Setting microbiological water quality standards for sea bathing - a critical evaluation

The World Health Organization (WHO) recently produced draft guidelines for safe recreational water environments. The microbiological standards proposed in the guidelines are expected to over-estimate the degree of water quality required to provide given levels of public health protection. The WHO standards were obtained by means of a risk assessment which featured a dose-response model derived from a series of randomised controlled trials. The trials have many strengths but biases and problems with statistical analysis are likely to have led to over-estimation of the risks from bathing in the dose-response model. In addition, the WHO risk assessment failed to consider the effects of uncertainty and variability in risk estimates and sensitivity to model assumptions. Improved standards could be obtained by extending the risk assessment to examine these effects and by incorporating a suitably revised dose-response model.

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Analysis of Physiochemical Parameters to Evaluate the Drinking Water Quality in the State of Perak, Malaysia

Journal of Chemistry ◽

10.1155/2015/716125 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 2015 ◽

pp. 1-10 ◽

Cited By ~ 48

Author(s):

N. Rahmanian ◽

Siti Hajar Bt Ali ◽

M. Homayoonfard ◽

N. J. Ali ◽

M. Rehan ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Water Quality ◽

Drinking Water ◽

Quality Standard ◽

The State ◽

Drinking Water Quality ◽

World Health ◽

Physiochemical Parameters ◽

Health Organization ◽

Public Health Protection ◽

Physical And Chemical

The drinking water quality was investigated in suspected parts of Perak state, Malaysia, to ensure the continuous supply of clean and safe drinking water for the public health protection. In this regard, a detailed physical and chemical analysis of drinking water samples was carried out in different residential and commercial areas of the state. A number of parameters such as pH, turbidity, conductivity, total suspended solids (TSS), total dissolved solids (TDS), and heavy metals such as Cu, Zn, Mg, Fe, Cd, Pb, Cr, As, Hg, and Sn were analysed for each water sample collected during winter and summer periods. The obtained values of each parameter were compared with the standard values set by the World Health Organization (WHO) and local standards such as National Drinking Water Quality Standard (NDWQS). The values of each parameter were found to be within the safe limits set by the WHO and NDWQS. Overall, the water from all the locations was found to be safe as drinking water. However, it is also important to investigate other potential water contaminations such as chemicals and microbial and radiological materials for a longer period of time, including human body fluids, in order to assess the overall water quality of Perak state.

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Drinking-Water Quality and Intestinal Infectious Diseases in a Colombian Department, 2010-2016

Global Journal of Medical Research ◽

10.34257/gjmrfvol20is10pg21 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 21-29

Author(s):

Dora Cardona Rivas ◽

Militza Yulain Cardona Guzmán ◽

Olga Lucía Ocampo López

Keyword(s):

Water Quality ◽

Drinking Water ◽

Infectious Diseases ◽

Disease Burden ◽

Social Protection ◽

Drinking Water Quality ◽

World Health ◽

The Social ◽

Etiological Agents ◽

Health Organization

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).

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How India Fights with COVID-19 with Learning from Highly Affected Countries

Current Signal Transduction Therapy ◽

10.2174/1574362415999200807154418 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 15 ◽

Author(s):

Pooja Sharma ◽

Karan Veer

Keyword(s):

Risk Assessment ◽

Gene Sequencing ◽

Lessons Learned ◽

World Health ◽

Global Risk ◽

The World ◽

Global Risk Assessment ◽

Health Organization ◽

Very High ◽

Breathing Problem

: It was 11 March 2020 when the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the name COVID-19 for coronavirus disease and also described it as a pandemic. Till that day 118,000 cases were confirmed of pneumonia with breathing problem throughout the world. At the start of New Year when COVID-19 came into knowledge a few days later, the gene sequencing of the virus was revealed. Today the number of confirmed cases is scary, i.e. 9,472,473 in the whole world and 484,236 deaths have been recorded by WHO till 26 June 2020. WHO's global risk assessment is very high [1]. The report is enlightening the lessons learned by India from the highly affected countries.

