Preface
Between 1993 and 1997, the World Health Organization (WHO)
published the second edition of Guidelines for Drinking-Water Quality in
three volumes: Volume 1: Recommendations (1993); Volume 2: Health Criteria and
Other Supporting Information (1996); and Volume 3: Surveillance and Control of
Community Supplies (1997). As with the first edition of the Guidelines, their
development was organised and carried out jointly by WHO headquarters and the
WHO Regional Office for Europe.
This pack is intended to provide information for use in the
planning and delivery of seminars, workshops and training courses in water
quality surveillance, control and improvement, especially where these concern
the WHO Guidelines for Drinking-Water Quality. The pack contains 23
different sessions, including both presentation and practical exercises.
It is hoped that the availability of this pack will encourage
and assist local, national and regional authorities to implement events of this
type with or without the assistance of expert institutions or individuals. It is
hoped that the pack will facilitate the development of expertise and thereby
promote the organisation of further events.
The pack is designed to cover a broad range of water-related
topics in order that appropriate elements can be selected in response to local
circumstances and priorities. The pack includes sessions addressing the
scientific basis of the Guidelines; the establishment of national standards; the
ways in which water supplies may be improved; and some broader issues such as
human resource development.
Each section of the pack addresses a single session and includes
the objectives, a session plan, a background paper and overhead transparencies.
The materials are intended to provide a resource person with information to
assist in the review of what they might reasonably expect to achieve in a
session, and to plan the structure and layout of the session. The background
papers can, where appropriate, be provided to participants. The pack also
addresses practical sessions. The materials provided to support these give
guidance as to how such sessions could be delivered and the materials required
to implement them.
It is unlikely that all sessions would be necessary for a single
seminar, workshop or training course. It is therefore important that the overall
objectives of an event are defined, taking local priorities into account when
selecting which sessions will be of most practical use.
The sessions in the pack can be divided into a number of groups
which could be of value when planning its use, defining the target audience and
selecting sessions. The groups are described in the table over leaf.
In order to develop a well-balanced seminar, workshop or
training course, at least one session would normally be required from each
group. Discussion of drinking-water quality and the use of the Guidelines for
Drinking-Water Quality should, for example, generally be accompanied by
sessions considering monitoring and assessment and the means to secure
improvements; and, possibly, a practical session illustrating issues of
particular local relevance.
It is hoped that this pack will be a useful addition for those
implementing training courses in water quality. The pack should assist in
building capacities to provide and facilitate initial, further and ongoing
training for staff of diverse disciplines. Any comments that users of the pack
may have on experience with its use and which might assist in its further
development would be gratefully received and should be addressed to:
