecological study. The drinking-water quality of the National Institute of Health and the Institute of Hydrology, Meteorology and Environmental Studies was identified. The disease burden was calculated based on the mortality registered in the National Department of Statistics and the records of morbidity attended by the Social Protection Integrated Information System. The etiological agents reported in morbidity records and the observation of environmental conditions in the municipalities of the study were included. The disease burden was determined according to the methodology recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO).


2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-6
Author(s):  
Roselyn Naidu ◽  
Lionel Joseph ◽  
Syed Sauban Ghani

The current study investigated drinking water quality of samples taken from Arolevu village, a locality situated in Nadi, Fiji. The groundwater samples were collected and subjected to a comprehensive physicochemical and biological analysis. The analysis for the drinking water sample was conducted seasonally, six times a year, that is, three for the dry season and three for the wet season. The results retrieved from the analysis were compared to its maximum contamination levels (MCLs) based on the health-based guidelines provided by the World Health Organization (WHO). The WHO standards were used as an attribute to determine the sources of contaminants likely to be present at the study site. A degradation trend in drinking water quality in the context of climate change may lead to potential health impacts. Hence, it is important to understand seasonal variations in drinking water quality. A proper understanding of the drinking water quality through seasonal water analysis for nitrate, nitrite, potassium, calcium, magnesium and chlorine content as well as its microbiological presence to reduce preventable risks such as using calculated amounts of fertilisers and upgrading the sewerage system to alleviate drinking water contamination is devised through this study.


Author(s):  
Francesca Serio ◽  
Lucia Martella ◽  
Giovanni Imbriani ◽  
Adele Idolo ◽  
Francesco Bagordo ◽  
...  

Background: The quality of water for human consumption is an objective of fundamental importance for the defense of public health. Since the management of networks involves many problems of control and efficiency of distribution, the Water Safety Plan (WSP) was introduced to address these growing problems. Methods: WSP was applied to three companies in which the water resource assumes central importance: five water kiosks, a third-range vegetable processing company, and a residence and care institution. In drafting the plan, the terms and procedures designed and tested for the management of urban distribution systems were applied to safeguard the resource over time. Results: The case studies demonstrated the reliability of the application of the model even to small drinking-water systems, even though it involved a greater effort in analyzing the incoming water, the local intended use, and the possibilities for managing the containment of the dangers to which it is exposed. This approach demonstrates concrete effectiveness in identifying and mitigating the dangers of altering the quality of water. Conclusions: Thanks to the WSP applied to small drinking-water systems, we can move from management that is focused mainly on verifying the conformity of the finished product to the creation of a global risk assessment and management system that covers the entire water supply chain.


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