Method of Water Consumers Safety Analysis and Assessment

Rzeszow University of Technology, Department of Water Supply and Sewage Systems, Al. Powstańców Warszawy 6, 35-959 Rzeszów, Poland

^* Corresponding author: dsz@prz.edu.pl

Abstract

The subject of the publication is to present the method of water consumers safety analysis and assessment to implement the so-called Water Safety Plans (WSP), recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO) in Poland. The paper presents the method of water consumers safety analysis and assessment, which is based on failure mode and effects analysis (FMEA). The failure mode and effects analysis is widely used to analyse the reliability and safety of products and processes in technical systems. The procedure in the FMEA is based on the identification of potential undesirable events, assessment of effects and determining the causes of these events, assessment of frequency, the possibility of detection, estimating validity of the actions and estimating how to prevent undesirable events, re-examining and assessment of these events. The developed method of water consumers safety analysis and assessment is a complement and extension of recommended for WSP matrix methods, which according to the author's opinion is not sufficient for a proper analysis of undesirable events that may happen in collective water supply system (CWSS). The use of the FMEA method will allow for better identification of existing hazards and to determine the cause–effect relationships between them. Reliable access to drinking water is one of the basic conditions for the development of civilization.