Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Introduction
Waterborne disease remains one of the major health concerns in the world. Based
on present estimates, one-sixth of humanity lack access to any form of safe and improved
water supply within 1 kilometer of their home and one-fifth of humanity lack access to any
form of adequate and improved excreta disposal (WHO and UNICEF 2000). Endemic and
epidemic disease derived from unsafe water supply affects all nations. Outbreaks of
waterborne disease continue to occur in both developed and developing countries, leading to
loss of life, disease and economic burden for individuals and communities. Strategies to
improve water quality, in conjunction with improvements in excreta disposal and personal
hygiene can be expected to deliver substantial health gains in the population.
Better health protection is one major reason for the adoption of strategies to improve
drinking water quality. Water suppliers have a duty of care to persons utilizing the water or
service that they supply and therefore, need to be aware of the regulatory and policy
framework within which they must operate including common law (where appropriate),
statute, policy, guidelines and best management practice. Water suppliers should therefore
acquit their operation in a duly diligent manner such that reasonably foreseeable harm is
identified, prevented and reasonable measures are taken to protect the consumer.
There is a wide range of contaminants that may be found in drinking water, some of
which can have adverse health effects on consumers. Understanding the nature of sources
of contamination and how these may enter the water supply is critical for assuring water
safety.
An important strategy in providing safe drinking water for the consumer is the multiple
barrier approach (Teunis et al. in preparation) the application of which is often restricted to the
actual water treatment process. As the detection and enumeration of pathogenic
microorganisms from contaminated water is both difficult and costly, reliance has traditionally
been placed on the examination for microbial indicators of pollution (Dufour et al. 2003).
These indicators are usually non-pathogenic bacteria, which are present in fecal material in
large amounts. Their enumeration is relatively easy and inexpensive (in comparison with that
for individual pathogens). Microbial contaminants, however, are not limited to bacteria and
illness may result from exposure to pathogenic viruses or protozoa, both of which have
different environmental behavior and survival characteristics to bacteria. This, coupled with
the fact that testing of water immediately prior to, or within, distribution (end product testing)
can only highlight a potential health problem after the water has been consumed, has led to
the recognition of the need to adopt additional approaches to assuring water quality and
safety.
The most cost-effective and basic way of consistently assuring a supply of acceptable
drinking water is the application of some form of risk management based on sound science
and supported by appropriate monitoring methods and programs. It is important that risk
management is inclusive and, therefore, needs to cover the whole system from catchment to
consumer.
The risk management approach adopted in this plan was based largely upon HACCP
(Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point). The principles of HACCP (which is a preventive
risk management system that has been in use by the food manufacturing industry for a
number of decades) are based on developing an understanding of the system, prioritizing
risks and ensuring that appropriate control measures are in place to reduce risks to an
acceptable level.
These principles have been refined and tailored to the context of drinking water
following the application of HACCP by several water utilities including in the US (Barry et al.
1998) and Australia (Deere and Davison 1998; Gray and Morain 2000; Deere et al. 2001).
The experience of the application of HACCP by water utilities has informed the development
of the water safety plan approach.
A water safety plan, therefore, comprises system assessment and design, operational
monitoring and management plans (including documentation and communication).
Know your
catchment
Safe drinking
water
Constituents of drinking water may cause adverse health effects from single
exposures (e.g. microbial pathogens) or long-term exposures (e.g. many chemicals). Due to
the range of constituents in water, their mode of action, and nature of fluctuations of
concentrations, there are four principle types of health-based targets used as a basis for
identifying safety requirements enumerated as follows:
Established for individual drinking water constituents, which represent a health risk
from long-term exposure and where fluctuations in concentration are small or occur over long
periods. They are typically expressed as Guideline values (concentrations) of the chemicals
of concern.
Performance targets
Performance targets are employed as part of the drinking water management system
for constituents where short-term exposure represents a public health risk, or where large
fluctuation in numbers or concentration can occur over short periods of time with significant
health implications. They are typically expressed in terms of required reductions of the
substance of concern or effectiveness in preventing contamination.
National regulatory agencies may establish targets for specific actions for smaller
municipal, community and household water supplier. Such targets may identify specific
permissible devices or processes for given situations and/or generic drinking-water system
types.
• system assessment;
The objectives of a water safety plan are to ensure safe drinking-water through good
water supply practice, that is:
• treat the water to reduce or remove contamination that could be present to the
extent necessary to meet the water quality targets; and
Water entering Treatment Moderate/ Treatment is Optimized Treatment Ct value, Hourly/daily Operations Take treatment unit off-
distribution is failure Catastrophic effective treatment plant moves Residual staff line and apply
contaminated out of disinfectant, appropriate corrective
compliance Particle count action
Turbidity
Inspection
Microbial Birds/ animal Unlikely/ Ensure All vents covered, Vent or Sanitary Daily Operations Repair and replace
contamination contamination Catastrophic service inspection covers inspection inspection staff damaged vents and
of service of service reservoirs are in place and covers not in inspection covers. Cut
reservoir reservoirs bird and locked. place or back tree branches.
animal proof No tree branches damaged;
overhang fence
reservoir. Fence damaged,
around tank tree branch
encroach on
tank
Microbial Biofilm and Likely/Minor Manage Interior of Biofilm Sanitary Daily Operations Take tank off-line during
contamination sediment may biofilm and reservoir is clean develops, inspection, staff cleaning and flushing.
derived biofilm slough or be sediment and sediment is increase in chlorine Flush mains after
and/or disturbed. minimized and chlorine residuals, completion with
sediment in undisturbed consumption turbidity Biofilm chlorinated water
service coupons
reservoir.
