Water safety plans (WSPS)

The implementation of a Water Safety Plan (WSP) is required pur- suant to the Decree of the Italian Ministry of Health of 14/06/2017, in implementation of EU Directive 2015/1787, which adopted the WSP methodology developed by the World Health Organization (WHO). Use of the WSP enables prevention and reduction of the risks inherent in the drinking water service, analysing dangerous events along the entire water supply chain, from collection to treat- ment and distribution, and through to the user's meter. The risk is calculated on the basis of the severity and probability of the pol- lution event or water shortage and after such assessment, the fol- lowing are defined: actions to mitigate risks, monitoring systems, operating procedures under normal and emergency conditions, the water quality control plan, and the methods for informing the pub- lic and the competent authorities. In Italy, the Istituto Superiore di Sanità (ISS) has adopted WHO guidelines and approves WSPs.

Acea Ato 2 began implementation of the WSPs back in 2018, with an initial pilot project for the water system connected with the emergency drinking water plant for water from the river Tiber, in the Grottarossa area, with supervision of the Istituto Superiore di Sanità (ISS). For the WSP in question (completed in 2019), in 2020 the initial draft of the Plan was finished and submitted to the Ministry of Health. The Company has therefore launched the WSPs for the ten major aqueduct systems managed, stretching approximate- ly 640 km. At 31/12/2021 the WSPs for the following aqueduct systems had been completed and submitted to the Ministry of Health: Peschiera-Capore, Appio Alessandrino, Marcio, new and old Simbrivio aqueducts, Laurentino and new Vergine aqueduct. In December 2021, a final meeting was held on the WSP of the Doganella aqueduct system, for which submission of documentation to the Ministry of Health is expected in 2022. Since April 2021, Acea Ato 2 has also launched implementation of the WSPs for the distribution networks, starting with the municipality of Guidonia Montecelio, for which the documentation has been shared with the Bodies involved, in November 2021. Overall, implementation of the Water Safety Plans in Acea Ato 2 will involve 100% of the popula- tion served by aqueduct systems and from sources managed locally. AdF also launched a project back in 2019 for the development and implementation of the Water Safety Plan, focusing initially on the aqueduct systems of the Santa Fiora springs, for six Water Supply Zones (WSZ) and a basin with 2,775 residents. The project, com- pleted at the end of 2021, saw active involvement of the main stakeholders in the local area (local bodes/local health authority/ ARPAT/District Basin Authority) and activation of a hydrogeologi- cal and geochemical study on the Santa Fiora springs, conducted in 2020 in the context of a scientific partnership with the Institute of Geoscience and Georesources of the Pisa branch of the CNR (Na- tional Research Council). Through the project, AdF acquired the necessary know-how to develop a planning tool as detailed by the new EU Directive 2020/2184 on drinking-water quality, through refinement of a methodology for describing the environmental context and aqueduct infrastructures required for the subsequent risk assessment phase, according to an FMEA (Failure Mode and Effect Analysis) approach. In 2021, WSPs were created on the wa- ter systems fed solely by the North branch of the Dorsale Fiora resource, for 16 WSZs and more than 17,000 citizens.

After creating a cloud environment in 2020 for sharing, also with Control Bodies, of information on the drinking-water supply chain and useful for the implementation and approval of WSPs, in 2021 GORI, completed activity for the description of aqueduct systems, with requests being sent to the relevant local health authorities to identify the necessary figures for risk assessment, control measures and their efficacy. Operating Instructions and procedures are being drafted for the management of documents and accesses to the cloud, along with an operating instruction manual for risk management.

In 2021, Gesesa continued with training plans and authorisations on the draining necessary to manage WPSs, which will be prepared in collaboration with the University of Sannio. During the year, Acea Ato 5 set up a multifunctional in-house team for implementation of plans.