Farmstead Drinking Water Sources, Concerns
And Safety Practices Of Livestock Farm Families
In Southern Alberta, Canada
Author(s)
M. Acharya, R. G. Kalischuk, K. K. Klein & H. Bjornlund
Abstract
The province of Alberta, like other provinces in Canada, has made considerable
progress in increasing supply of good quality water for domestic use and
consumption. However, the quality of rural drinking water in southern Alberta
has received considerable attention in recent years because of intensive
agricultural activities, livestock density, floods and the highest incidence of E
coli O157:H7 infection in the country. In fact relevant literature indicates that the
region’s water sources have high concentration levels of nitrate and/or coliform
bacteria that exceed drinking water guidelines thus threatening the health of local
farmers and residents. Little information is available on the farmstead drinking
water safety practices of livestock farm families in southern Alberta so an inperson
survey of feedlot farm families was carried out in Lethbridge Northern
Irrigation District (LNID), one of the 13 irrigation districts located in southern
Alberta. All respondents strongly agreed that access to safe and clean drinking
water is essential for human and animal health and performance and they
indicated that they use multiple water sources to avoid health problems. Other
drinking water safety practices included the use of bottled water and/or home
water treatment technologies for human consumption and the use of LNID
monitored irrigation water for feedlot operations and gardens. Regarding the type
of home water treatment technology used, a majority (over 70%) used filtered
water for cooking, drinking and washing. Only 9% used the city water supply for
domestic purposes and 6% depended on the LNID water supply. It was
interesting to note that 66% were concerned about their local water source and
67% were concerned about waterborne illnesses and 45% of respondents
reported that they tested their water quality annually.
Keywords: rural drinking water, water quality, water safety practices, water
testing, home water treatment systems, feedlot farm families, southern Alberta,
Canada.
Keywords
rural drinking water, water quality, water safety practices, water
testing, home water treatment systems, feedlot farm families, southern Alberta,
Canada.
Related Book
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