Municipal water: Can we leave it to others to guarantee safe drinking water?
Contaminants in water never bothered us before,. so why should it now? We considered the millions liters of water treated by municipalities always to be crystal clean. We accept that the water we use daily to be safe for our families and children’s health. We accept that the water treatment facilities are free of defects and that the people that operate them are responsible, well trained and trustful. We accept that the equipment they use are free of defects and that they will operate correctly and smooth day and night. We accept that there are no pollution of the drinking water in the pipelines after the water leave the water treatment facilities and that the pipes are not corroded inside. We drink municipal tap and borehole water all our lives and don’t have any knowledge of serious problems before. Nothing can go wrong - if we are concerned, we buy expensive bottle water anyway.
But, research on drinking water, locally and overseas, about the quality of drinking tap water is of great concern. Scientists only recently discovered the importance of clean drinking water and the dangers effecting our health. In 1900, one out of fifty people worldwide died of cancer, today one out of seven South Africans will get cancer during their lives. A host of contaminants that dissolve into water supplies, is known to cause cancer of the bladder, lung, and skin and is suspected to cause cancers of the liver and kidney.
Well documented statistics and facts over a wide range of water born diseases and risks are shocking. Waterborne illnesses caused by various bacteria, viruses and protozoa usually occur as a result of inadequately treated drinking and wastewater. Microscopic parasites like Giardia and Cryptosporidium is considered one of the most common sources of waterborne illness, causing persistent diarrhea. In some cases, it even can be fatal.
What can go wrong?
Report finds Free State water a threat to health. The report, compiled by the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, revealed that the quality of drinking water posed a threat to public health in 11 Free State towns. 2005/11/01 http://www.csir.co.za/web source/ptl0002/docs/news/report.pdf
Town living in fear of typhoid 06/09/2005 22:55 - (SA)
Delmas in Mpumalanga is living in fear after at least 18 people were admitted to hospitals with suspected typhoid fever. A reliable source in the health department told reporter Buks Viljoen that Delmas's drinking water was contaminated. http://www.wheels24.co.za/News24/South_Africa/News/0,,2-7-1442_1766197,00.html
Guests fall ill at luxury lodge 25/10/2005 22:19 - (SA)
Komatipoort - Scores of guests at the luxury time-share Ngwenya Lodge on the banks of the Crocodile River had to receive medical treatment after drinking water contaminated with E.col i. The problem apparently occurred after the water had been purified.
http://www.landbou.com/News24/South_Africa/News/0,,2-7-1442_1823328,00.html
Dirty water linked to deaths - News24.com 2 October 2002
Bloemfontein - Sewage contamination in the Free State town of Rouxville's drinking water was confirmed as the cause of a recent gastroenteritis epidemic in which at least two people had died and two women miscarried. http://www.baselpretoria.org.za/from_the_media.htm
Die departement van waterwese gaan die watersuiwering werke in Bronkhorstspruit, oos van Pretoria, opgradeer nadat drinkwater wat met ontlasting besmet was, vermoedelik veroorsaak het dat sowat 1 450 mense in Mpumalanga en Gauteng onlangs deur 'n maag epidemie platgetrek is.
Volgens mnr. Paul Britz, direkteur van distrik gesondheid, was daar 'n skerp styging in die voorkoms van diarree onder inwoners nadat die chlorineerder by die suiwerings werke in die laaste week van Januarie oor 'n naweek onklaar geraak het. Mar 02 2005 10:02:50:767PM
http://www.news24.com/Beeld/Suid-Afrika/0,,3-975_1670493,00.html
Gesondheidsowerhede het die versekering gegee dat die situasie in Delmas waar maagkoors uitgebreek het, feitlik onder beheer is. Meer as 116 gevalle van die siekte is op die dorp bevestig, terwyl meer as 700 mense vir diarree behandel word. Die woordvoerder van die Gesondheidsdepartement in Mpumalanga, John Mlangeni, sê almal op die dorp het nou skoon water wat van Rand Water af kom. Toetse het bevestig dat al die ondergrondse water wat plaaslike reservoirs van water voorsien, met e-coli besmet is. 'n Dringende beroep is op inwoners gedoen om nie die kraanwater te drink nie. http://www.delmasmall.co.za/index_nuus%20_1.htm
South Africa's under funded, badly managed sewage works in many towns are "ticking time bombs" that could lead to outbreaks of waterborne diseases, while drinking water in many rural towns fails to meet government health standards.
