scholarly journals Water safety plans: planning for adverse events and communicating with consumers

2008 ◽  
Vol 6 (S1) ◽  
pp. 1-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul M. Byleveld ◽  
Daniel Deere ◽  
Annette Davison
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Drinking Water ◽  
Management Approach ◽  
Test Results ◽  
Water Safety ◽  
Public Health Response ◽  
International Consensus ◽  
Health Authorities ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Water Safety Plans

A wide range of microbial and chemical characteristics in drinking water have the potential to affect human health. However, it is not possible or practical to test drinking water for all potentially harmful characteristics. If drinking water is contaminated, people may already be exposed by the time test results are available. The ‘boil water alert’ issued in Sydney, Australia in 1998 following the detection of Cryptosporidium and Giardia in the finished water supply, highlighted the uncertainties associated with the public health response to test results. The Sydney experience supports the international consensus that a preventive risk-management approach to the supply of drinking water (manifesting as water safety plans (WSPs)) is the most reliable way to protect public health. A key component of a comprehensive WSP is that water suppliers and health authorities must have plans to respond in the case of water contamination and/or outbreaks. These plans must include clear guidance on when to issue warnings to consumers, and how these warnings are to be communicated. The pressure on health authorities to develop clear and systematic boil-water guidance will increase as utilities all over the world develop their WSPs.

Drinking water safety plans: barriers and bridges for small systems in Alberta, Canada

Water Policy ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 16 (6) ◽  
pp. 1140-1154 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erika Perrier ◽  
Megan Kot ◽  
Heather Castleden ◽  
Graham A. Gagnon
Keyword(s):  
Drinking Water ◽  
Qualitative Interviews ◽  
Management Approach ◽  
Small Community ◽  
Water Safety ◽  
Water Supplies ◽  
Small Communities ◽  
Implementation Challenges ◽  
Drinking Water Safety ◽  
Water Safety Plans

Water safety plans provide a relatively new management approach for identifying and addressing risks in a water supply. In 2011, the province of Alberta (Canada) became the first jurisdiction in North America to require that all water supplies develop drinking water safety plans (DWSPs). This research explored the implementation of DWSPs through the experiences of ‘early adopter’ operators who work in small communities. Specifically, in-person open-ended qualitative interviews with operators from 15 small communities from across Alberta were conducted to explore implementation challenges and opportunities. The findings highlight a number of barriers associated with the relationships between decision-making bodies, regulatory authorities and water operators, all of which have the potential to support or hinder the uptake of a DWSP. Findings also indicate that a DWSP can act as a bridge, providing a much-needed tool to facilitate communication about water supplies and help to support and manage relationships between stakeholders. This study revealed a number of important and useful insights to the small community early DWSP adopter experience in Canada that could be applied in other jurisdictions looking to adopt similar practices.

scholarly journals A systematic literature review of the enabling environment elements to improve implementation of water safety plans in high-income countries

2017 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 14-24 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rachel Baum ◽  
Jamie Bartram
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Risk Management ◽  
Drinking Water ◽  
High Income ◽  
Water Safety ◽  
Waterborne Disease ◽  
Enabling Environment ◽  
Drinking Water Safety ◽  
Water Safety Plans ◽  
Context Specific

Abstract Effective risk management helps ensure safe drinking water and protect public health. Even in high-income countries, risk management sometimes fails and waterborne disease, including outbreaks, occur. To help reduce waterborne disease, the WHO Guidelines for Drinking Water Quality recommend water safety plans (WSPs), a systematic preventive risk management strategy applied from catchment to consumer. Since the introduction of WSPs, international guidelines, national and state legislation, and local practices have facilitated their implementation. While various high-income OECD countries have documented successes in improving drinking water safety through implementing WSPs, others have little experience. This review synthesizes the elements of the enabling environment that promoted the implementation of WSPs in high-income countries. We show that guidelines, regulations, tools and resources, public health support, and context-specific evidence of the feasibility and benefits of WSPs are elements of the enabling environment that encourage adoption and implementation of WSPs in high-income countries. These findings contribute to understanding the ways in which to increase the uptake and extent of WSPs throughout high-income countries to help improve public health.

