You are here:
Disinfection Alternatives for Small Communities in Puerto Rico
Citation:
Patterson, C., G. Ramirez Toro, H. Minnigh, C. Maldonado, AND R. Sinha. Disinfection Alternatives for Small Communities in Puerto Rico. Presented at AWWA WQTC, New Orleans, LA, November 16 - 20, 2014.
Impact/Purpose:
UV disinfection in combination with chlorination provides a low cost alternative for disinfection of pathogens and chlorine resistant pathogens in the absence of filtration technologies. There is a very clear need for a multi-barrier approach to provide safe water and improve the health of individuals living in communities served by the non-PRASA systems. This demonstration not only benefits small rural Puerto Rican communities, but also develops a concept or approach that can be implemented in other communities in tropical regions.
Description:
Disinfection Alternatives for Small Communities in Puerto Rico Craig Patterson1, Graciela Ramirez Toro2, Harvey Minnigh2, Cristina Maldonado3, and Rajib Sinha4 1U.S. EPA Office of Research and Development, 2Centro de Educación, Conservación e Interpretación Ambiental (CECIA), Universidad Interamericana de Puerto Rico, 3U.S. EPA Region 2 Caribbean Environmental Protection Division, 4CB&I Federal Services In 2012, 247 public water systems in Puerto Rico were outside of Puerto Rico Aqueduct and Sewer Authority (PRASA) control with 147 of these systems serving between 100 and 500 people. Many of these Non-PRASA systems use source waters that are contaminated by human and animal wastes resulting in a higher potential for epidemic outbreaks of enteric diseases (e.g., typhoid and paratyphoid fever, cholera, amoebic and bacillary dysentery, viral gastroenteritis, and giardiasis). Only 186 of the 247 systems use some form of chlorination and very few communities use filtration technologies for removal of chlorine resistant pathogens. In 2013 and 2014, the U.S. EPA and InterAmerican University of San German worked with water treatment operators from Patillas, Puerto Rico on the installation, training and testing of pretreatment/UV disinfection systems in the communities of La Sophia and Apeadero. Test water samples from La Sophia (a groundwater source) and Apeadero (a surface water source) were analyzed to determine MS2 (a surrogate for enteric viruses) and E. coli (bacteria) inactivation efficiency. This presentation will provide pathogen removal results and water quality characteristics over a six month period and will compare operation and maintenance costs associated with water delivery, pretreatment and disinfection systems based on source water conditions. UV disinfection in combination with chlorination provides a low cost alternative for disinfection of pathogens and chlorine resistant pathogens in the absence of filtration technologies. There is a very clear need for a multi-barrier approach to provide safe water and improve the health of individuals living in communities served by the non-PRASA systems. This demonstration not only benefits small rural Puerto Rican communities, but also develops a concept or approach that can be implemented in other communities in tropical regions.
URLs/Downloads:
http://www.awwa.org/Portals/0/files/education/conferences/wqtc/wqtc14/pdfs/WQTC14FinalProgramWeb.pdf