http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=14&click_id=14&art_id=vn20060621004951714C624719
Shock report on drinking water in SA’s towns The survey, based on the self- assessed performance of SA’s 170 water-service authorities, found 61% of them perceived their drinking water to be of “good” or “ideal” standard, yet only 58% regularly monitored it.
http://www.businessday.co.za/articles/topstories.aspx?ID=BD4A94593
Few people had heard of Cryptosporidium, or the disease it causes, cryptosporidiosis, until tragedy struck Milwaukee, Wisconsin (USA) in 1993 when 100 people died and 400,000 others became ill after ingesting a micro organism named Cryptosporidium parvum. The source of this parasite: drinking water. http://www.dhpe.org/infect/crypto.html
- The World Health Organization estimated in the 2000 assessment that there are four billion cases of diarrhea each year. – between 34 and 76 million people will perish from water- related diseases by 2020. ref.- http://www.pacinst.org/
- The leading cause of child death in the world is diarrhea
- The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that 80% of all sickness in the world is attributable to unsafe water and sanitation.
- WHO also estimates that each year, throughout the world, children under five suffer 1.5 billion episodes of diarrhea, approximately four million of which are fatal.
- http://www.water.org/resources/disease.htm
Contaminated drinking water in homes and businesses is usually a result of water main breaks or other emergency situations. Parasites cause the majority of problems.
http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/diseases/water/drinking.htm
More than 200 million people in the United States have direct access to treated public water supply systems. Nevertheless, 9 million cases of water-borne diseases are estimated to occur each year (Bennett et al., 1987). Although most of the water-borne disease involves mild gastrointestinal illness, some disease causes severe outcomes, such as miokarditis (Patz et al., 2000). -
http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4156/is_20020811/ai_n12577618
“Cryptosporidium appear to survive current municipal treatment protocols, and no effective water treatments have been proposed. Neither does the disease in people respond well to any treatments.” http://www.ovc.uoguelph.ca/popmed/ecosys/parab6global.htm -
Chlorination disinfection by-products (CDBPs) are produced during the treatment of water with chlorine to remove bacterial contamination. CDBPs have been associated with an increased risk of bladder cancer. There is also some evidence that they may increase the risk of pancreatic cancer.
http://www.ehponline.org/members/2005/7403/7403.html
I am a Canadian living in our capital city of Ottawa. Canada's difficulty in providing its citizens with clean and healthy drinking water is becoming a national disgrace for Canadians. http://www.mkprojects.com/fa_GuideToHealthEating.htm
Toxic chemicals don’t simply disappear. They fall onto people’s skin and into the air we breathe and wash into drinking water sources. These chemicals contribute to many devastating diseases that have become common in only a few decades.
http://www.stonington-gardenclub.org/Earth_Friendly_Alternatives.htm
Altogether 610 confirmed cases of typhoid were recorded and more than 3 500 cases of diarrhea. Most cases were reported in Botleng township where the contents of pit toilets had leaked into the ground water. http://www.buanews.gov.za/view.php?ID=06052416151002&coll=buanew06
“Geen dorp kan tans in die toenemende behoefte van rioolstelsels en waterrsuiweringsaanlegte voorsien nie.” - Uitreksel uit Rapport 26 Februarie 2006
The threat of harmful contaminants in drinking water can no longer be reasonably ignored. The correlation between contaminated drinking water and many significant diseases and health problems is far too strong to discount.
The absolute best technology now available for treating water and removing undesirable contaminants is water filtration together with a UV light. Think Smart’s Crystal Clear water filters allow one to enjoy the benefits of drinking a healthy amount of water without worrying about dangerous contaminants. It is considered to be one of the best under sink Water Filtration Systems in the world!
