Health control and monitoring of drinking water. Water sampling for chemical and microbiological analysis
Access to safe water is a fundamental human need and therefore a basic human right (Kofi Annan, United Nations Secretary-General). Water is a vital environmental factor, and its quality affects humans through their direct use of water. 1.1 billion people lack access to safe drinking water, 2.6 billion lack adequate sanitation, and 1.8 million people die every year from diarrhoeal diseases, including 90% of children under 5. Everyone has the right to water: this right is recognised in international legal instruments and provides for sufficient, safe, acceptable, physically accessible and affordable water for personal and domestic uses. An adequate amount of safe water is necessary to prevent death from dehydration, to reduce the risk of water-related disease and to provide for consumption, cooking, and personal and domestic hygienic requirements.
Water intended for human consumption should be both safe and wholesome, i.e. water that is:
- free from pathogenic agents
- free from harmful chemical substances
- pleasant to taste and free from colour and odour
- usable for domestic purposes
Effective programmes to control drinking-water quality depend ideally on the existence of adequate legislation, standards, and codes. The aim of national drinking-water laws and standards should be to ensure that the consumer enjoys safe potable water, not to shut down deficient water supplies. Control measures are actions implemented in the drinking water system that prevent, reduce or eliminate contamination and are identified in system assessment.