Ingress of Leaks in tanks Unlikely/Minor Structural Tank structure Drainage Sanitary Daily Operations Clear drainage channels.
contaminated below ground integrity and sound with no channels inspection staff Take tanks off-line for
water into or where drainage cracks and blocked, repairs. Flush tank and
service stagnant water drainage channels cracks distribution before
reservoir collects around in good condition develop in recommissioning
base tank
structure
Hazard event Cause Risk Control Critical Limits Monitoring Corrective Action
Measure
Target Action What When Who
Contamination Valve boxes Moderate/ Structural Valve box with Water build Sanitary Daily Operations Repair leaks drains and
enters become Major (depends integrity and permeable base up within inspection staff valve box. Repair valve if
distribution inundated by on location and drainage and adequate valve box; showing signs of wear
system at contaminated population drainage drainage
valves at surface water served) damaged or
service requires
reservoir cleaning
Contamination Major sluice Moderate/ Structural Valve box with Water build Sanitary Daily Operations Repair leaks drains and
enters valves are Major (depends integrity and permeable base up within inspection, staff valve box. Repair valve if
distribution inundated by on location and maintenance and adequate valve box, chlorine showing signs of wear.
system at major contaminated population of valve boxes drainage damage to residual,
sluice valves in water served) drains or turbidity
distribution drains in
need of
cleaning
Contamination Intermittence or Likely/ Ensure Backflow Backflow Sanitary Weekly/ Operations Utility to provide advice
enters pressure Moderate backflow preventers preventer inspection of monthly staff to institution on water
distribution fluctuations preventers function correctly absent/faulty backflow quality management
system from lead to back- (one-way and water quality Absence of a preventers plan. Repair to backflow
major institution siphoning from valves) management plan water quality preventers
large installed developed and management
institutions into Institutional followed plan
mains. WSP
developed
Contamination Leaking sewer Likely/ Good design Systems designed Sudden Chlorine Monthly Operations Leaks in water supply
results from lie to close to Catastrophic and sewer and to prevent cross- chlorine loss, residual, (both water and sewer should be
cross mains and (depends on mains leakage connection under risk turbidity, and sewerage repaired rapidly;
connections to allows location and control all circumstance assessment sanitary rehabilitation to improve
sewer system pathogens to population programs indicates inspection/ risk hydrostatic pressure; cut-
directly enter served) elevated risk mod off walls in high-risk
the supply areas
Hazard event Cause Risk Control Critical Limits Monitoring Corrective Action
Measure
Target Action What When Who
Back-siphoning Leaks in pipe Likely/ Reduce Piped water Sudden loss Chlorine Daily Management/ Reduce intermittence.
of combined with Moderate intermittence supply with of chlorine, residuals, Operations Leakage control
contaminated drops in (depends on and limit leakage control increase in turbidity, program. Where
water pressure (either location and potential for program and turbidity, risk sanitary intermittence
intermittence or population transient positive assessment inspection/ risk unavoidable, disinfection
transient served) pressure hydrostatic indicates model strategy developed. Cut-
pressure waves by pressure Cut-off high risk off walls constructed in
waves) allow limiting direct walls Limited high risk areas Reduce
ingress of water connections water hammer transient pressure waves
containing on pumping
pathogens from mains
fecal
contaminated
soils
Contamination Poor hygiene in Moderate/ Hygienic Hygiene code Evidence Turbidity Daily Management/ Ensure that hygiene
introduced repair work Catastrophic codes of developed, that hygiene Chlorine Operations code is prepared and
during repairs allows practice for available to all code not residuals Site made available to all
on distribution contamination work on staff and followed followed inspection staff. Training in good
system to enter into the distribution hygiene for mains repair
system mains teams
Biofilm Biofilm Moderate/ Minimize Little biofilm Increases in Chlorine Daily Operations Replacement of high
sloughing into develops minor biofilm developed and turbidity, residual, color, adherence pipe material,
drinking water because of high formation limited risk of chlorine loss, turbidity, odor, improve biological
AOC content (chlorination sloughing changes in customer stability through
and lack of or use color complaints, optimized treatment,
control biologically corrosion improve steady state flow
strategy. stable water) coupons
Hydraulic
changes
(surges/water
hammer) lead
to sloughing
Verification plan
Verification of utility supplies would usually be the responsibility of the utility that
operates the system. Surveillance agencies should undertake regular audits of the supplier
records and may undertake some independent testing of water quality. Verification should be
ongoing and include regular testing, as well as periodically performing more extensive
assessments and internal audits. The latter would typically be carried out on an annual basis.
<5000 12
5000 – 100,000 12 per 5000 head of population
>100 000-5000K 12 per 10 000 head of population
plus an additional 120 samples
>500,000 12 per 100,000 head of population + an
additional 180 samples
Routine verification would primarily focus on testing for E.coli and turbidity, with
sanitary inspections also performed. Other parameters may be identified as appropriate, for
instance routine analysis of Clostridium perfingens of treatment performance. There should
be regular verification of the chemical quality of source and final waters, with the parameters
selected based upon an initial risk assessment. In the distribution system, testing of
chemicals for verification may be less frequent and should be determined on the basis of a
risk assessment.