1. Foreword
The results for 2006 show that the quality of drinking water in Scotland continues to improve. This is undoubtedly due to Scottish Water's investment in more robust treatment processes and distribution systems, as well as improved operational practices. Of particular note is the improvement in microbiological compliance, which is arguably the most important factor when assessing drinking water quality and public health. In 2006, microbiological compliance was the highest since drinking water quality regulations were introduced in 1991.
There has also been an improvement in compliance for most other parameters, including iron, colour and trihalomethanes ( THMs). Historically, compliance for these parameters has been poor but the 2006 results reflect the ongoing work by Scottish Water to bring its many small, rural supplies up to modern standards.
However, compliance did not improve for all parameters last year - notably the level of non-compliance increased for Bromate, Ammonium and Nitrite. The reasons for this are discussed later in this report, but Scottish Water must address the problems identified and take steps to ensure that the trend is reversed. Compliance with the existing lead standard is also not improving as quickly as I would like. If Scotland is to meet the tighter standard for lead, which comes into force across Europe in 2013, then Scottish Water will need to work harder to meet this challenge. I will be monitoring progress in this area very closely indeed.
Events that affect drinking water quality, which occur during the day to day operation of Scottish Water's treatment works and distribution systems are notified to, and assessed by, the Drinking Water Quality Regulator. If an event is considered to have been serious enough to represent a risk, or potential risk to public health, then it is classified as an incident.
The number of water quality events that were classified as incidents increased in 2006. The vast majority of these occurred in the North West region and involved failures of the disinfection process. In some cases, the lack of telemetry and alarms meant that the problem was only identified at the time of the next scheduled visit to the works by Scottish Water staff. On occasion, this led to an unacceptable delay of several days before drinking water quality was restored. I acknowledge that Scottish Water is currently working to improve its telemetry systems and operational response. In the meantime, I am seeking assurances from Scottish Water that it is improving the robustness of its processes and that the frequency of operational visits at locations known to be at risk will be increased until a reliable telemetry system can be put in place.
A high profile water quality incident occurred in Edinburgh in July 2006, when a small quantity of stale water was accidentally released from a treatment works into supply, causing widespread complaints that the water had an unusual taste and odour. I investigated this incident and I am content with the measures now put in place by Scottish Water to prevent a recurrence. The occurrence of the event should however, serve as a reminder to all Scottish Water staff that apparently minor actions in their day to day work can have a significant impact on a large number of consumers.
Drinking water quality is generally of an extremely high standard throughout Scotland, however there are some locations where its visual appearance is not always satisfactory, often due to deficiencies in the treatment process or corrosion from old cast iron water mains. Work has commenced in North Ayrshire and parts of Dumfries and Galloway - two of the areas worst affected by this problem - to provide consumers with a supply that is consistently clear. Additionally, I am working with Scottish Water to identify other areas that are in need of improvement to make the water acceptable to consumers.
Consumer perception is important and I recently commissioned some research work to investigate consumer perception of drinking water and what causes consumers to become concerned or dissatisfied with drinking water quality. This work suggests that the vast majority of people in Scotland rightly feel that their drinking water is of a high standard and trust that it is safe.
From this research, it is also apparent that on the rare occasions when things do go wrong, consumer confidence is easily lost. When people complain to Scottish Water about drinking water quality issues, they sometimes feel that not enough is being done to rectify the problem and re-build their trust. This is of considerable concern so I intend to look at how Scottish Water handle drinking water quality complaints and the information on water quality that is made available to the public.
Consumer confidence is not just a matter for Scottish Water. The research work has prompted me to examine the way in which I carry out my business, and I intend to review how easy it is for people to contact me should they become dissatisfied with the way in which Scottish Water are dealing with their drinking water quality complaint. I also intend to improve the way in which drinking water quality information is made available to the public via my website.
I hope that you will find that this report provides a useful and comprehensive guide to the quality of drinking water in Scotland in 2006. In order to try and make the report more accessible to all, I have for the first time also produced a summary of the key points in Gaelic.
Colin McLaren
Drinking Water Quality Regulator
August 2007