Treatment of drinking water

Hellooooo. Vibrio is the name. a "FIE... ndly" bacteria... you could say.

I love my work... which is, er, messing with your health! Hahaha! Come with me on an unforgettable journey, as I endure "The World's Toughest Water Treatment"... huh!...

From this reservoir, cities and villages in the area get their drinking water. The water is perfect to swim in, but it's not clean enough to drink. It must first be purified in a Treatment Works. In the water, there are pieces of dead plants and animals. And there are bacteria and other organisms - so small that they can only be seen through a microscope.

Yum! Lovely filth. I shall grow big and strong. The water that's pumped into the treatment works first passes through a filter that catches leaves, twigs, and fish. But bacteria and other tiny particles slip through easily.

So the water must be purified from both bacteria and dangerous toxins in several steps. First, the water is slowly filtered through a thick bed of sand. This is similar to what happens when water runs through the ground and becomes groundwater. That kind of water is absolutely pure. It can take months to filter the water.

During that time, bacteria - and other microorganisms - finish off all the half-decayed bits of plant or animal. When there is no food left to eat, most of the bacteria starve to death. But some bacteria still survive the starvation in the sand filter. Wooh, pure boot camp! Oh, a jacuzzi!

And the water feels heavenly! Air is injected into the water to remove iron and other metals. These bond with oxygen from the air - oxidize - and sink to the bottom. Some dissolved gases - like hydrogen sulphide (the one that smells like rotten eggs) - are removed in the same way. When air is pumped in, the oxygen and nitrogen molecules simply expel the hydrogen sulphide from the water.

In areas where the water has absorbed too much calcium (as "lime" or "limestone") from the ground, this must be removed. A substance called sodium hydroxide is added which makes the calcium form clumps and sink to the bottom. It's not dangerous to drink water with a lot of calcium - on the contrary! But calcium causes problems in water pipes, water heaters, and washing machines. Now, almost all dangerous substances are gone.

The water is pure and tastes good. But if there are any unwanted bacteria left - their time is up now. Oh, solarium. Let's get tanned... Many treatment works have lamps like in a solarium.

They shine with ultraviolet radiation - so called UV-light. That light will give you sunburn, but kills bacteria and other microorganisms. The UV-light penetrates deep into the microorganisms. Some die immediately, while others are prevented from reproducing. Uhh, that swimming pool aroma.

My time is up... uuuhhh. Chlorine is often poured into the water. This is a substance that kills bacteria. It also ensures that no new bacteria develop.

Meanwhile the water is pumped out in long, long pipes to households. If the treatment works has managed to destroy all the bacteria and other dangerous organisms - only a small amount of chlorine is needed - so the water doesn't smell or taste bad. I'll bring some water for our trip! Is the bottle clean enough? You don't want to get an upset stomach.