Guidelines for water safety plans for rural water supply systems - A document by SIAES and WHO India (2009)

Delivery of safe drinking water is vital for protecting public health and of promoting more secure livelihoods.

The traditional approach to water quality and safety management has relied on the testing of drinking water, as it leaves the treatment works or at selected points, either within the distribution system or at consumer taps. It is referred to as ‘end‐product testing’.

The World Health Organization (WHO), in their "Guidelines for Drinking‐water Quality (2004)", conclude that end‐product testing is not sufficient to guarantee safe drinking water to consumers. Instead, WHO recommends planning and implementation of effective Water Safety Plans (WSPs) for ensuring safe drinking water.

WSPs concentrate on ensuring that the processes involved in delivering safe drinking water are operated properly and are under full control at all times. In addition, WSPs also address the issues of providing an organized and structured system to minimize the chance of failure through oversight or lapse of management.

This document by Sulabh International Academy of Environmental Sanitation (SIAES), has discussed planning and implementation of water safety plans for the following rural water supply systems, which are being used to varying extents by rural communities in different regions of the country:

• Gravity-fed water supply systems in hilly areas
• Dugwell-based rural water supply systems
• Borewell-based rural water supply systems (hand pump operated)
• Pond-based rural water supply systems with appropriate treatment and rain water harvesting systems through surface storage
• Groundwater recharging systems
• Rooftop rain­water harvesting systems
• Water disinfection
• Arsenic removal plants
• Deflouridation
• Iron removal system for drinking water supply
• Pump and tank water supply in a single village
• Multiple village piped water supply systems with conventional water
  treatment for surface sources

Developing and implementing of WSP for all the above systems, will broadly involve adapting hazard analysis and critical control approaches, including:

• understanding of the system,
• systematic and detailed assessment,
• prioritization of hazard and associated risks,
• putting appropriate control measures in place to reduce risks to an acceptable level,
• monitoring of barriers or control measures, and verification and validation of the same.

Download Guidelines for water safety plans for rural water supply systems, from the WHO India website.