8 Essex and Suffolk Water Plc
Overall Water Quality supplied by Essex and Suffolk Water Plc in 2001
- A total of 117,550 tests were carried out by Essex and Suffolk Water Plc in 2001.
- Of these tests, 99.95% complied with the Regulations.
Company Information
Amount of Water Supplied: 482 Ml/d
Consumers Supplied: 1.7 million
Areas of Supply: Essex, south Norfolk and north Suffolk
Water Composition: 95% from rivers and reservoirs
5% from boreholes and aquifers
Treatment Works: 25
Service Reservoirs: 104
Km of Mains: 8,370
Water Supply Zones: 66Water Quality in Water Supply Zones, at Treatment Works, and in Service Reservoirs
Water supply zones
- To be wholesome, water must comply with the standards set out in the Regulations. The Company carried out a total of 98,928 tests on samples taken in its 66 water supply zones. The table below includes only the parameters that breached the standard; all other parameters were fully compliant. A list of these parameters and their significance can be found at the beginning of this section.
- The last column indicates the number of failures in zones already covered by legally binding undertakings given by the Company. These undertakings required remedial work to be carried out to ensure compliance with the individual standard.
Parameter Total samples taken Samples not meeting the standard Percentage Number of failures already covered by undertakings Total coliforms 4,406 20 0.45 0 Faecal coliforms 4,406 2 0.05 0 Nitrate 2,055 13 0.63 0 Iron 1,549 1 0.06 1 Lead 930 1 0.11 0 Nickel 69 1 1.45 0 Treatment works
- Of the Company's 25 treatment works, 22 (88%) complied fully with the relevant standards. Failures of the standards at a total of three works were considered trivial, or unlikely to recur as a result of remedial action taken by the Company. Differences over the last three years in the number of treatment works, and samples from treatment works, in which coliforms were detected, were not considered significant.
Service reservoirs
- At all of the Company's 104 service reservoirs, coliforms were absent from at least 95% of samples. There has been a significant decrease since 2000 in the number of service reservoirs, and samples from service reservoirs, in which total coliforms were detected. All other differences were not considered significant.
Cryptosporidium
- The Company carried out a total of 1,470 tests on samples taken from four sites. Oocysts were detected in two (0.13%) samples taken from one site. All results were well below the treatment standard and there were no associated outbreaks of cryptosporidiosis.
Company Audit and Inspection
- The Company was inspected or audited by the Inspectorate or its appointed consultants on a number of occasions during 2001. Where relevant, report summaries are available in the 'Business and Technical' section of the web site under 'Audit and Inspection'.
Audit or Inspection Date Review of procedures for operation and maintenance of the distribution network January Audit of incident notification procedures March Inspection of Cryptosporidium laboratory April Review of progress with the distribution system improvement programme October Review of plumbosolvency treatment and control programmes of work November Review of policies and procedures on contaminated land November Audit of procedures for compliance with Regulation 25 November Audit trails of five samples November Inspection of two treatment works and two service reservoirs November Inspection of operations at 16 sites in distribution system November Audit of all Cryptosporidium sampling points Various dates
Seventeen recommendations were made in respect of action required to avoid the risk of a breach of a regulatory duty. These recommendations were mainly in relation to the procedures for health and hygiene during operations on the distribution system.
Six recommendations for improvement were made in respect of the distribution system undertaking and plumbosolvency treatment.
Incidents
- The Inspectorate regarded one of the events notified during 2001 by the Company as an incident. For further details on the classification of incidents see Chapter C, 'Events affecting Water Quality', in Part 3.
- The incident was assessed by the Inspectorate; it was of short duration and the Company has taken appropriate remedial action
- During the 2001 reporting period, assessment was also completed for two incidents which occurred in 2000.
Nature of incident
No. of incidents Assessment completed by DWI Areas affected Detection of coliform bacteria following a
burst main
1 Yes Church Rd, Mountnessing (September) Improvement Programmes
- Two remedial programmes of work were due for completion during 2001. One was to improve treatment at Ormesby Works to secure compliance with the coliform standard, and this was completed on schedule. The second related to an improvement scheme for iron in the Stanford le Hope supply zone. A revised completion date of December 2002 has been agreed
- The ongoing distribution system improvement programme has been progressing satisfactorily. During 2000 and 2001, 170 km of mains were renovated. The Company is required to renovate a further 830 km of mains by March 2010.
