THE use of bottled water has become a trend in Guyana since most people nowadays have moved away from the use of tap water for drinking purposes.

A regular feature today is the apparent proliferation of water distributors countrywide, who sell their commodity in five-gallon bottles.

While this door-to-door service may be welcomed by new home-owners as it is convenient, ever so often, the questions being asked is how safe is the water being offered for sale.

The Government Analyst Food and Drug Department serves as the enforcement arm to ensure that all water processing facilities conform to all of the department’s requirements. This includes the sale and distribution of treated water in five- gallon bottles.

The Food and Drug Department has been reminding manufacturers and distributors that they are required to have a valid licence; ensure that the bottles that are being used are properly cleaned, sanitised, labelled and sealed, prior to the sale and/or distribution of the commodity.

In a recent interview with the Guyana Chronicle, Administrator of EMPRETEC Guyana, Erin Kirton, expressed concern about what appears to be an increase in the number of persons offering water for sale in the five-gallon bottles.

She cautioned that the Guyanese public should be concerned about their safety and the risk of consuming contaminated water; hence, they should not fall prey and purchase the commodity from unlicensed water operators.

In urging that water should only be purchased from licensed vendors to prevent health risks, Kirton pointed out that a lack of proper sanitation services not only breeds diseases, but can also rob people of their basic human dignity.

Kirton’s organisation has been offering a Water Operators Certification Programme. This training to certifying water operators is uniquely developed to enhance the method of water purification and distillation, and making it safer for human consumption. It is sanctioned by the Food and Drugs Analyst Department and certified by the University of Guyana (UG).

But according to her, apparently there is lack of enforcement.

“There is a gap somewhere, I sometimes get the impression that persons operating in the field feel that they are not mandated to be trained and certified,” she said.

EMPRETEC has to comply with the UG regulations, in terms of the training and conduct and the certificate being awarded is now accepted regionally, she added.

Kirton further explained that ideally, the manufacturers and distributors are supposed to be trained, and have at least two certified water operators in the business at all times.

But what has been happening is, most times, only one person attends the training and be certified for a particular business, so the question is what happens if that individual goes on leave, resigns or falls ill. It means then that the company will end up producing water that is unsafe.

Meanwhile, unlicensed vendors desirous of obtaining certification can contact EMPRETEC Guyana for details of the training which is a combination of tutorials and practical demonstrations, using state-of-the-art water purification equipment.

To be awarded the certification, participants are required to attend all of the sessions which will be facilitated by experienced and qualified local specialists.

EMPRETEC is a United Nations programme established by UNCTAD’s Division of Investment and Enterprise to promote the creation of sustainable small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). EMPRETEC works to support entrepreneurs to build innovative and internationally competitive SMEs.