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Assessment of drinking water contamination in food stalls of Jashore Municipality, Bangladesh

Applied Water Science ◽

10.1007/s13201-021-01470-w ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (8) ◽

Author(s):

Molla Rahman Shaibur ◽

Mohammed Sadid Hossain ◽

Shirina Khatun ◽

F. K. Sayema Tanzia

Keyword(s):

Water Quality ◽

Drinking Water ◽

World Health Organization ◽

Fast Food ◽

Pathogenic Bacteria ◽

Permissible Limit ◽

World Health ◽

Drinking Water Contamination ◽

The World ◽

Health Organization

AbstractThis study aimed to determine the quality of drinking water supplied in different types of food stalls in Jashore Municipality, Bangladesh. A total of 35 water samples were collected from different tea stalls, street side fast food stalls, normal restaurants and well-furnished restaurants. The water quality was evaluated by determining the distinct physical, chemical and biological parameters. The results revealed that the water used in the food stalls and restaurants for drinking purpose was in desired quality in terms of turbidity, electrical conductivity, pH, total dissolved solids, nitrate (NO3−), sulfate (SO42−), phosphate (PO43−), chloride (Cl−), sodium (Na) and potassium (K) concentrations. The values were within the permissible limit proposed by the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics and the World Health Organization. Concentrations of calcium (Ca) and magnesium (Mg) found in several samples were higher than the World Health Organization standard. Iron (Fe) concentrations were higher than the permissible limit of the World Health Organization. Only 46% exceeded the permissible limit of Bangladesh Bureau Statistics. The threatening result was that the samples were contaminated by fecal coliform, indicating that the people of Jashore Municipality may have a greater chance of being affected by pathogenic bacteria. The drinking water provided in the street side fast food stalls was biologically contaminated. The findings demonstrate that the drinking water used in food stalls and restaurants of Jashore Municipality did not meet up the potable drinking water quality standards and therefore was detrimental to public health.

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Classification Maps for TDS Concentrations in the GIS Along Euphrates River, Iraq

Water Air & Soil Pollution ◽

10.1007/s11270-021-05236-7 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 232 (8) ◽

Author(s):

Ali Chabuk ◽

Zahraa Ali Hammood ◽

Nadhir Al-Ansari ◽

Salwan Ali Abed ◽

Jan Laue

Keyword(s):

Water Quality ◽

Drinking Water ◽

World Health Organization ◽

World Health ◽

Euphrates River ◽

Poor Water Quality ◽

Quality Category ◽

Health Organization ◽

Dissolved Salts

AbstractIraq currently undergoing the problem of water shortage, although Iraq has two Rivers (Euphrates and Tigris) pass throughout most of its areas, and they have represented a major source of water supply. In the current research, to evaluate the quality of the Euphrates river in Iraq based on the values of total dissolved salts (TDS), the TDS concentrations were collected from sixteen sections along the river in the three succeeding years (2011, 2012, and 2013). The evaluation of the river was done depending on the classification of (W.H.O. (World Health Organization). (2003). Total Dissolved Salts in Drinking-water: Background document for development of W.H.O. Guidelines for Drinking-water Quality. World Health Organization, 20 Avenue Appia, 1211 Geneva 27, Switzerland). of rivers for drinking uses. Inverse Distance Weighting Technique (IDWT) as a tool in the GIS was employed to establish the maps of the river that using interpolation/prediction for the TDS concentrations to each selected year and the average values of TDS for these 3 years. Based on the five categories of rivers’ classification of the TDS concentrations according to the (W.H.O. (World Health Organization). (2003). Total Dissolved Salts in Drinking-water: Background document for development of W.H.O. Guidelines for Drinking-water Quality. World Health Organization, 20 Avenue Appia, 1211 Geneva 27, Switzerland), the Euphrates river was classified, and the maps of classification for the years 2011, 2012 and 2013 and the average values for 3 years were created. The average values for 3 years of TDS along the Euphrates river indicated that the sections from SC-1 to SC-4 as moderate-water-quality-Category-3, the sections from SC-5 to SC-10 as poor-water-quality-Category-4, while the sections between SC-11 to SC-16 as very poor-water-quality-Category-5. The interpolation maps showed that the Euphrates river in Iraq was ranged from moderate water quality (Category-3) to very poor water quality (Category-5).

