Public Health Risk Management Plans

Public Health Risk Management Plans (PHRMP) are written aids for New Zealand water suppliers to help identify and eliminate potential water contaminants. In accordance with New Zealand's Drinking Water Standards of 2005, the Ministry of Health requires that all New Zealand water suppliers develop a PHRMP. Each PHRMP varies according to the company utilizing it; however, each company builds its PHRMP off of the standard template issued by the Ministry of Health.

Features

• Public Health Risk Management Plans (PHRMP) contain three sections. The first section is a flowchart of the primary components of the company, including the intake, treatment and storage of the water. The second section of the PHRMP consists of a series of worksheets identifying areas within the primary components of the company that need immediate attention, as well as areas that have potential problems. Examples of potential problems requiring attention include machinery in need of repair, improper treatment of the water or unclean facilities. The third section of a PHRMP is a second series of worksheets addressing the problems identified in the second section. This outlines the solutions that should be implemented to fix the immediate problems and lists a series of preventative procedures to keep potential problems from occurring. Each PHRMP is unique depending on the water supplier's method of business and individual problems, but the template remains consistent.

Function

• Water being processed at a plant.

  PHRMPs act as an assurance to the public that water suppliers take every measure to ensure the safety of their drinking water. PHRMPs act as a daily checklist inside the company and act as evidence to the public that water suppliers are meeting Ministry of Health standards outside the company. The primary purpose of a PHRMP is to act as a safeguard against water contamination, including removing contaminants in the source, filtering particles from the water, killing germs and preventing recontamination. Besides serving as a health precaution and a public document of safety procedures, PHRMPs serve as required official documents that must be presented to Ministry of Health agents during annual inspections.

Advantages

• Advantages to the PHRMPs are found in the public, in the government and in the water supplier businesses. An assurance of quality drinking water serves the public, as well as the availability of the PHRMPs, which show all the safety precautions being taken. PHRMPs serve New Zealand's Ministry of Health by providing an efficient process of ensuring that water suppliers are meeting the Water Drinking Standards of 2005. The water suppliers themselves also benefit from the development of PHRMPs because the thorough inspection of their business process not only leads to better quality of water but also to a more cost-efficient method of business.