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Chlorine
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Disinfection of Drinking Water is the single most
important Public Health achievement in history.
Waterborne illnesses were by far the largest cause
of death before disinfection of public water systems,
and still are in many places of the world. If left
untreated, drinking water supplies (primarily from
surface water sources) will cause waterborne diseases
such as cholera, typhoid and dysentery. The cholera
epidemic in Latin America presents a clear example
of the constant threat from waterborne disease. "The
cholera epidemic in Latin America was fostered, at
least in part, by the misconception that Disinfection
Bi-Products pose a greater risk to public health
than pathogens. The epidemic which began in January
1991 and has now spread to all but one Latin American
country, has caused 1.3 million illnesses and almost
12,000 deaths." (Horst Otterstetter, Pan American
Health Organization and Gunther Craun, Journal
AWWA Sept. 1997). In developing countries, where
nearly half the population drinks contaminated water,
diarrheal diseases kill over 3 million children
annually.
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