Assessment of the Risk of Infection Associated with Viruses in South African Drinking Water Supplies
1164/1/04
March 2004

AIMS

The aims of the project were to:

1. Gather information on the incidence of a comprehensive spectrum of enteric viruses in selected representative drinking water supplies in South Africa.
2. Assess the risk of viral infection associated with drinking water supplies in typical developed, developing and rural communities.
3. Establish new data essential for guidelines on drinking water quality and monitoring programmes, and water treatment and disinfection processes.
4. Develop new techniques for the detection of small numbers of viruses in large volumes of drinking water, and investigate the value of indicators for assessment of the virological quality of drinking water.
5. Transfer technology to historically disadvantaged educational institutions, and train manpower for future research on waterborne viruses, and for monitoring the virological safety of drinking water supplies in all user communities