What's really in our taps? A risk management perspective

Historically, the focus on water treatment has been on the design and construction aspect of plant and process equipment to remove known and identified contaminants in the raw water. However, over the past decade, Regulatory authorities have required local governments and water suppliers to develop a better understanding of the raw water catchment and water infrastructures including identification of any potential risks to water supply. In New Zealand, this process has been administered by the Ministry of Health (MoH) through the requirement of Public Health Risk Management Plans (PHRMPs) which have been completed by the water suppliers for each catchment and source. In Queensland, Australia, a similar approach has recently been adopted by the Department of Environment and Resource Management (DERM) through the requirements of preparing Drinking Water Quality Management Plans (DWQMPs). This paper will compare and contrast the two Risk Management approaches adopted by the MOH and DERM and give an insight into the Best Practice for each approach.