AWWA JAW49165

In contrast to US utilities, water supply companies in the Netherlands routinely distribute drinking water without using a disinfectant residual, arguing that maintaining a disinfectant residual in drinking water during distribution creates more problems than it solves. Increased disinfection byproducts and consumer complaints about taste and odor are only two of the concerns associated with use of a disinfectant residual. Maintaining a disinfectant residual can foster a false feeling of safety because indicator bacteria are more easily inactivated than microbial pathogens. Contending that drinking water quality can be maintained without a disinfectant residual, water suppliers in the Netherlands combine multiple-barrier water treatment processes with good engineering practices to prevent recontamination, use biostable materials in the distribution system, and monitor biostability through assessment of biofilm formation. Includes 51 references, figures.