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Mohawk Valley Water Authority (MVWA) recognized that an early warning system must reliably identifycontamination events in source water or distribution systems in time to allow an effective response to preventexposure. MVWA has examined and implemented several on-line monitoring systems and incorporated rapidmethods into the daily water quality monitoring routine. This paper is a continuation of a case study presented atthe 2002 WQTC and the 2003 Water Security Congress examining the equipment and methods chosen byMVWA. The installation, modifications and implementation of the methods chosen are chronicled along withthe problems encountered, an evaluation of the reliability of the data generated and the approach adopted byMVWA to interpret the data generated by the EWS.The case study evaluates rapid methods including flow cytometry and vital dyes for evaluation of Total Biomassand Total Viable Organisms (TVO) in water, real time PCR for identification of pathogenic microorganisms, andthe evaluation of several toxicity testing methods utilizing luminescent bacteria, Daphnia magna and submitochondrialparticles.After a successful pilot installation, on-line microchips used to monitor water quality parameters were installed byMVWA at several strategic locations in the distribution system. This study examines the installation of themicrochips and the telemetry devices, the problems encountered, the design of an autosampler programmed totake water samples when a preset water quality parameter has been violated and the integration of the datagenerated by the microchips into the SCADA system. The study also evaluates the installation and use of an onlinegas chromatograph (GC) used to monitor source waters for volatile organic chemicals.In addition, MVWA has developed a water quality model and considers it to be a critical component of our earlywarning system. Equally important is the preparation of a process or plan that provides guidelines for the type andextent of a response to an alarm. The EWS has many pieces that must be carefully chosen and put into place tocomplete the puzzle unique to each water system. Includes 24 references, tables, figures.

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Edition: Vol. - No. Published: 11/15/2004 Number of Pages: 19File Size: 1 file , 830 KB