The Importance of Testing Drinking Water
If you need a single statistic to underline what a powerful, positive change that widespread water testing can bring to our planet, let it be this one:
According to one recent study conducted by the Centers for Disease Control, positive steps with regard to not only water but also sanitation and hygiene have the potential to prevent at least 9.1% of global disease diagnoses and about 6.3% of ALL deaths. In the United States alone, the clean water technologies and water testing methodologies that have been implemented over the years have been estimated to have a return on investment as high as 23:1 during the first half of the 20th century.
When you consider statistics like those, it’s clear that the testing of drinking water isn’t just important. It may very well be one of the essential issues that we all have to work tirelessly to overcome in the modern era.
Why Water Testing Matters
Many people don’t realize just how dangerous water can be if it isn’t properly tested before it is used.
According to the World Health Organization, contaminated water can transmit a wide variety of different diseases, depending on the situation. These can include but are certainly not limited to ones like diarrhea, dysentery, typhoid and even polio. Not only that, but poor quality drinking water is estimated to contribute to as many as 485,000 deaths around the world purely because of stomach ailments. When you also open that up to the other diseases that can be spread, the number of deaths skyrockets.
But water testing is critical for a wide range of other reasons, too. According to both the United Nations and UNICEF, for example, one in every five girls of primary-school age is NOT actually in school. This is compared to one in six boys. One of the major factors that experts agree accounts for this difference has to do with the lack of sanitation facilities for girls as they reach the age of puberty.
That same study revealed that in 2006, about seven out of every 10 people WITHOUT access to improved sanitation were people living in rural areas — making water testing of critical importance to those areas. Likewise, the regions around the world with the lowest coverage of high-quality sanitation (meaning clean water sources) were sub-Saharan Africa, Southern Asia and Eastern Asia.
So again, water testing is about more than just making sure people have a clean glass of water to enjoy when they’re feeling thirsty. Poor water quality can create a devastating ripple effect that negatively impacts not only the lives of people, but of entire nations — meaning that this is one problem that we collectively need to work hard to address at all costs.
The Dangers of Inefficient Water Testing: Facts and Figures
According to one recent study conducted by the World Health Organization, in 2017, about 71% of the world’s population had access to a safely managed drinking water service during that year. This is to say that they had access to clean drinking water on-premises, on-demand and totally free from contamination.
This may sound like good news... but when you consider that 71% still literally leaves billions of people around the world without clean drinking water, it’s more than clear that there is still a tremendous amount of work to be done.
The same study revealed that there are 785 million people who lack even a basic drinking water service. Two billion people use a drinking water source that has been contaminated with feces. By as soon as 2025, over half of the world’s population will be living in what is considered to be “water-stressed” areas.
There’s a lot of progress to be made on this topic... and it needs to be made as soon as possible.
The Essential Tools Used in Water Testing
There are a wide range of different options and accessories to help improve the water testing efforts of laboratory workers around the globe.
Even something as simple as Multi-Factor Test Strips, for example, can make a big difference in dairy, food and beverage plants on a regular basis. They help shed valuable insight into the pH and Total Chlorine levels of water samples, thus giving professionals the most complete and accurate information to work from to keep their products safe.
Colorimeters like the Checker HC for Chlorine Detection are also pivotal, acting as a way to bridge the gap between simple chemical test kits and professional instrumentation for detection of free or total chlorine in water samples. The innovative chlorine detection feature has a resolution of 0.01 ppm and an accuracy of about plus or minus 3% of the reading, in addition to plus or minus 0.03 ppm. It’s also built using an EPA-approved DPD method for additional accuracy.
Learn About Weber Scientific
Although it is one of our most abundant human resources, water is also fragile. In the wrong circumstances, it can be dangerous or even deadly. Weber Scientific offers a complete inventory of test kits, test strips, turbidimeters, conductivity meters and other water testing supplies for laboratories dedicated to keeping water clean and safe.
If you’d like to find out more information about the importance of testing drinking water, or if you’re just eager to learn more about our general mission here at Weber Scientific, we encourage you to visit our website.