Supplying high quality drinking water to remote communities in Scotland

The supply of high-quality drinking water from small treatment works can be problematical and expensive. As the location of communities supplied becomes increasingly remote and isolated, the problems of water supply increase, become more costly and difficult to solve. In Scotland there are large numbers of these very small sites. Historically many received water piped straight from the hill with a dose of chlorine added, but this approach is no longer an option. All water supplied by the regional authorities in Scotland must comply with EC water quality legislation. The use of tubular membranes to remove colour causing natural organic matter and pathogens has proved a cost effective and reliable process for achieving full regulatory compliance. Tubular membranes have the advantages of using physical cleaning techniques and can operate on high turbidity waters without the requirement for prefiltration. Water produced by this process has proved to be of consistently high quality, particularly achieving very low concentrations of disinfection by products and removal of pathogens.