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Physico-chemical and Biological Properties of Groundwater Quality in Rural Settlement, Nadi, Fiji

Asian Journal of Water Environment and Pollution ◽

10.3233/ajw210001 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 18 (1) ◽

pp. 1-6

Author(s):

Roselyn Naidu ◽

Lionel Joseph ◽

Syed Sauban Ghani

Keyword(s):

Water Quality ◽

Drinking Water ◽

Biological Properties ◽

Drinking Water Quality ◽

World Health ◽

Wet Season ◽

Potential Health ◽

Drinking Water Contamination ◽

Contamination Levels ◽

Health Organization

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.

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Evaluation of Chemical Parameters of Urban Drinking Water Quality along with Health Risk Assessment: A Case Study of Ardabil Province, Iran

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph18105179 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 18 (10) ◽

pp. 5179

Author(s):

Reza Aghlmand ◽

Saeed Rasi Nezami ◽

Ali Abbasi

Keyword(s):

Water Quality ◽

Risk Assessment ◽

Drinking Water ◽

Health Risk ◽

Health Risk Assessment ◽

Water Distribution ◽

Hazard Quotient ◽

Hazard Index ◽

World Health ◽

Study Region

In recent years, in addition to water resources’ quantity, their quality has also received much attention. In this study, the quality of the urban water distribution network in northwestern Iran was evaluated using the water quality index (WQI) method. Then, some important trace elements were investigated, and finally, the health risk assessment was evaluated for both carcinogenic elements (Ni, Cd, Cr, Pb, and As) and non-carcinogenic elements (Ca, Mg, Na, K, F, NO3, and Cu) using carcinogenic risk (CR) and hazard quotient (HQ), respectively. In the present study, the WQI was calculated based on both World Health Organization (WHO) and Iranian drinking water standards. Comparing the results of these standards revealed that the WQI based on the Iranian standard was slightly higher. Regarding the calculated WQI for the study region, the status of water quality for drinking consumption is in the good water quality class (25 < WQI < 50). It was observed that Cu and Cd have the highest and lowest concentrations in all sampling points, respectively. Hazard Index (HI) results showed that the non-carcinogenic substances studied had a low risk for both adults and children (<1.0). However, the CR results showed that Ni, Cd, and As were above the desired level for both children and adults. The results of this study can be applied for efficient water management and human health protection programs in the study area.

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Evaluation of Groundwater Quality in the Vicinity of Khurrianwala Industrial Zone, Pakistan

Water ◽

10.3390/w10101321 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 10 (10) ◽

pp. 1321 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Muhammad Aleem ◽

Cao Shun ◽

Chao Li ◽

Arslan Aslam ◽

Wu Yang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Water Quality ◽

Groundwater Quality ◽

Anthropogenic Activities ◽

World Health ◽

Total Hardness ◽

Industrial Zone ◽

High Concentration ◽

Physico Chemical ◽

Health Organization ◽

National Environmental

The industrial augmentation and unguided anthropogenic activities contaminate water sources in most parts of the world especially in developing countries like Pakistan. High concentration of pollutants in groundwater affects human, soil, and crop health badly. The present study was conducted to investigate groundwater quality for drinking and irrigation purposes in an industrial zone of Pakistan. A GIS tool was used to investigate the spatial distribution of different physico-chemical parameters. In this study, the average results exceeding World Health Organization (WHO) and National Environmental Quality Standards (NEQS) were found for pH 7.84, total dissolved solids (TDS) 1492 mg/L, phosphate 0.51 mg/L, dissolved oxygen (DO) 9.92% saturation, F-coli 6.48 colonies/100 mL, Na+ 366 mg/L, HCO3− 771 mg/L, sulfate 251 mg/L, chlorides 427 mg/L, total hardness (as CaCO3) 292 mg/L, electrical conductivity (EC) 2408 μS/cm, iron (Fe) 0.48 mg/L, chrome (Cr) 0.50 mg/L, arsenic (As) 0.04 mg/L, total phosphorus (TP) 0.17 mg/L, sodium adsorption ratio (SAR) 9.76 (in meq/L), residual sodium carbonate (RSC) 9.28 meq/L, % ion balance 14.4 (in meq/L), percentage sodium ion (% Na+) concentration 58.9 meq/L, and water quality index (WQI) 69.0. The trend of cations and anions were (in meq/L) Na > Mg > Ca > K and HCO3 > Cl > CO3 > SO4 respectively. Although the results of the present study showed poor conditions of the groundwater for drinking as WQI but and irrigation purposes as SAR, it needs to improve some more conditions for the provision of safe drinking water and irrigation water quality.

