Successful Disinfection of a New Healthcare Facility Contaminated with Pseudomonas aeruginosa

Contamination of water use points in health establishments is a frequent and concerning problem. Maintenance and disinfection of water systems can be inefficient. Sterilizing filters are commonly used at selected taps. We report diagnostic and corrective approaches that have succeeded in making a contaminated health facility sustainably compatible with its activity without restriction in taps use. The zones contaminated with pseudomonas as well as those, along the water networks, at risk of biofilm development were identified. Corrective measures on the network and various types of decontamination were carried out. At the end of this work, the bacterial load in the water significantly decreased and 219 out of 223 controls were negative for P. aeruginosa over 3 years of follow-up. Four positive results were linked to three taps not used for care which were satisfactorily treated locally. Errors at the design and setup phases of health facilities may result in resistant bacterial contamination. P. aeruginosa contamination of newly built healthcare facilities is an underreported problem. Guidelines on design, disinfection, and monitoring procedures of water networks of healthcare facilities should be adapted consequently and would certainly improve the offered care limiting patients’ risk and avoid many unwanted financial situations for the providers.

Development and calibration of an integrative passive sampler for monitoring VCM in drinking water networks

This paper evaluates the applicability of a new sampling device for monitoring vinyl chloride monomer (VCM) in drinking water networks. This system consists of an adsorbing cartridge filled with a strong adsorbent enclosed between two sheets of polyethylene-polyamide membrane. The passive sampler (PS) combines preconcentration on the cartridge with easy extraction by thermal desorption into a gas chromatograph (GC), coupled with a tandem mass spectrometer (MS/MS). In order to estimate the suitability of the device for this application, samplers were calibrated in a hydraulic pilot under controlled parameters. The influences of temperature, flow velocity and variation of concentration of exposure were then examined. Linear uptake was observed during a VCM exposure of 12 days and the effect of temperature on the sampling rate was evaluated. This sampling device responds to an aquatic environmental contamination and Public Health issue, both by the organic volatile contaminant monitored in this environment, and by the sampling approach, still little used in drinking water networks. It offers a complementary monitoring to the current technique, providing a more representative assessment of the temporal contamination.

Impact of active night population and leakage exponent on leakage estimation in developing countries

Methods for network leakage estimation include water balance, component analysis and minimum night flow (MNF) methods the latter of which involves subtracting the customer night use (QCNU) from night leakage and multiplying by the hour day factor (HDF). QCNU and HDF respectively depend on Active Night Population (ANP) and leakage exponent (N1). In most developing countries, these parameters are assumed in the MNF method thus introducing errors which makes setting realistic leakage reduction targets and key performance indicators (KPI) problematic. In this study, QCNU and HDF were evaluated by determining the relative error associated with ANP and N1 to establish localized rates for accurately estimating leakage in water networks. Between 7 and 11% relative error was associated with every 1% higher or lower ANP while up to 4% relative error was observed for every step considered. A linear relationship exists between the relative error associated with both and ANP although that of ANP is twice as high as This has technical implications on setting water loss reduction targets and investing in the water infrastructure. It is recommended that water utilities must establish localized ANP and values for accurate leakage estimation in water networks.

Economic Feasibility Analysis Development of Intake and Raw Water Pipelines in Kota Bangun Sub-District, Indonesia

Increasing the population in Kota Bangun Sub-District, Kutai Kartanegara Regency, in line with the consequence that growing needs for drinking water and raw water for local communities become a top priority. Public complaints about the increasing difficulty of obtaining clean water seem to be an obstacle that the Regional Government has yet to resolve fully. The production capacity of PDAM Kota Bangun is currently only 30 liters/sec, which is far from sufficient for the needs of all people in the Kota Bangun Sub-District. Economic feasibility calculation analysis utilized the NPV, IRR, and BCR methods and sensitivity analysis to obtain the economic feasibility for the value of developing intake and raw water networks. The results indicate, with a reasonable life condition of 30 years, the construction of water networks in Kota Bangun is still economically feasible. Reasonable with the minimum requirement of BCR = 1, with sensitivity analysis on two scenarios, considerations of 30% and 20% leakage, and 30.55% and 25% administrative costs. The results of the research show that IRR = 17.70%. If the analysis conditions are that investment costs increase by 10% with Fixed Benefits, the payback period is 6.8 years.