- The Company has improvement programmes to meet the new and revised standards set down in the new Water Supply (Water Quality) Regulations 2000, which will come into force on 25 December 2003. These relate to nitrate at one site and THMs at one site, plus additional work required to meet the new standard for lead. The Company also has programmes of work to reduce any potential risk from Cryptosporidium oocysts at seven sites. Progress with delivery of the programmes is monitored by the Inspectorate, and has been satisfactory.
Enforcement Action
- No enforcement action was considered necessary for the Company as a result of the Inspectorate's activities during 2001.
table 8.1 Essex and Suffolk Water plc
MICROBIOLOGICAL QUALITY OF WATER LEAVING TREATMENT WORKS2001 2000 1999 Number of water treatment works 25 26 26 Works with no sampling shortfall 25 26 26 COLIFORMS Total number of determinations 4,133 4,192 4,264 - number containing coliforms 5 6 5 - % containing coliforms 0.1 0.1 0.1 Treatment works with coliforms detected 3 4 4 - % of all works 12 15 15 FAECAL COLIFORMS Total number of determinations 4,133 4,192 4,264 - number containing faecal coliforms 1 1 1 - % containing faecal coliforms <0.1 <0.1 <0.1 Treatment works with faecal coliforms detected 1 1 1 - % of all works 4 4 4
table 8.2 Essex and Suffolk Water plc
MICROBIOLOGICAL QUALITY OF WATER IN SERVICE RESERVOIRS2001 2000 1999 Number of service reservoirs 104 110 111 Service reservoirs with no sampling shortfall 104 110 111 COLIFORMS Total number of determinations 5,178 5,402 5,540 - number containing coliforms 20 43 20 - % containing coliforms 0.4 0.8 0.4 Service reservoirs with coliforms detected 17 31 16 Service reservoirs with coliforms detected in more than 5% of samples 0 5 2 - % of all service reservoirs 0 5 2 FAECAL COLIFORMS Total number of determinations 5,178 5,402 5,540 - number containing faecal coliforms 0 3 5 - % containing faecal coliforms 0 <0.1 <0.1 Service reservoirs with faecal coliforms detected 0 3 5 - % of all service reservoirs 0 3 5
table 8.3 Essex and Suffolk Water plc
WATER QUALITY IN SUPPLY ZONESColumns 'CBU' show, for determinations, contraventions covered by undertakings and, for zones, the total number of zones covered by undertakings in 2001. Column 'E' shows the number of zones for which new enforcement action is under consideration as a result of contraventions of the PCV in 2001. PARAMETER DETERMINATIONS in 2001 ZONES (66 in 2001)* Total Contravening PCV Non-compliant No. % CBU CBU E Number in: 2001 2001 2000 1999 Coliforms 4,406 20 0.5 0 2 0 0 0 0 Faecal coliforms 4,406 2 0 0 0 0 2 2 2 Colour 962 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Turbidity 537 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Odour 537 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 1 Taste 537 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 1 Hydrogen ion 962 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Nitrate 2,103 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Nitrite 2,055 13 0.6 0 0 0 13 26 23 Aluminium 537 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Iron 1,549 1 0.1 1 37 0 1 3 9 Manganese 633 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 Lead 970 1 0.1 0 0 0 1 1 0 PAH 274 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 Trihalomethanes 353 0 0.0 0 3 0 0 0 3 Total pesticides 2,074 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Other pesticides 65,371 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Nickel 69 1 1.4 0 0 0 1 0 0 Total Hardness 275 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 1 0 All others 10,318 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 TOTAL 98,928 38 <0.1 1 - - - - - *66 zones in 2000; 66 zones in 1999. [ Previous ] [ Contents ] [ Next ]
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Drinking Water Inspectorate,
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Telephone : 020 7944 5956 - Facsimile : 020 7944 5969
E-mail: dwi.enquiries@defra.gsi.gov.uk
Published 10 July 2002
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