Water safety plan implemented on Guaraú water treatment plant in São Paulo, Brazil

ABSTRACT

Water Safety Plans represent the strategy for predicting hazards and monitoring risks that can threat the water quality for human consumption. This paper intended to study Water Safety Plans implemented at Guaraú water treatment plant in order to identify its methodological requirements, challenges and opportunities for the effective control in water supply systems. The documents that supported the plan were the World Health Organization recommendations and the drinking water standards of Brazilian regulation 2914/2010 by Health Ministry. Regarding water treatment, the managers of sanitation in the metropolitan areaof São Paulo adopted Beuken et al. (2008) and Brazil (2012) methodologies for hazard description and risk evaluation. This evaluation model proposes that the greater value associated to a certain parameter meansit needs more attentionthan another in the water supply system. The company has implemented Water Safety Plans to optimize its treatment processes and to ensure water distribution with quality and efficiency. The company has been discussing about this tool since 2006; it identified a methodology that could express the environmental policy guidelines, elaborated a model of Water Safety Plans, held technical meetings and applied the plan to Guaraú water treatment plant. The main results were records systematization, implementation of new procedures, acquisition of equipment, technical capacitation and identification of control points. The greatest challenge was to establish a feasible and dynamic preventive tool for managing water resources. It must be emphasized that the Water Safety Plans success depends on, among other variables, an up-to-date database, the cooperation of decision-makers and continuous adjustments required by the methodology itself. There is not sufficient scientific studies and handbooks about this subject.

Keywords:
water management; water supply; water treatment plant; risk management; watershed.