The issue of Water Quality is as old as man. Although ancient people did appreciate the relationship between sanitation and public health, it was not until the 1800's that much attention was devoted to water treatment. This was partly necessitated by the landmark events of the British cholera epidemics in the 1840's. Water Quality problems have recently been heightened by the incessant pollution of our water bodies, and urgent steps must be taken to ensure that we live healthy lives by drinking water of the requisite sanitary quality. Aqua Vitens Rand Ltd. (AVRL), acting for and on behalf of Ghana Water Company (GWCL), has taken the responsibility of ensuring that this is achieved by employing a comprehensive treatment system via a multiple barrier approach to barricade these pathogens that can inflict pro-found pain, debilitating diseases and even avoidable death on us as humans. The Quality Assurance programme at GWCL/AVRL is structured in a way as to strictly monitor the water right from the source through a nine-stage process, from impoundment, screening and coagulation through filtration and disinfection to pH adjustment. With these stringent treatment systems in place, the public is assured of water supply that is devoid of health-treatment contaminants, unless the water transported to consumers encounters some kind of external intrusion on its way. Too much chemicals in water: This has been a frequent concern. Chlorine is used in disinfecting the water by killing or inactivating pathogens. As a result, residuals of chlorine are left in the water to safeguard it to the taps of consumers so that in the event that there is an intrusion of external material along the distribution system, the residual will quickly act to neutralise that. It is carefully added in controlled amounts (using WHO and Ghana Standards) that do not pose a health threat. A few persons might be scared by the chlorine odour, but it is safer to drink this than water that is aesthetically (in terms of odour) pleasing but microbiologically unsafe for your health because it contains dangerous microbes. Whitish water from taps: When the tap is not flowing, air is trapped in it. The initial flow of water coming through the tap forces this air out and forms thousands of fine bubbles. These bubbles cause the water to appear white. It can be observed that this white-water-phenomenon disappears after a few minutes flow. This poses no threat to human health. Brown water: Alum (the chemical employed to make the water clear) is acidic and makes the water aggressive enough to attack the distribution system, and thus causes corrosion. When water has not flowed through the pipeline for a long time, corrosion occurs. Thus, when water eventually flows the initial volume washes off the corrosion and causes the water to turn brownish. This condition stops after a short while as the pipeline clears. We reduce the occurrence of this problem by adding lime to adjust the pH (i.e. making the water less acidic or aggressive). Should you drink water direct from taps: The water produced by AVRL/GWCL is of adequate physical and sanitary quality and safe for drinking (the ultimate concern considered during treatment). Mere misconceptions ignited through ignorance, force people to drink water of poor quality usually produced under questionable environments and unclean sachets from other manufacturers. It has been established from a lot of research work (e.g K. K. Addo et al. and Dodoo DK et al.) that the quality of water from some of these manufacturers is a threat to public health. As long as the water is clear and odourless, save for the aftertaste of chlorine, it is safe to drink. Sediments in water: This has been one of the unceasing complaints from customers. This could be the result of pipe bursts or leaks which allow dirt to enter the distribution system. You may notice sediments or dirt in the water after our field staffs have repaired a broken pipeline. Allow the tap to run for a while, and the water will clear. If it does not dear, you must report it to the AVRL/GWCL office nearest to you (not a radio station!). Sometimes, however, the dirt in your water is caused by illegal activities. For instance, in 2009, a consumer at La, Accra, reported to the media that he was fetching "black and smelly" water from his tap. It was true. However, investigations carried by AVRL revealed that someone in the neighbourhood had built a wall, without a permit, on a distribution line that eventually forced it to burst. Unfortunately, a cross-connection of wastewater from a nearby batik producer had been flowing into the pipeline, and this ended up in the consumer's taps. Another recent but deeply worrying revelation has been," that of tadpoles flowing through a tap in Tema. A careful investigation revealed that someone had carried out an illegal' connection into his fish ponds, which then created a medium for the tadpoles to swim into the water in the pipelines that eventually got to consumers. All citizens have a shared responsibility to protect public health by exposing persons who engage in illegal activities. Reckless and illegal actions can lead to disaster. We must all avoid the kind of behaviour that caused a major outbreak of Cryptosporidiosis, an intestinal illness that causes stomach cramps, fever, diarrhea and dehydration, in Milwaukee, in 1993. It was the largest record water borne outbreak in US history, affecting 25 per cent (403,000) of the city's population. To prevent such a catastrophe, citizens must co-operate diligently with Ghana Water Company working through Aqua Vitens Rand Ltd. and support them to maintain water quality. Written by Hadisu Alhassan Quality Assurance Officer of Aqua Vitens Rand Ltd. Source: Daily Graphic

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