Waterborne Diseases on the Rise

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CDC: Waterborne Diseases on the Rise

By DANIEL YEE, Associated Press Writer

ATLANTA (AP) - Outbreaks of disease from drinking water and swimming

pools

have risen dramatically in recent years despite improvements in

publicly

operated water systems, the government said Thursday.

One of the chief causes includes insufficient regulation of private

wells,

the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (news - web sites)

said.

" Many of these drinking-water outbreaks are preventable, " said

Sherline Lee

of the CDC. " Whether from the tap or a bottle, the public should

think about

where their water comes from and whether it has been made safe. "

About 70 percent of the outbreaks traced to swimming pools involved

the

chlorine-resistant organism cryptosporidium, the CDC said. Germs

found in

wells and other sources of drinking water can include parasites such

as

giardia and cryptosporidium and bacteria such as E. coli and

salmonella.

In 1999 and 2000, the latest years for which numbers are available,

there

were a total of 39 outbreaks involving drinking water in 25 states,

the CDC

reported. That is more than double the 17 outbreaks reported in 1997-

98.

The sharp rise comes even as outbreaks in regulated public water

systems

decline, and indicates that owners of private wells must " make sure

the well

is properly constructed, maintained or tested, " Lee said.

A.J. Englande, professor of environmental science at Tulane

University, said

many private wells are not deep enough and can easily be contaminated

from

animal feces carried in from a storm.

" We're just finding out the overall severity of the problem, "

Englande said.

Despite the rise in outbreaks, the number of people sickened by them

remained steady. A total of 2,038 people were made ill by drinking

water

outbreaks in 1997-98, compared with 2,027 in 1999-2000. Two people

died and

122 people were hospitalized in drinking water outbreaks in 1999 and

2000,

the CDC said.

In 1999-2000, nearly 2,100 people in 23 states were sickened in 59

outbreaks

involving swimming pools and other recreational sources, such as hot

springs

and lakes. Four died and 25 were hospitalized.

In 1997-98 there were 32 disease outbreaks involving pools and other

recreational sources that sickened 2,128 people in 18 states.

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