XN000022-1990-03-29 — Page 10

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THURSDAY, MARCH 29, 1990

THE NEW FORTNIGHTLY GRADING SYSTEM IS SHOWN

IN THE

FOLLOWING

TABLE:

NEW FORTNIGHTLY GRADING SYSTEM

E.COLI COUNT

GRADE

PER 100

MILLILITRE

OF WATER

EXPECTED HEALTH RISK:

REMARKS

CASES OF MINOR ILLNESS ¦ (WATER PER 1,000 SWIMMERS

QUALITY)

NOT MORE THAN 24

UNDETECTABLE

GOOD

N

NOT MORE THAN 180

NOT MORE THAN 10

FAIR

3

1

NOT MORE THAN 610

NOT MORE THAN 15

ACCEPTABLE

4

MORE THAN 610

MORE THAN 15

POOR

OF THE THIS IS IN LINE WITH THE RECOMMENDATION ORGANISATION (WHO) THAT LOCAL GUIDELINES SHOULD BE USED THE GENERALISED WHO GUIDELINES.

NEW

GRADING FORTNIGHTLY

SYSTEM OF

THE RANKING CRITERIA FOR THE ARE BASED ON LOCAL DATA ON HEALTH EFFECTS OF BEACH WATER POLLUTION HONG KONG AND THUS WILL SUIT THE LOCAL CONDITIONS.

WORLD HEALTH IN PLACE ON

NEW

FORTNIGHTLY GRADING SYSTEM

GRADED A

THE RANKING CRITERIA FOR THE

ARE SOMEWHAT MORE STRINGENT THAN IN THE PAST.

THE EFFECT OF THIS WILL BE THAT SOME BEACHES PREVIOUSLY "A" WOULD NO LONGER BE PLACED IN THE TOP RANKING BUT WILL NOW HAVE RANKING OF "2".

MEAN

WILL NOT NECESSARILY HOWEVER, SUCH A CHANGE IN RANKING

ONLY THAT THE THAT THERE HAS BEEN A DETERIORATION IN WATER QUALITY, EXISTING WATER QUALITY HAS A NEW RANKING UNDER THE NEW SYSTEM.

GRADINGS

ANOTHER POSSIBLE EFFECT IS THAT THE QUALITY MAY FLUCTUATE MORE FREQUENTLY BECAUSE OF THE OF E. COLI COUNTS BEING USED.

OF BEACH WATER NARROWER RANGES

FOR THE HEALTH PUBLIC AND MORE PRECISE INFORMATION DECISIONS AS TO WHETHER TO SWIM OR NOT.

WITH THE NEW THAT THE

OF

ON

MR HOLMES SAID THE PUBLIC MIGHT NOT BE FAMILIAR SYSTEM AT FIRST BUT ITS INTRODUCTION IS JUSTIFIED ON THE GROUNDS

BETTER SAFEGUARD IT WOULD PROVIDE BOTH A

GENERAL SWIMMERS AND THE WHICH THE PUBLIC MAY BASE

/AS IN

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