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| PROJECT: RISK ASSESSMENT REUSE WATER BIGHORN FIRE SUPPRESSION SYSTEM REVIEW |
| LOCATION: Las Vegas, Nevada |
| CLIENT: Reliant Energy Wholesale Group |
| DESCRIPTION: Firefighters need to be comfortable with the fire protection water they use, and they should not have to worry about contamination in addition to the existing dangers of their job. Reuse water was being used for cooling purposes at a power generation facility. The owner proposed to use the same water for fire suppression; however, the Las Vegas Fire Department wanted an independent assessment of the occupational risks associated with using reclaimed water for fire suppression. The work entailed carrying out an investigation of fire departments that use reclaimed water, reviewing their experiences, documenting existing reuse water quality standards, and assessing the associated occupational health risks. The investigation concluded that existing reclaimed water quality standards were not adequate for fire fighting applications, as they do not take into consideration the potential for aspiration of micro-organisms, and the potential for the presence of micro-organisms which could cause illness if inhaled into the lungs. Recommendations were made for a modified water quality monitoring program incorporating additional microbial analyses, in addition to recommendations to modify the distribution systems design and introduce operating procedures to reduce occupational health risk. |
| ROLE: Specialist Consultant |