The Sandia National Laboratories has successfully completed testing of an unattended water sensor to monitor water for biological pathogens, which includes biotoxins, bacteria, viruses, and protozoa. Testing took place at a large San Francisco Bay Area water utility for more than a year and, just recently, has been deployed to a municipal water station in Arizona for additional observation and adjustments.

The sensor is currently able to achieve sample analysis in just 12 minutes - a marked improvement over the original goal of 30 minutes or less - due to the automated sample preparation. In addition, the sensor is currently able to detect protein toxins such as S. aureus enterotoxin B (SEB), botulinum, and ricin. The next phase of the Sandia activities will be to expand the device's detection capability to include bacteria such as E. coli and protozoa such as Cryptosporidium.

The sensor is expected to operate for at least three months in Arizona before the device is brought to an U.S. Environmental Protection Agency facility or the U.S. Army's Edgewood Chemical Biological Center, where it can be tested in a real-world environment that includes analysis on bona fide toxic agents situated in authentic water supply conditions. Currently, analysis is conducted in both situations individually, but not simultaneously.

For additional information about the unattended water sensor, please visit:
Unattended Water Sensor

A recent hearing of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Africa, examined the global issue of unsafe drinking water with specific emphasis on the problem in Africa. Testimony at the hearing revealed that millions of people are stricken by diseases that could have been prevented if safe drinking water existed on the African continent.

Currently, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) is working with African partners to meet U.N. Millennium Development Goal (MDG) targets to reduce by half the number of people without access to clean water and sanitation by the year 2015. USAID is funding water-supply activities and hygiene programs worth $91.6 million for the 2006-2007 fiscal year in more than 30 African countries.

For 2007-2008, USAID plans to spend $8 million more on clean water efforts in Africa focusing on three main program areas:

• Improving governance and regulation of water utilities at local, national and regional levels;
• Changing hygiene behavior with an emphasis on hand washing, filtration and purification of water and maintenance of personal sanitation facilities such as latrines; and
• Mobilizing local private-sector financing to build and support projects such as capped wells and piped water systems to supply clean water.

For more information on the water crisis in Africa, please visit:
Drinking Water Crisis in Africa

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced the release of the final "Simultaneous Compliance Guidance Manual for Long Term 2 and Stage 2 DBP Rules." The manual discusses issues that systems will face as they evaluate and implement changes to comply with the Stage 2 Disinfectants and Disinfection Byproduct Rule and the Long Term 2 Enhanced Surface Water Treatment Rule, while still meeting requirements of earlier rules such as the Total Coliform Rule and Lead and Copper Rule.

This manual builds on a similar manual developed for the Stage 1 rules incorporating new research and case studies, and is presented in a more user-friendly manner. EPA is developing this guidance manual to provide systems and states information on operational and capital changes and approaches to enable systems to evaluate different compliance strategies and technologies.

EPA provides guidance documents to help states and public water systems implement the rules. A number of the guidance documents were released in a draft form when the rule was proposed in 2003, however, much of this information has been modified.

For additional information on the new guidance manual, please visit:
Guidance Manual

As concern over the lack of potable water in India and China heightens, some are looking at the problem as an investment opportunity. Global fund houses, which specialize in investments in the water sector, view countries like India and China - with their rapidly growing populations - as having to spend heavily in the coming years to ensure clean water for their citizens.

These fund houses are investing in listed and unlisted companies operating in water-related sectors like water supply, treatment of waste water, sewage treatment and solid, liquid and chemical waste, water technology, environmental services, water bottling, mineral water, water conditioning and desalination companies, water suppliers, transport and dispatching companies, companies providing equipment, consulting and engineering services and buying up ground water rights.

Some of the funds currently eyeing the Indian water industry include: Global Water Fund, which was launched by Wessex Asset Management in January 2007, and has at present $26 million in assets and Water Index Fund, which tracks an index of 36 companies working in the potable and wastewater industries. Globally, large funds like Pictet Asset Management, Seidler, Berlant, Terrapin Asset Management, Technology Partners and Schroders Investment Management also have specialized funds that invest in water sector across the world.

For more information on investing in water, please visit:
Investing In Water

In The News-is a bi-weekly, online service from the Water Quality & Health Council.  The publication is updated every other Friday and can be viewed by logging onto www.waterandhealth.org.  To receive the publication via e-mail, please click here and enter your e-mail address to join our mailing list.