Scientists and Technicians Test Our Water
The quality of tap water in this City is in safe hands. It is tested on two fronts by qualified scientists and technicians who know all about the technical nitty-gritties of quality water.
Firstly, Rand Water who supplies the treated water to the City does daily sampling on their supply lines. Secondly, the Water and Sanitation Department’s water quality section collects samples throughout the City on daily, weekly or monthly intervals for testing. At predetermined intervals and according to the SAMS 241 standards water is tested making use of SANAS accredited laboratory at ERWAT.
Compliance with the SANS 241
The Water Quality Section produces a monthly compliance report according to SANS 241 requirements that includes chemical and bacteriological results for the month, as well as a 12-month rolling average for all the drinking water sampling points.
About the laboratories used for testing
Rand Water Analytical Services is fully accredited by the South African National Accreditation System (SANAS) and demonstrates the organisation’s acceptance of international quality standards. The laboratory participates in national and international proficiency testing schemes to continuously monitor the quality of its data.
ERWAT laboratories participate regularly in a national inter-laboratory comparison study, SABS water check, and obtains Z scores that fall within the required limit. The personnel employed at the laboratory range from technicians to scientists with qualifications which include diplomas, degrees and post graduate degrees.
The tests
Data in hydrobiology, microbiology and chemistry are produced. The hydrobiology laboratory performs a diverse range of tests on source and drinking water, including aquatic toxicity testing, aquatic invertebrate assessment, algae and algal toxin monitoring and aquatic biomonitoring.
The chemistry laboratories perform extensive testing in organic and inorganic chemistry to monitor water quality for parameters such as pesticides, disinfection by-products, hydrocarbons, trace metals, surfactants, ions, taste and odour.
The microbiology laboratory performs analyses to determine for the presence of indicator organisms (E. coli, coliforms, coliphages etc) and analyses various sample matrices for an array of pathogens that comprise viruses and bacteria including Cryptosporidium and Giardia.
It is confirmed – the quality of the water in this City is superior!