scholarly journals Implementation of Water Safety Plans in Bangladesh: Situation and Need Analysis

2013 ◽  
Vol 9 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 141-161 ◽  
Author(s):  
MM Rahman ◽  
CK Paul
Keyword(s):  
Drinking Water ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Primary Data ◽  
Management Approach ◽  
Risk Category ◽  
Well Water ◽  
Successful Implementation ◽  
Water Safety ◽  
Tube Well ◽  
Water Safety Plans

Water safety plans (WSPs) is a comprehensive health-based risk assessment and risk management approach to optimizing drinking-water safely from catchments to consumer. The focus of this research is the development and implementation of water safety plans (WSPs) to be used by the water supplier. The study was conducted at 13 districts and 18 upazills (rural and urban) among the whole Bangladesh. The data were collected during March to May, 2008 to conduct the study. In the study, primary data were collected directly from the respondents while secondary data were collected from different records available at different office, internet and journals. It was found that deep tube well and shallow tube well water was used for drinking purposes by 31.43% and 24.29% respondents respectively where as minority of the respondents used other sources. Perception about the safe drinking water for the respondents was found mostly 63% among all the respondents followed by moderately safe 21%. About 54.29% respondents were found to be fully satisfied about their drinking water followed by moderately satisfied 30%. Among all the beneficiaries 82.86% beneficiaries have been indicated communication materials like booklet, leaflet, poster, manuals, etc was available. This investigation found that 83.33% rain water harvesting plant and 66.67% deep tube well water source were in high risk category. The chances of contamination were high in the period of covering the water vessels during storage of water 64.71%. About 88.10% respondents among all the official respondents received the water safety plans training. About 66.67% officials have been responded that no sanitary inspection was done. Most of the respondents (78.57% beneficiaries and 76.19% organizational personnel) had high perception about the selected benefits of water safety plans. Among all the officials and beneficiaries i.e. 66.67% organizational personnel and 75.71% beneficiaries had high perception in selected limitations to implement the water safety plans. Finally 95.24% organizational personnel and 81.43% beneficiaries had high perception about the selected necessities to successful implementation of water safety plans in Bangladesh. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/jsf.v9i1-2.14657 J. Sci. Foundation, 9(1&2): 141-161, June-December 2011

Keeping drinking water safe: Adopting water safety plans in rural Nepal

Waterlines ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 30 (3) ◽  
pp. 212-222 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nam Raj Khatri ◽  
Han Heijnen
Keyword(s):  
Drinking Water ◽  
Water Safety ◽  
Water Safety Plans ◽  
Rural Nepal

scholarly journals Informing the public health response to COVID-19: a systematic review of risk factors for disease, severity, and mortality

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Flook ◽  
C. Jackson ◽  
E. Vasileiou ◽  
C. R. Simpson ◽  
M. D. Muckian ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Risk Factors ◽  
Systematic Review ◽  
At Risk ◽  
Risk Factor ◽  
Disease Severity ◽  
Severe Disease ◽  
Public Health Response ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Multivariable Analyses