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Effects of Water Quality and Post-Harvest Handling on Microbiological Contamination of Lettuce at Urban and Peri-Urban Locations of Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso

Foods ◽

10.3390/foods7120206 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 7 (12) ◽

pp. 206 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Juliane Dao ◽

Kathrin Stenchly ◽

Oumar Traoré ◽

Philip Amoah ◽

Andreas Buerkert

Keyword(s):

Water Quality ◽

Irrigation Water ◽

World Health ◽

Vegetable Production ◽

Salmonella Spp ◽

Total Coliforms ◽

E Coli ◽

Post Harvest ◽

Health Organization ◽

Production Areas

Vegetable production in urban gardens of Ouagadougou contributes to food security, but water for irrigation is often of low quality. This is particularly acute if irrigation water is taken from wastewater polluted channels. This study aimed at (i) verifying to what degree irrigation water quality is correlated with contamination of lettuce with Escherichia coli, total coliforms, and Salmonella spp., and (ii) assessing effects of post-harvest handling on pathogen development during the trade chain. We tested pathogen removal efficiency on lettuce by applying post-harvest washing. Irrigation water of production areas in Ouagadougou (n = 10) showed a mean E. coli load of 2.1 × 105 CFU 100 mL−1. In 60% of the cases, irrigation water did not meet the standards of the World Health Organization (WHO) for safe irrigation water, and in 30% of the cases, irrigation water was contaminated with Salmonella spp. Loads of total coliforms on lettuce leaves ranged from 2.9 × 103 CFU g−1 to 1.3 × 106 CFU g−1, while E. coli averaged 1.1 × 102 CFU g−1. Results on post-harvest handling revealed that microbial loads increased along the trade chain. Overall, half of all lettuce samples (n = 60) were tested positively for Salmonella spp. The experiment showed that appropriate post-harvest handling could prevent the increase of total coliforms.

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Water Quality of the Trstionica River (Bosnia and Herzegovina)

Kemija u industriji ◽

10.15255/kui.2019.061 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 69 (7-8) ◽

pp. 371-376

Author(s):

Šuhreta Delibašić ◽

Jasna Huremović ◽

Sabina Žero ◽

Sabina Gojak-Salimović

Keyword(s):

Water Quality ◽

Bosnia And Herzegovina ◽

Limit Of Detection ◽

Weather Conditions ◽

Ion Exchange Resin ◽

World Health ◽

Mean Values ◽

Significant Difference ◽

Health Organization

The present study was conducted to investigate the water quality of the Trstionica River, Bosnia and Herzegovina. The physicochemical properties (temperature, pH, conductivity, total solids after evaporation at 105 °C), content of metals (calcium (Ca), cadmium (Cd), chromium (Cr), copper (Cu), iron (Fe), magnesium (Mg), manganese (Mn), sodium (Na), nickel (Ni), lead (Pb) and zinc (Zn)), and anions (chloride (Cl–), and phosphate (PO43–)) were determined in water samples collected at seven locations during two sampling periods: unstable weather conditions (precipitation), and stable weather conditions (without precipitation). There was a significant difference in the content of individual parameters in the river water depending on the sampling time. For determination of metals concentrations, which were below the limit of detection, a preconcentration method using an ion-exchange resin was applied. The metals concentrations during the rainy day were in the order Ca > Mg > Na > Fe > Cu > Zn > Pb > Mn with mean values of 343, 6.03, 1.94, 0.18, 0.20, 0.03, 0.02, 0.01 mg dm–3, respectively, and during stable weather conditions: Ca > Mg > Na > Cu > Fe > Mn > Zn with mean values of 288, 7.62, 2.38, 0.11, 0.10, 0.01, 0.01 mg dm–3, respectively. Cd, Cr, and Ni concentrations were below limit of detection in both cases. Obtained values were compared with World Health Organization (WHO) regulations. The results showed that the Trstionica River in the investigated part of the stream meets most of the parameters required by the regulations. The correlation between analysed parameters was assessed, as well. Based on the calculated water quality index values, the water of Trstionica River falls into the category of excellent water.

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