Hygienic situation of secondary water supply and its management in urban districts of Jinzhou municipality

  Objective  To examine hygienic status of secondary water supply facilities and water quality in urban regions and to provide evidences for implementing targeted measures to ensure drinking water safety.

  Methods  During 2016, health supervision and inspection were conducted on 267 secondary water supply facilities under the administration of Jinzhou municipality, Liaoning province; tap water samples were also collected for rapid detections of hygiene indicators; then impact factors for water quality were analyzed.

  Results  The tap water from 229 of the 267 secondary water supply facilities were qualified, with a qualification rate of 85.8%. The qualification rate of tap water supplied by the facilities constructed before 1998 was significantly lower than that supplied by the facilities constructed after 1998 (79.1% vs. 94.1%, χ² = 12.262; P < 0.05). Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that main impact factors of tap water quality of a water supply facility included the year for the construction the facility (odds ratio OR = 6.106), without fungus-resistant treatment for wall or ceiling of pump room (OR = 3.749), severe rusting of water supply pipes (OR = 23.014), with a water storage tank for both drinking water and fire fighting (OR = 3.880), and without hygiene license for the facility (OR = 5.723) (P < 0.05 for all).

  Conclusion  The qualified rate of drinking water supplied by secondary water supply facilities in urban districts of Jinzhou city needs to be improved and supervision and management on the facilities should be strengthened by governmental agencies to ensure drinking water safety.