Abstract Background Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) has challenged public health agencies globally. In order to effectively target government responses, it is critical to identify the individuals most at risk of coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19), developing severe clinical signs, and mortality. We undertook a systematic review of the literature to present the current status of scientific knowledge in these areas and describe the need for unified global approaches, moving forwards, as well as lessons learnt for future pandemics. Methods Medline, Embase and Global Health were searched to the end of April 2020, as well as the Web of Science. Search terms were specific to the SARS-CoV-2 virus and COVID-19. Comparative studies of risk factors from any setting, population group and in any language were included. Titles, abstracts and full texts were screened by two reviewers and extracted in duplicate into a standardised form. Data were extracted on risk factors for COVID-19 disease, severe disease, or death and were narratively and descriptively synthesised. Results One thousand two hundred and thirty-eight papers were identified post-deduplication. Thirty-three met our inclusion criteria, of which 26 were from China. Six assessed the risk of contracting the disease, 20 the risk of having severe disease and ten the risk of dying. Age, gender and co-morbidities were commonly assessed as risk factors. The weight of evidence showed increasing age to be associated with severe disease and mortality, and general comorbidities with mortality. Only seven studies presented multivariable analyses and power was generally limited. A wide range of definitions were used for disease severity. Conclusions The volume of literature generated in the short time since the appearance of SARS-CoV-2 has been considerable. Many studies have sought to document the risk factors for COVID-19 disease, disease severity and mortality; age was the only risk factor based on robust studies and with a consistent body of evidence. Mechanistic studies are required to understand why age is such an important risk factor. At the start of pandemics, large, standardised, studies that use multivariable analyses are urgently needed so that the populations most at risk can be rapidly protected. Registration This review was registered on PROSPERO as CRD42020177714.

Implementation of Alberta's drinking water safety plans

2013 ◽  
Vol 49 (1) ◽  
pp. 5-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. C. Reid ◽  
K. Abramowski ◽  
A. Beier ◽  
A. Janzen ◽  
D. Lok ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Drinking Water ◽  
Effective Action ◽  
Main Element ◽  
Quality And Safety ◽  
Biological Parameters ◽  
Water Safety ◽  
Drinking Water Safety ◽  
Regulatory Approach ◽  
Water Safety Plans ◽  
Safety Of Drinking Water

Traditionally, the regulatory approach to maintaining the quality and safety of drinking water has largely been a prescriptive one based on the ability of any given supply to meet standards set for a number of different chemical and biological parameters. There are a number of issues around the assumptions and the limitations of a sampling and analysis regime. The basis for such regimes is essentially reactive rather than proactive and, consequently, the cause of the concern may already have impacted consumers before any effective action can be taken. Environment and Sustainable Resource Development has developed a template for recording drinking water safety plans together with guidance notes to help complete them. The template has been developed in MS-Excel and has been designed in a straightforward step-wise manner with guidance on the completion of each sheet. It includes four main risk tables covering each main element of water supply which are pre-populated with commonly found ‘generic’ risks and these are carefully assessed before considering what action is required to deal with significant risks. Following completion of the risk tables, key risks are identified and the interventions required to bring them into control.

scholarly journals Water safety: one of the primary objectives of our time

2017 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 1 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carlo Collivignarelli
Keyword(s):  
Drinking Water ◽  
Water Supply ◽  
Effective Means ◽  
Water Security ◽  
Limited Resources ◽  
Management Approach ◽  
Water Safety ◽  
Safety Plan ◽  
Water Safety Plan ◽  
The Eu

This article discusses the benefits of an innovative approach to the problem of water security introduced by WHO in 2004, through the establishment of the Water Safety Plan (WSP). It was recently included in Commission Directive (EU) 2015/1787 – October 6, 2015 – the implementation of which is expected in the EU countries by 27 October 2017. The WSP is the most effective means of consistently ensuring the safety of a drinking water supply. The method is based on the use of a comprehensive risk assessment and risk management approach that involves all steps in water supply from catchment to consumer. The knowledge acquired by some experiences of WSP application, both inItalyand in countries with limited resources, is proving the effectiveness of the model as the best way to manage drinking water systems and protect public health.

scholarly journals Implementation and evaluation of the water safety plan approach for buildings

2019 ◽  
Vol 17 (6) ◽  
pp. 870-883 ◽  
Author(s):  
Isabelle Schmidt ◽  
Bettina Rickert ◽  
Oliver Schmoll ◽  
Thomas Rapp
Keyword(s):  
Water Quality ◽  
Drinking Water ◽  
Drinking Water Quality ◽  
World Health ◽  
Management Approach ◽  
Successful Implementation ◽  
Water Safety ◽  
Positive Effects ◽  
Drinking Water Safety ◽  
Premise Plumbing

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.

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